Keystone Bullet OEM tires

[busterbrown]

My 35 foot Bullet bunkhouse is less than 2 months old and has about 500 miles on the 205/75/R14 OEM tires. I've been reading that tires are a second thought with most manufacturers and ultimately, trailers are equipped with cheap Chinese rubber.

Since I'm planning some longer trips later this summer, is it worth buying some more appropriate shoes for the TT? I'm bummed that I don't have 15 inch wheels to begin with. But am more concerned about mitigating a catastrophic blowout 10 hours away from home.

Etrailer has some good reviews on 14 inch D-rated 8 ply tires; I think Karrier is the brand. Load ratings go up over 2100 lbs.

I know many on these boards talk about Maxxis's and Kumho's. And I read that upgrading to a d-rated tire with higher max pressures on the OEM wheels can cause failures in the alloy material of the wheel itself.

I just want to play it safe at 65mph.

[sourdough]

What I'm doing is upgrading to the highest pressure tire my wheels will allow. The 15" tires that came on the trailer were D rated tires for 2540lbs. The trailer GVW is 10k. Which gave me a cushion of 160 lbs if I was at gvw - which I'm not, but that little of a cushion is a joke and dangerous IMO.

The pressure rating is on the back of your wheels. Some give it in psi, mine gives it in load "2830 lbs" which is an E rated tire - which is what I'm going with. Instead of 160lb. cushion I will have 1320lbs of cushion and much stouter, better built, tires.

Until yesterday I would have said put some miles on those new tires. You should be OK for a year or two. I'm not so sure now. When the tread peeled completely off my tire Monday I found that it appears that the tread itself is not attached, or very lightly attached, to the carcass of the tire. Also, the edges of the tread aren't attached in any significant way either. The manufacturing process for these things made in China seems to be very flawed.

My wife keeps telling me to keep the new Trailer King we had on the back as a spare as the spare. I told her that there will never (big word) be a Chinese made tire on the ground on anything I own. I'm trying Maxxis this go round and hoping for the best.

[silverbullet18]

Ok you guys got me worried now. My bullet has the trailer king tires on it and I just bought the TT in Feb. do I seriously need to put new tires on it already. Are the Trailer King tires that bad for a couple of years?


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[440justin]

Ok you guys got me worried now. My bullet has the trailer king tires on it and I just bought the TT in Feb. do I seriously need to put new tires on it already. Are the Trailer King tires that bad for a couple of years?


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For what it is worth I have a Passport 23RB and have ran the trailer King tires for 3 summers and 8,000 miles with no issues.

I am running right about 1370# per tire and always check the pressure and keep the speed between 65 and 70mph.

I am thinking I will upgraded this year though.

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[sourdough]

For what it is worth I have a Passport 23RB and have ran the trailer King tires for 3 summers and 8,000 miles with no issues.

I am running right about 1370# per tire and always check the pressure and keep the speed between 65 and 70mph.

I am thinking I will upgraded this year though.

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Read my post in the thread "I'm a believer" in tires, tires, tires. You are exactly where I was. 3rd summer, about the same mileage, thinking I would upgrade this year "after one more trip"...... that trip was one too many.

[sourdough]

Ok you guys got me worried now. My bullet has the trailer king tires on it and I just bought the TT in Feb. do I seriously need to put new tires on it already. Are the Trailer King tires that bad for a couple of years?


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I worried from the day I bought the trailer and began reading about the Chinese tires. I managed to make it into the 3rd summer before the first one self destructed.

Your thinking is the same as mine. I just could not justify, or imagine, that a company would make, or Keystone would install, a tire that was outright dangerous. I kept my tires at 65psi checked daily while traveling and frequently when not. I drove 65mph or less. Loaded I'm running about 2325lbs per tire vs a 2520lb rating. If I was unloaded it would be about 2000lbs per tire.

Deciding to just up and spend $180 per tire (installation, balancing etc.; 225 75R15 E load rating) for 5 tires wasn't easy. After looking at what one failure did, and what it could have possibly done, I decided I didn't want to chance that again.

When I get the old Trailer Kings back I'm going to dissect one and see if the tread won't just peel off the carcass....I'm betting it does.

[440justin]

Read my post in the thread "I'm a believer" in tires, tires, tires. You are exactly where I was. 3rd summer, about the same mileage, thinking I would upgrade this year "after one more trip"...... that trip was one too many.
Yeah, I have and posted on that one as well. I had been thinking this was the year to do it and your post just added to that fire.

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[CWtheMan]

I’m going to do some math with the OPs trailer and tires.

According to the Keystone specs the trailer’s GVWR is 7200#, of which, 700# (hitch weight) is transferred to the tow vehicle. That leaves 6500# to be supported by the tires on two hypothetical 3250# - 3500# axles. The actual figure will be on the trailer’s certification label (not the axle tag). Using the regulations and specs the trailer was built to, the absolute minimum axle GAWR will be 3250#, ea. Axle. Anything over 3520# GAWR per axle would violate federal regulations. Why? Because of the maximum original equipment tire load capacity of 1760#.

Using those figures a hypothetical tire life can be predicted for the installed ST tires. I said hypothetical because there are forces in use that are only measurable by the user/owner. Here is a short list. (1). Trailer is balanced from side to side and fore and aft with nearly equal tire loads. (2). Trailer is always parked/stored level. If not level the tires on the lower positions will degrade faster than the others. (3). Tires will degrade faster whenever the traveling speed of the trailer is closest to the speed limit of the tires. (When a tire is traveling at it’s maximum speed limit it will support it’s maximum load capacity. The closer the tire’s load capacity is to it’s maximum helps determine how fast it will degrade). (4). Is the trailer used as a storage unit when out of service? Overweight when in storage is just as bad as overweight while in motion. (5). Are the tires always inflated to their recommended pressures? For the tires on this trailer inflated to 45 PSI will result in a loss of 120# of load capacity per tire. At 40 PSI the loss will be 230# per tire.

For the above reasons and many others not mentioned, the degree of tire strength degrading is predictable. ST tire manufacturers “up-front” with their information will not mention usable tread wear. At an average of 10/32” tread depth ST tires are not designed as high mileage tires. They are “age out” tires and should always be described in that context.

The average life expectancy for all ST tires has always been 3-5 years. Numerous factors including those listed above help with a ballpark figure. If you’re traveling heavy and fast the figure 3 years or less comes to mind. That’s with well maintained tires. If you’re traveling light and always well under the tire’s speed restriction the figure 3+ comes to mind.

IMO all tire designs age out very similarly when in service on RV trailers. Especially when fitted with nearly the same load capacities. Durability does not add strength to a tire. The only real measurement that can be “taken to the bank” is the tire’s strength molded into it’s sidewall. When that strength is degraded it cannot be regained and the tire's life expectancy is shortened.

[audio1der]

Our 3220 came with tires at near their max. Look into what pressure/load your wheels can handle. Our 14" alloys are rated for 'D' rated loads/65psi so on went the Kumho 857's and I couldn't be happier with them.
I also looked at the Karrier's, I just couldn't get them up here for a reasonable price.