China Bombs

[Shasta Bob]

China Bombs gone for good. 2019 Cougar fifth wheel 315 RLS, Changed out to Hercules tires 14 ply thanks. I didn't wish to be setting alongside of the road with the side of my fifth wheel torn off.

[rhagfo]

Originally Posted by Shasta Bob

China Bombs gone for good. 2019 Cougar fifth wheel 315 RLS, Changed out to Hercules tires 14 ply thanks. I didn't wish to be setting alongside of the road with the side of my fifth wheel torn off.

That is a lot of tire for a 5er with a 12,400# GVWR, should serve you well, what is the weight rating of that tire.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by Shasta Bob

China Bombs gone for good. 2019 Cougar fifth wheel 315 RLS, Changed out to Hercules tires 14 ply thanks. I didn't wish to be setting alongside of the road with the side of my fifth wheel torn off.

i wanted to step up to a higher load range but i’m limited by my wheel psi specs

[MJCougler]

The 2019 Keystone 25RES RV I just purchased has 5-year old tires. They appear to be in good shape, and do not yet show wear or signs of aging. However, I tow it from upstate NY to GA and NC once or twice a year. An RV salesman (not mine) said I wouldn't change them or install new just because of the 5-years of age. And he suggested to install LT tires.

I understand the need to replace them with the tires specified on the side sticker. And, if you install one size bigger, there could be worse damage in event of a blowout. And, many RV owners do not understand the importance of staying below the speed rating, and maintaining the MAX air pressure in-bedded on the side of the tires.

All things considered, what is the advantage of higher speed rated ST tires, and what is wrong with using LT tires?

[bobbecky]

Higher speed rated tires just means they are better able to handle the heat, and LT tires for the same size as ST tires are usually rated lower in weight capacity which is the wrong way to go with any of these rigs. At the very least, you should always have tires that are what your tire placard says you should use, never less.

[notanlines]

Most experienced rv’ers on these sites will tell you your tires need to go, now! Five years is a year too many.

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by notanlines

Most experienced rv’ers on these sites will tell you your tires need to go, now! Five years is a year too many.

Most experienced rv'ers on these sites will tell you that if it came out of the lips of an RV salesperson, it is likely to be either incorrect, wrong or just plain dangerous.

Stick with SPECIAL TRAILER (ST) tires and 5 years the tires you have may look great but are likely aged out and much more likely to fail. Suggest you look at load range E tires which may be one load range higher than specified. I have a 28.7' fifth wheel that came from the factory with LRD tires and have upgraded to LRE (Carlisle Radial Trail HD). A good tire for the money; check Walmart.com and order them in and have a tire shop install for the best value.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by MJCougler

The 2019 Keystone 25RES RV I just purchased has 5-year old tires. They appear to be in good shape, and do not yet show wear or signs of aging. However, I tow it from upstate NY to GA and NC once or twice a year. An RV salesman (not mine) said I wouldn't change them or install new just because of the 5-years of age. And he suggested to install LT tires.

I understand the need to replace them with the tires specified on the side sticker. And, if you install one size bigger, there could be worse damage in event of a blowout. And, many RV owners do not understand the importance of staying below the speed rating, and maintaining the MAX air pressure in-bedded on the side of the tires.

All things considered, what is the advantage of higher speed rated ST tires, and what is wrong with using LT tires?

You were given bad advice - a trailer tire ages out unless you do one heck of a lot of towing. If those are 5 years old I assume they are OE tires. If they are is the brand Trailer King? They probably are and if so they are 4 years and 11 months past replacement time - their reliability reputation is dismal. One of my TKs, just starting my 2nd trip with a new trailer, decided to let go about 42 miles after I left the house on a rural highway. Along with the $7k in damages came a new set of Carlisle Radial Trail HDs.

ST tires are "special trailer" tires designed specifically for the loads and unique stresses that carrying a large RV on top of them produces. An LT tire is a "light truck" tire built for the specific needs that a light truck has....which are far different from a trailer. Some folks like LT tires but it's sort of like square pegs in a round hole - they weren't meant for the application. LT tires WERE recommended at one time in the past for some RVs but I've not seen any in years.

Below is a link to a little video about flipped shackles instead of tires. Watch the very beginning of the video and the person in the video will show you one of the things that happens with literally new RV tires. There are many other crazy things that happen to the bombs that you can never see until they go bang. Watching the video I will tell you that the bomb that went off on my trailer would have looked like his - my tread peeled off from edge to edge all the way around. I would recommend some Carlisles or Goodyear Endurance (Carlisles are cheaper).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjZ2gbiBvXI

[dutchmensport]

You made a good call. I put Hercules tires (14 ply) on my fifth wheel 5 years ago. I've never regreted it. They are still doing well.

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by dutchmensport

You made a good call. I put Hercules tires (14 ply) on my fifth wheel 5 years ago. I've never regreted it. They are still doing well.

See post #4. The OP has 16" rims and can use the Herc tires where the guy in #4 has 15" rims and likely his RV came with LRD initially and would likely want to consider LRE. Hercules does make an LRF 15" tire but I suspect the rated PSI upper end exceeds what is acceptable for my rims or #4's rims.

https://www.prioritytire.com/hercule...20group%20%231

Anyone know what the max PSI for LRF is? I think 12 ply tires are a bit of overkill if the camper came with LRD initially... opinions?

[sourdough]

The F load range runs 95psi. The gvwr of the Cougar 25res from post #4 is 10k lbs. 225/75r15 lre tires have a load capacity of 2860lbs. ea. as I recall for a total load capacity of 11,440 which should be enough for that trailer particularly if you subtract the pin weight.

I found a Hercules in the same size in a LRF but figure it comes with the 95psi rating. The OE wheels on the above trailer very well may not accommodate that pressure.

https://www.bbwheelsonline.com/hercu...CABEgKXTfD_BwE

[CWtheMan]

https://www.federalregister.gov/docu...-noncompliance


Bottom line: "However, any decision on this petition does not relieve commodity distributors of the prohibitions on the sale, offer for sale, or introduction or delivery for introduction into interstate commerce of the noncompliant tires under their control after Hercules notified them that the subject noncompliance existed."

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by CWtheMan

https://www.federalregister.gov/docu...-noncompliance


Bottom line: "However, any decision on this petition does not relieve commodity distributors of the prohibitions on the sale, offer for sale, or introduction or delivery for introduction into interstate commerce of the noncompliant tires under their control after Hercules notified them that the subject noncompliance existed."

Not sure why this info was submitted as Hercules had the date code written upsidedown on 13" ST tires and said it didn't affect their safety. Hercules cited a couple other manufacturers who did the same thing and seem to have been taken off the hook.

[rhagfo]

Well our Copper Canyon came with LT235/85-16 tires from the factory. Our 5th wheel has a GVWR of 12,360#. We replaced the OEM tires at 12 year of age, still no cracking on sidewalls. We replaced with Yokohama LT tires and those still look good.
Personally I believe that ST tires are of inferior quality to P or LT tires. They are simply a cheaper option to LT tires. Our tires have a weight rating of 3,042# ea, and a speed rating of 103 mph. I don't tow above 70 mph.
Then there is the sidewall discussion,some say ST tires have softer more flexible sidewalls, while others state they are stiffer. Well semis run the same tire casings on all tires, be it steer, drivers, or trailer tires.
Many up their trailer tires to a higher load range, yet run OEM tires on their TV, even when close to max weight rating.
JMHO.

[CWtheMan]

Originally Posted by rhagfo

Well our Copper Canyon came with LT235/85-16 tires from the factory. Our 5th wheel has a GVWR of 12,360#. We replaced the OEM tires at 12 year of age, still no cracking on sidewalls. We replaced with Yokohama LT tires and those still look good.
Personally I believe that ST tires are of inferior quality to P or LT tires. They are simply a cheaper option to LT tires. Our tires have a weight rating of 3,042# ea, and a speed rating of 103 mph. I don't tow above 70 mph.
Then there is the sidewall discussion,some say ST tires have softer more flexible sidewalls, while others state they are stiffer. Well semis run the same tire casings on all tires, be it steer, drivers, or trailer tires.
Many up their trailer tires to a higher load range, yet run OEM tires on their TV, even when close to max weight rating.
JMHO.

In production years 2003 - 2006 there were many Keystone RV trailers fitted with LT tires (LT235/85R16 LRE) for 6000# axles. The common brands were Uniroyal and Mission. Because they provided very little load capacity reserves, their failure rate was comparable to the ST235/80R16 LRD that were later used on 6000# axles, those ST tires had zero load capacity reserves.

In the above years, large ST tires were in their infancy. Today they build ST tires for all RV situations.

RV trailer builders are at liberty to select P, LT or ST tires for original equipment fitments as long as they follow the rules/regulations set forth in FMVSS standards.

Our 2003 Keystone Everest was fitted with Good Year ST235/80R16 LRD tires. All failed in the first year. I don't think any of the ST manufacturers provide that designated size in a LRD today.

Note: Truckers -"semis" - tires are regulated by a completely different set of rules/regulations.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

Not sure why this info was submitted as Hercules had the date code written upsidedown on 13" ST tires and said it didn't affect their safety. Hercules cited a couple other manufacturers who did the same thing and seem to have been taken off the hook.

Looking at the linked document, it doesn't look like a "proper filing" to me. Hercules used the federal requirements for tires used on motor vehicles with a GVWR greater than 10K pounds to file the notice about a trailer tire that was non-compliant.

Hercules Power ST2 radial trailer tires do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 119, New Pneumatic Tires for Motor Vehicles with a GVWR of more than 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds).

They were reporting a "TIN (tire date molding) for tires built with an "upside down TIN, in size 175 80R13. I don't know of any 13" ST tire that can be used on a trailer that heavy.

Approximately 700 Hercules Power ST2 radial trailer tires, size ST175/80R13, manufactured between October 4, 2021, and October 10, 2021


So, I'd guess that even though the document was published in the Federal Register, Hercules filed it using the incorrect regulation for reporting that size tire. So, I'd suspect there's a "refiling using the correct regulation" somewhere further down the line.

This was probably an administrative error is why there's no conclusion or approved corrective action by NHTSA.

To me, this is just another example of the "regulation quagmire" in the federal government.

[CWtheMan]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

Not sure why this info was submitted as Hercules had the date code written upsidedown on 13" ST tires and said it didn't affect their safety. Hercules cited a couple other manufacturers who did the same thing and seem to have been taken off the hook.

Hercules tires are manufactured by Cooper. Cooper has more than 60 tire plants worldwide. Almost all brands of ST tires are built in China plants.

It is very easy to verify where the tire was built by cross referencing the plant code, molded into the tire sidewall, with an approved plant code PDF.

China has a history of placing invalid information on tire sidewalls.

One thing most people overlook is the fact that US Customs perform the first check on tires entering the USA from other countries.

[rhagfo]

Originally Posted by CWtheMan

In production years 2003 - 2006 there were many Keystone RV trailers fitted with LT tires (LT235/85R16 LRE) for 6000# axles. The common brands were Uniroyal and Mission. Because they provided very little load capacity reserves, their failure rate was comparable to the ST235/80R16 LRD that were later used on 6000# axles, those ST tires had zero load capacity reserves.

In the above years, large ST tires were in their infancy. Today they build ST tires for all RV situations.

RV trailer builders are at liberty to select P, LT or ST tires for original equipment fitments as long as they follow the rules/regulations set forth in FMVSS standards.

Our 2003 Keystone Everest was fitted with Good Year ST235/80R16 LRD tires. All failed in the first year. I don't think any of the ST manufacturers provide that designated size in a LRD today.

Note: Truckers -"semis" - tires are regulated by a completely different set of rules/regulations.

I would like to see documentation on the failure rate. This because many 250/2500 and 350/3500 SRW axle rating is many times the total of max tire capacity.