I'm a believer!!

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by slow

Maxxis ST Radial M8008 or Carlisle Radial Trails? This is the debate I have been having in my mind:

Local sources for the Carlisle Radial Trails from a tire dealer I really like dealing with. Maxxis ST Radial M8008 have to be ordered online and then get the same tire dealer to mount and balance the Maxxis.

BUT, NHTSA lists 57 complaints for the Carlisle Radial Trails and does not even list the Maxxis tires on their website. Does that mean that none of the Maxxis tires (not just M8008s) have had no complaints?

I am getting the Carlisle Radial Trail HD. They don't differentiate between the variations of the Radial Trail on the NHTSA site so don't know. Hoping they will be OK. If I were you, I would be all over the Maxxis if you have the time for someone to get them to you. If I weren't in such a rush to get to FL I would have waited for them to come in. Hope I'm not throwing $800 away, but, that doesn't mean much to us compared to missing my granddaughter's graduation

[mfifield01]

Do you know the difference between the Carlisle Trail HD and RH?

[slow]

Originally Posted by dcg9381

nhtsa doesn't list Maxxas as a brand, you need to know that they're made by Ching Shin. Search under that brand and see what comes up.

Thanks for the guidance to getting info on the Maxxis tires.

Per the NHTSA, Ching Shin had a recall in 1977 for a labeling problem and 7 customer complaints with the most recent in 2010. Of the 7 customer complaints, only 2 were related to trailer tires with both reported in 2009.

Pretty impressive!

[slow]

Originally Posted by mfifield01

Do you know the difference between the Carlisle Trail HD and RH?

I do not see a Trail HD on the Carlisle website, only on Discount Tire's website. Is it a new product?

[mfifield01]

Originally Posted by slow

I do not see a Trail HD on the Carlisle website, only on Discount Tire's website. Is it a new product?

I'm not sure. I went to the Carlisle website to compare, but I didn't find it either.

[RLM5150]

Originally Posted by mfifield01

I'm not sure. I went to the Carlisle website to compare, but I didn't find it either.

It may be a Discount Tire exclusive model.

[dcg9381]

Originally Posted by slow

Thanks for the guidance to getting info on the Maxxis tires.

I suspect that most people don't know how to file a complaint for that brand... It took me a bit of time to figure it out.

Not saying that the Maxxas is a bad tire at all...

[sourdough]

Looking at the NHTSA stats it seems kind of glaring to me that the Ching Shen tires have virtually no complaints. That leads me to believe folks don't know how to file them against that company. On the other hand, when I read the reviews for all the trailer tires, the reviews on the Maxxis are much, much better than for Carlisle or Goodyear and the reason that I wanted them.

As far as the Carlisle Radial Trail HD, I'm like the rest of you. I see them on discount tire but the Carlisle website did not have them. The service manager at CW is getting them for me. I told him I had them located at discount tire and he said not to worry, he had them located at "their warehouse"? Don't know what that means but it indicated to me that it wasn't from discount tire.

[JRTJH]

Well, I got my Carlisle Radial Trail RH tires installed today. The tires that were on the Cougar were 225 75R15 LRD and the new ones are 225 75R15 LRE. Load/Speed rating marked on the tires is 117M. That relates to 2830 @80 PSI with a Speed limitation of M which is 81MPH. They were all manufactured in MEIXIAN, GUANGDONG CHINA (code AQHH, which is Carlisle Tire and Wheel, LTD) in week 50 of 2015. Total cost was $466.80 OTD, mounted and balanced with new valve stems.

I'm glad I decided to change out the tires. I kept the old ones thinking I'd either keep them for the flatbed trailer or sell them for a few bucks each. As I was unloading them into the pole barn, I noticed that two of them had "bubbles" under the tread. They aren't visible from outside the tire and no way, when they are mounted to even see it, but there is definitely thread separation from the carcass on two tires. It measures about 10" in length and runs the entire width of the "crown" inside the tire, from sidewall to sidewall.

I'm guessing that sourdough's tread separation started very similar to what I see on those two. The only way to see the defect is with the tires dismounted. When they are on the wheel, the tread appears normal....

I feel much better knowing the expense of 4 new tires wasn't "just for giggles" and since seeing these "bubbles" I'm even more inclined to not want to use Trailer King tires on anything !!!!!

[sourdough]

"Well, I got my Carlisle Radial Trail RH tires installed today. The tires that were on the Cougar were 225 75R15 LRD and the new ones are 225 75R15 LRE. Load/Speed rating marked on the tires is 117M. That relates to 2830 @80 PSI with a Speed limitation of M which is 81MPH. They were all manufactured in MEIXIAN, GUANGDONG CHINA (code AQHH, which is Carlisle Tire and Wheel, LTD) in week 50 of 2015. Total cost was $466.80 OTD, mounted and balanced with new valve stems."

Wow! I need to shop at your store JRTJH! Initially the CW service mgr. told me $120 per tire plus $30 each for mounting/balancing/stems. I told him discount tire sold them for $111 plus $16 for installation. He said we'll meet in the middle at $115 and still $30 for installation. Didn't have the time or patience to haggle.

John, was your price for 4 or 5?

Your findings on your tires pretty much confirms my belief that the tread on these tires are not attached in a satisfactory manner to the carcass of the tire. That's the reason I'm going to dissect 1 or 2 of my old ones when I get them back. It also explains why the tire store thought they were in great shape when they pulled them; they were all at full inflation pressure. Thanks for sharing.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by sourdough

"Well, I got my Carlisle Radial Trail RH tires installed today. The tires that were on the Cougar were 225 75R15 LRD and the new ones are 225 75R15 LRE. Load/Speed rating marked on the tires is 117M. That relates to 2830 @80 PSI with a Speed limitation of M which is 81MPH. They were all manufactured in MEIXIAN, GUANGDONG CHINA (code AQHH, which is Carlisle Tire and Wheel, LTD) in week 50 of 2015. Total cost was $466.80 OTD, mounted and balanced with new valve stems."

Wow! I need to shop at your store JRTJH! Initially the CW service mgr. told me $120 per tire plus $30 each for mounting/balancing/stems. I told him discount tire sold them for $111 plus $16 for installation. He said we'll meet in the middle at $115 and still $30 for installation. Didn't have the time or patience to haggle.

John, was your price for 4 or 5?

Your findings on your tires pretty much confirms my belief that the tread on these tires are not attached in a satisfactory manner to the carcass of the tire. That's the reason I'm going to dissect 1 or 2 of my old ones when I get them back. It also explains why the tire store thought they were in great shape when they pulled them; they were all at full inflation pressure. Thanks for sharing.

I have never had the Trailer King spare on the ground, it's 3 years old and my intention is to never use it. If I do need to put it on the ground, it'll be to the next tire shop where I plan to buy two (to replace both tires on the affected side). So, I feel comfortable with it as a "limited spare" knowing it won't be on the ground more than a few miles, to the next town.

The $466.80 was for four tires. I did have a quote from another tire store in town for $588 for four, but after looking, I found them much cheaper, across the street. I was concerned they may be the "old model" or "already be 2 years old, etc, but apparently some stores are significantly less expensive than others. The tires list on Amazon for $86.51 with free shipping, a total of $346.04 for four. Most anyone will mount/balance them for $15-20 each, so CW is quoting you a pretty "steep" price. However, not having the time until you leave and knowing you won't have to "deal with shipping and finding someone to install them" makes the price a bit less painful..... Here's the Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Carlisle-Radia...lisle+ST+tires

If you want pictures of the "inside bubble" let me know and I'll try to get some in the morning.

[sourdough]

Thanks! I would appreciate any pics. I think they will confirm what I think.

CW is not the place to buy tires and have them mounted...I just don't have the time to try and negotiate all the things needed to keep the price down. CW is too high on tire prices and installation but they are coordinating all repairs, insurance, tires etc. so I'm just going with it.

[JRTJH]

I'll get the pictures in the morning. Hopefully I can get the lighting correct so the bubbles show properly.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

I'll get the pictures in the morning. Hopefully I can get the lighting correct so the bubbles show properly.

I really appreciate that. Maybe your photos and my dissection will shed some light on this anomaly. I hope I have time to dissect the tires and look into this before we have to leave for FL, but if not, I will continue on this to see what we can find.

[slow]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

.............. As I was unloading them into the pole barn, I noticed that two of them had "bubbles" under the tread. They aren't visible from outside the tire and no way, when they are mounted to even see it, but there is definitely thread separation from the carcass on two tires. It measures about 10" in length and runs the entire width of the "crown" inside the tire, from sidewall to sidewall.

I'm guessing that sourdough's tread separation started very similar to what I see on those two. The only way to see the defect is with the tires dismounted. When they are on the wheel, the tread appears normal....

Yikes!

So much for getting a false sense of security by visually inspecting the exterior of the tires and proper daily maintenance.

Thanks for sharing this very important insight.

I wonder if the bubbles develop over time or if they existed when they came out of the mold? (My experience with some offshore suppliers is that they are not always the most detail orientated when it comes to verifying the quality of the products they produce and we therefore contract third party on-site service providers to be our "eyes" at those offshore facilities.)

[JRTJH]

OK, sorry it took so long, but I got busy with some dirt work and just not got back to the house... Anyway, here are 8 pictures of the tire "bubbles". As you can see, dismounted and not inflated, there is a small "indentation along the edge of the tread. That was not apparent when the tires were mounted and inflated. The tread appeared to be round, smooth and adhered to the tire carcass.

Looking at the inside of the tire, it's readily apparent that the tread is separated from the carcass. In one picture you can see (hopefully) three distinct separations, the first is about 6", next is about 5" and the last is about 5" in diameter.

Absolutely none of this is visible, even with a close inspection of the tire when it's mounted on a wheel. Even removing the tire from the trailer, inspecting it as you roll it along, feeling the tread, it isn't detectable.

I'm very happy that I found this before I lost the tread at 50 MPH and destroyed the wheel well on my trailer.

Any questions, comments or more pictures, I'll be happy to try to get you the information you want....

[JRTJH]

Here are a few more: The bubble I described last night as about 10" long, today in better light, I'd say is the two 5" bubbles that are adjacent to each other. It's obvious to me that these tires would not have survived this summer without "self destructing".....

[sourdough]

Thanks!

Wow! I'm glad you didn't take off on those things. There's no way you would have got far without some serious damage....and possible multiple tire failures. It confirms exactly what I suspected on mine. When you looked at the body of the tire after the tread came off it is obvious that the tread is not attached in a correct manner - it literally just separated right off the carcass like it had zippers.

I'm going to pick up the trailer from CW this afternoon. They were supposed to hold the old tires for me so I could inspect them. I wouldn't have known to look for this so now I will.

These things cause too much damage for them to be installed on anything.JMO

[JRTJH]

All the best with picking up your repaired trailer. Here's hoping it's all satisfactory to you. Out of curiosity, if you can, get the date code from your tires and the plant code. It's possible our tires were made the same time frame and it's a bad batch. If so, with that information, other members can check their date of manufacture and be more critical with their tire inspections.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

All the best with picking up your repaired trailer. Here's hoping it's all satisfactory to you. Out of curiosity, if you can, get the date code from your tires and the plant code. It's possible our tires were made the same time frame and it's a bad batch. If so, with that information, other members can check their date of manufacture and be more critical with their tire inspections.

Well, all is not complete on the repairs but the critical parts are and I have new tires. They could not get the new underbelly installed but the original one was just "scuffed" by the tire tread so it is still serviceable; the Geico adjuster just wanted the entire underbelly replaced to be sure.

I thought that you had posted what your old tires were but couldn't find it. My Trailer Kings were manufactured by Shandong Yongsheng Rubber Co. Ltd in Dongying, Shandong province, China (JEJK); manufacture date 0813. They have MANY tire plants in the Shandong province so that may shed some light on the "China bomb" thing. Were yours from the same plant? The new Carlisle's are made by Carlisle Tire, Meixian, Guandong, China (AQHH); manufacture date 0916, so they are pretty fresh tires. 225 75R15 LRE.

I had insisted on the Radial Trail HD vs RH due to the indication it was a newer style, but upon review, I think they may be the same tire. I thought it might be a tire made specifically for Discount Tire but the CW service manager said he didn't have to get them there they had them at "his" warehouse. The tire does have HD after the Radial Trail but in smaller letters. Don't know but betting they are the same.

I had also asked the service manager to hold my tires so I could inspect them. He was gone Saturday as they were trying to get my trailer out for me and I guess it got miscommunicated. All they left me was the new spare and one of the other tires - I haven't found anything on it. I asked the service advisor where the other 3 tires were and he said "one was destroyed and the other two were bad so we got rid of them"!! He said he thought I might have some use for the good ones. I told him that's exactly why I wanted, and had asked for, ALL of them - to inspect them - I had no use for any of them other than that. He apologized and said he didn't know. So it looks like there may be some sort of issue with these tires from this company from this plant (if yours is the same) or possibly the Shandong manufactured tires - or maybe just a bad batch?

I'm hoping between getting the Carlisle brand, a different tire manufacturer in China and a heavier tire things will be OK. If not, looks like all the RVrs are going to have to chip in to build our own plant to make Made in the USA RV tires to get something decent.