Trailer King Tires

[notanlines]

We live in the Memphis area and I can still remember some of the turmoil from national news almost 30 years ago. As a small boy we always traveled from Wisconsin south through the Chicago area to visit our relatives. After the bridge finally opened my dad drove us over the bridge at every opportunity instead. Who wouldn't trade crossing that bridge over another trip through the Windy City traffic? I still love that bridge AND watching the video of the construction.

[kidzpa46]

Thanks JRTJH, pictures say it all!

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[rjrelander]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

Knowing the little that I do about how Keystone buys components, they buy in large quantities from the lowest bidder and buy as much as they can at the lowest price. So, if Sterling Sport ST tires are cheaper than Trailer King ST tires, you can pretty much be assured that Keystone will install what is least expensive component that meets their requirements.

Kind of off topic since the Sterling Sport ST are not Trailer King ST (unless they just changed company names to protect themselves) but in the case of our 2017 1750RD it looks like they might not even meet requirements. The trailer is a single axle with 4400 GVWR. The sidewalls are stamped with a load rating D but show a max single load of 2040 lbs. instead of 2200 lbs. At least that was the spare that I looked at this morning. Will double check the other ones when I get home. I suppose it's possible that it might be a cheaper spare.

We travel light and (relatively) slow so I'm not "too" terribly concerned but I might have made a bad ***-umption that I could get at least one season out of a brand new set of tires. Didn't even think about looking up data on the tires until this Trailer King discussion came up. I am already OCD about tire pressure and tread inspection but it sounds like that isn't enough. With the single axle, we are on the ground if something blows.

It is almost light enough for the DW to hold up while I change a tire though.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by rjrelander

Kind of off topic since the Sterling Sport ST are not Trailer King ST (unless they just changed company names to protect themselves) but in the case of our 1750RD it looks like they might not even meet requirements. The trailer is a single axle with and 4400 GVWR. The sidewalls are stamped with a load rating D but show a max single load of 2040 lbs. instead of 2200 lbs. At least that was the spare that I looked at this morning. Will double check the other ones when I get home. My guess is that they are the same but it might be a cheaper spare.

We travel light and (relatively) slow so I'm not "too" terribly concerned but I might have made a bad ***-umption that I could get at least one season out of a brand new set of tires. Didn't even think about looking up data on the tires until this Trailer King discussion came up. I am already OCD about the tire pressure and tread inspection. With the single axle, we are on the rim (or the ground) right away if something blows.

I would take them off now. You are in the same boat I was but I found out too late. I suspect that you will find that your tires at 2040 will just barely support the weight of the trailer after you subtract the tongue weight. Mine was the same way only my gvw is 10k. That's all well and good for the RV manufacturer but it leaves the owner in a bad spot.

If your tires are weighted say 150 lbs. below their max weight (allowing for the tongue weight) that's not enough IMO. When you hit highways like I20 in Jackson MS or other locations, and you are bouncing with the tail of your truck/nose of the trailer in the air, you will have far more than the max weight allowed being forced on the tires. Potholes etc. the same. The tire is already maxed out by the trailer then you have all these anomalies pounding it - it will fail. That, plus the fact that if they are a China bomb they were going to fail prematurely anyway.

You only have 2 tires and it won't cost much to just put 2 new, good quality tires on it. The peace of mind and increased level of safety will be worth it. Look at the video busterbrown posted in the thread about sway control or not. None of us want to be there and with 2 tires one failure could be catastrophic.

[xrated]

Originally Posted by rjrelander

Kind of off topic since the Sterling Sport ST are not Trailer King ST (unless they just changed company names to protect themselves) but in the case of our 2017 1750RD it looks like they might not even meet requirements. The trailer is a single axle with 4400 GVWR. The sidewalls are stamped with a load rating D but show a max single load of 2040 lbs. instead of 2200 lbs. At least that was the spare that I looked at this morning. Will double check the other ones when I get home. I suppose it's possible that it might be a cheaper spare.

We travel light and (relatively) slow so I'm not "too" terribly concerned but I might have made a bad ***-umption that I could get at least one season out of a brand new set of tires. Didn't even think about looking up data on the tires until this Trailer King discussion came up. I am already OCD about tire pressure and tread inspection but it sounds like that isn't enough. With the single axle, we are on the rim if something blows.

It is almost light enough for the DW to hold it up while I change the tire though.

You are OK with that load range tires. What you are forgetting is that the tires DO NOT carry the GVW of the trailer.....part of it is carried on the tongue, as tongue weight.

[rjrelander]

Originally Posted by xrated

You are OK with that load range tires. What you are forgetting is that the tires DO NOT carry the GVW of the trailer.....part of it is carried on the tongue, as tongue weight.

Ahh, you're right. That would be (4400 - 440) / 2 = 1980, assuming that everything isn't hanging off the back of the trailer. I'm still going to take the advice of others and start looking for a decent set to replace the existing ones though. Mainly, like John mentioned earlier, there's not a lot of information about the tire distributor. Lionshead Speciality Tire & Wheel, LLC registered the "Sterling Sport ST" trademark in 2015 but they aren't on the website. Private label for Keystone maybe?

[MarcS]

Forest River uses Lionshead tires also.

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[CrazyCain]

Originally Posted by notanlines

We live in the Memphis area and I can still remember some of the turmoil from national news almost 30 years ago. As a small boy we always traveled from Wisconsin south through the Chicago area to visit our relatives. After the bridge finally opened my dad drove us over the bridge at every opportunity instead. Who wouldn't trade crossing that bridge over another trip through the Windy City traffic? I still love that bridge AND watching the video of the construction.

IMHO, the Mackinac Bridge is Michigan's Jewel!!!! Even though it is spelled Mackinac, most people say mackinAW..myself included, confusing because of Mackinaw City, but there is Mackinac Island and then there is..................ahhhh forget it!!!!!

[dcg9381]

Originally Posted by rjrelander

Sterling Sport ST are not Trailer King ST (unless they just changed company names to protect themselves)

What you're suggesting would not be unheard of at all. Sterling seems to be imported by a company in Goshen, IN (surprise). I see the mod beat me to it.

The company that imports them seems to have gone live sometime in 2015.

Publish the DOT code. We'll be able to tell you where they are built.

Personally, I'm just enough conspiracy theorist to think that the names of these tires get rotated a lot to prevent building up DOT complaints and clear rates of failure. The fact that this is a Goshen LLC business, started in 2015, yea.. well...

First thing that happened to my Keystone RV was a trip to the tire store, right off the dealer lot.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by rjrelander

Ahh, you're right. That would be (4400 - 440) / 2 = 1980, assuming that everything isn't hanging off the back of the trailer. I'm still going to take the advice of others and start looking for a decent set to replace the existing ones though. Mainly, like John mentioned earlier, there's not a lot of information about the tire distributor. Lionshead Speciality Tire & Wheel, LLC registered the "Sterling Sport ST" trademark in 2015 but they aren't on the website. Private label for Keystone maybe?

With the capacities of the tires so close to the gvw of the trailer you probably should try to go up a load range as well.

[B-O-B'03]

Our 2104 trailer was built in Feb, 2014, we purchased it in Apr, 2015, so it sat on the lot for a year.

We put 6 or 7 thousand miles on it our first 2 seasons and before the start of this season I replaced all 5 tires, with Carlisle HD and went up a load range.

The TK tires looked pretty new, but they had 2012 and 2013 date codes and I figured it was not worth the headache keeping them.

We have around 2500 miles on the new tires so far and no issues.

-Brian

[CWtheMan]

Originally Posted by rjrelander

Ahh, you're right. That would be (4400 - 440) / 2 = 1980, assuming that everything isn't hanging off the back of the trailer. I'm still going to take the advice of others and start looking for a decent set to replace the existing ones though. Mainly, like John mentioned earlier, there's not a lot of information about the tire distributor. Lionshead Speciality Tire & Wheel, LLC registered the "Sterling Sport ST" trademark in 2015 but they aren't on the website. Private label for Keystone maybe?

You probably have a 3900#/4000# GAWR axle. The 2040# tires are legal fitments for either axle. However, if you’re planning on a lot of trips you should get serious about going up a size to the ST215/75R14D. It’s just a little taller but should fit in your wheel well. It will give you 2200# of load capacity per tire. The next upgrade would require 15” rims and tires. Most of the popular brands can provide both of those sizes.

Note; All RV trailer tires are fitted to the vehicle’s GAWR values listed on the tire placard, certification label and in the owner’s manual. The trailer’s total GAWR and hitch pin weigh must carry the vehicle’s GVWR.

[Tinner12002]

Just for a little possibly unknown info, the warranty phone # for my new tires on my Raptor which are Sailuns, also list Towmax and Trailer King for the same number...made by the same company???

[sourdough]

They are distributed by TBC brands in the U.S. I believe the Sailuns are manufactured in a different plant/province in China from the TowMax/Trailer King tires if I recall. There have been several discussions on this on the forum if you use the search function.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by Tinner12002

Just for a little possibly unknown info, the warranty phone # for my new tires on my Raptor which are Sailuns, also list Towmax and Trailer King for the same number...made by the same company???

Manufactured in different plants in China by different rubber companies, distributed in the USA by TBC Brands, Inc. http://www.tbcbrands.com/

[rhagfo]

Well my solution to tire damage issues is to put LT E rated truck tires on our 12,360# GVWR 5er. Tires carry a 3,042# weight rating each, so 12,168# total capacity. So with a 2,400# pin currently, and about 11,600# GVW well with in the rating, and a tire that needs to need stricter standards than the ST tires.

[Outback 325BH]

Originally Posted by rhagfo

Well my solution to tire damage issues is to put LT E rated truck tires on our 12,360# GVWR 5er. Tires carry a 3,042# weight rating each, so 12,168# total capacity. So with a 2,400# pin currently, and about 11,600# GVW well with in the rating, and a tire that needs to need stricter standards than the ST tires.

Many of us have installed LT tires and have never looked back. You'll be happy with that decision.

Lots of ST lovers will poo-poo the idea of using LT tires, however the track records of each type of tire speaks for themselves.

Tires are a non-concern of mine once I switched to LT.


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[SummitPond]

When I went to replace my Trailer King China bombs, the tire dealer informed me he would not put LT tires on for me. My intent was to buy the Carlisle Radial Trail HD (which I did, and one-upped the load rating), but I asked the question just to see what I was told. When I asked why, he stated he could only put on what the type the trailer label stated.

As I was confused as to the difference between the tire types, I did a little search. Here are three links describing the difference between ST and LT; the first one seems to have the best info.

https://rvingwithmarkpolk.com/2012/1...s-vs-lt-tires/

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiret...jsp?techid=219

https://www.etrailer.com/question-59480.html

[RLo]

Well after stating I have had issue free trailer kings I blew one out on the way home from Wisconsin. Blew a big hole in the tread, was only 5 miles from where we stayed. Luckily it didn't tear anything up. Now to find a decent tire for 15s

[bdaniel]

I have put LT load range E tires on a 2002 Forest River Wildcat and a 2014 Keystone 325SRX and had excellent results. They are much better tires than any ST tire.

http://bobbystuff.com/rv/192/another-exploding-st-tire

Bobby