Trailer replacement tire question

[woprairie]

Help! ![]( need to replace my trailer tires on my 2005 Sundowner 3H GN trailer. It has the original tires and I am afraid of dry rot and a blow out. Always stored inside but want to be safe and upgrade. What tires do you all recommend? Trailer is alum. skin, steel frame. Existing tire: LT 235 /85R16 120/116Q M+S Load range E Looks like Uniroyal radial “Laredo” tires. This is confusing, don’t want to just go by tire store recommendation as they don’t haul horses.

Q

[IMG]https://cdn.discounttire.com/sys-master/images/h1a/hc4/8811615977502)
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Taskmaster Tire

Contender TTT868

ST235 /85 R16 128M F1 RBL

ITEM# 32396

F1 Load Range Are these suitable?

[CFFarm]

Contact the trailer manufacturer and ask what they recommend. Or find a trailer service center. Usually if a place does boat trailers they do horse trailers.

[Obsidian_Fire]

Tire centers know what to use. The tires have a specific load rating on them, they know this. I’ve never had an issue with my local tire guys.

[wsmoak]

Goodyear has started manufacturing tires in the US again, and that’s what I’m using currently.

https://www.goodyear.com/en-US/tires/endurance-trailer-tire

You have 16" wheels so you will have no problem finding a load range E tire.

Quality can be all over the place though… from previous experience, there are brands I avoid. And I carry two spares.

[Brigitte]

I’ve started looking recently for new trailer tires and I was surprised to find many of the “go-to” tire places near me no longer have trailer specific tires in my trailer size. They are happy to sell me truck tires that match the size.

I found the Goodyears that wsmoak linked to. Also, you can go to tirerack.com and plug in your size. They will ship directly to an installer of your choice. I found a couple of choices on their site last time I looked for mine. (TS235/85 16).

The “TS” designates trailer tire from I have gathered.

Maybe someone can post the pros and cons of staying with a trailer specific tire. I think it has something to do with sidewalls.

[hosspuller]

“ST” is the trailer tire designation. Their speed rating is 65 mph max. Since you have 16 inch wheels, I would purchase “LT” tires Load range “E” (Which is what you have on the trailer)

[old_whip]

Good question. I purchased a new trailer and to my surprise a few years later discovered the manufacturer had put on passenger vehicle tires. When I discovered it I had trailer tires put on all around. Even the farm supply stores lacked trailer tires. The 5th place had only 4 in stock so I still have a passenger tire as the spare on that trailer. My other trailer has the ST tires, 16 inch same as your trailer.
.

[Risuena]

@wsmoak

Goodyear has started manufacturing tires in the US again, and that’s what I’m using currently.

https://www.goodyear.com/en-US/tires/endurance-trailer-tire

You have 16" wheels so you will have no problem finding a load range E tire.

Quality can be all over the place though… from previous experience, there are brands I avoid. And I carry two spares.

I got a new (to me) trailer at the beginning of the year and ended up replacing the tires soon after. I’m far from an expert, but after reading everything I could online, I ended up getting these same tires.

My main lesson learned was to buy the best tire you can afford.

I got mine from Discount Tire, and took advantage of a couple of promotions they were having - made getting these tires a comparable price to the “cheaper” ones.

I did read a lot of debate about getting ST vs LT tires and ended up deciding that I definitely wanted ST, though I couldn’t tell you all the pros and cons anymore.

[Where_sMyWhite]

Don’t forget to replace the spare tire at the same time if it is also original equipment

[Southernboy]

Most trailer tires will age out long before the tread is gone. When shopping for a tire only use the store that will guarantee you that the tires they put on will have been manufactured within the last year. There is no reason to give dry rot a head start.

[hosspuller]

@Southernboy

Most trailer tires will age out long before the tread is gone. When shopping for a tire only use the store that will guarantee you that the tires they put on will have been manufactured within the last year. There is no reason to give dry rot a head start.

Easy to do yourself. Just look at the DOT date code on the sidewall of the tire. First two digits is week of the year, last two digits is year.

[Madhouse]

Here is a good article on ST vs LT tires. It’s from a RV forum - but we are still talking trailers…:

https://rvingwithmarkpolk.com/2012/11/08/trailer-towing-st-tires-vs-lt-tires/

[Southernboy]

H/P, it is easy to do. But you would be surprised to know how many tire dealers won’t guarantee you the tires will be 12 months old or newer. If you don’t make it part of your order, they are not required to do it. The Discount Tire store guaranteed it.

[Magicboy]

My Discount tire place ordered what I needed

[clanter]

@Risuena

I did read a lot of debate about getting ST vs LT tires and ended up deciding that I definitely wanted ST, though I couldn’t tell you all the pros and cons anymore.

It is my understanding the LT tires have sidewalls that can flex to provide greater comfort while the ST tires the sidewalls are stiffer to provide greater load capability with less flex thus less heat build up = less chance of tire failure by blow-outs

[akdraft77]

I’d just ask the tire guys. Their whole job is to know.

They may not haul horses, but they sell tires to people that haul loads a lot heavier than that. They ought to know their stuff.

[Amordoro]

I highly recommend Michelin XPS Ribs in this size. These are labeled LT, but they are actually Michelin commercial truck tires rated for “all position” use - drive, steer, or trailer - which means they are just as appropriate for trailer use as any ST tire, but the construction is light years better. For one thing, ST tires simply don’t undergo the same degree of testing as tires that are to be used on passenger vehicles. But the XPS Ribs in particular are especially tough - they are steel belted in the sidewalls as well as the tread.

I started using them after a lot of research after a blowout on I-81 of a (well-maintained, properly inflated) ST tire on my 3H GN (while carrying 2 horses). They are quite expensive, it’s true, but I’ve found the (relative) peace of mind a worthwhile expense. Google and you’ll find them exceedingly popular and highly thought of among towers of RVs as well as horse trailers, and you’ll find lots of info about them, especially as they’ve been around a while (there’s less about the Goodyear Endurance, which are very new still). I’ve found RV forums to be good sources of information and opinion about this sort of thing.

I however don’t fully agree with the “ask the tire guys” advice. You might find a good one, but in my experience, lots of “tire guys” have no idea what they’re talking about when it comes to trailers. Neither do lots of “trailer guys” for that matter!