Excessive wear on LR tire on dual axle trailer.....anyone else experience this?

[JPass]

So we got the boat back in August and used it pretty much every weekend up until mid December. I'm noticing some major tire wear on the LR tire compared to the others. We do have quite the tight turn both leaving and backing into the driveway.

I've posted some pics on another forum where they believe there's an alignment issue. We ran her up to a local trailer shop yesterday and they blamed it on the tight turns and the cheap, stock bias ply tires.

Anyone have a similar experience with their dual axle trailer?

Here's some pics:

 

[LouDoo]

Yep, usually it means your axle is out of alignment. It the other axle is tracking O.K. align the rear axle to the front axle. If that doesn't help you may need to have it professional aligned, any good trailer dealer should be able to align it.

Lou

 

[racerxxx]

I'll probably agree with the place you took it to. Just the center of the tire is worn, that is typically from over inflation and a bias tire usually has a higher center vs a radial which is more of a square shoulder tire and flat contact patch on the road. Judging by the tread left on the shoulders of your tires I'll say that they were close to replacement at the time of your purchase. I loath bias tires on trailers, we switched years ago on our car trailer to radials and they hold up so much better and they're a tandem axle trailer too. Since the tires can't pivot they crab when you turn. Next time you back in to your spot stop half way thru your turn and , then get out at look at the sidewalls down near the pavement, one will be flexing inward and the other will be outward. Now this isn't "PC" but if you're old enough to remember someone giving you an Indian rope burn on you're arm that is basically what is happening to your tires, your hands are twisting in opposite directions. I cringe every time I back our car trailer into my driveway cause I can see the flex and hear the ripping of the treads and gravel on the pavement especially when loaded. There isn't much alignment on those trailers if any. One thing you might want to look at is....have any of the leaf springs been replaced and is the center point for the axle still on the same center to center? Some springs are close but not exact for these trailers.

 

[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

I tend to agree with the tire shop as well, b/c they've inspected the trailer and found nothing obvious. Could very well be the tire is old and the rubber compound dry rotted, they do tend to fall apart quickly when they're old, sometimes suddenly.

I'd probably jack it up by the frame off the ground allowing axles to hang from the spirngs and try to see if something's lose, worn, broken or frozen with the spring eyes and U-bolts, or maybe a leaf is broken? Grab the wheels while up @ 3:00 and 9:00, 6:00 and 12:00 o'clock try wiggling it back and forth to check for excessive bearing slop as well, spin and listen for odd bearing noise.

 

[Coastiejoe]

I'm leaning in an over-inflation issue at the minimum.

What you could do is, a tire rotation and see if the tire that gets placed in the LR position begins to wear as quickly as this one did. BUT,,, for sure get the tire pressure checked. Even then, if the tire pressure is correct but the center of the tire is elevated above the outside edges, then let some air out.

I am with Racerxxx, I HATE bias ply tires. Radials are the best way to go. Many many reasons. Longer life and smoother ride over-all are the biggest reasons.

I would also do some measuring for the simple fact I would want to eliminate an alignment concern.

Find a place in the front of the trailer that is in the center, such as the threads on the underside of the hitch locking lever. Measure to the same spots from there to the U-Bolts on the front axle, both sides. These should be the same number or VERY close. Then do the same to the rear axle. As Lou pointed out, you have to think your front axle is square or your bias ply tires would be wearing. See if the axles are parallel to each other end to end.

 

[JPass]

Thanks guys. Trailer shop agreed that there is very little to adjust with these type of trailer. I ordered a new wheel and tire a week or so ago, but now I'm going to return it and swap the rears out for radials. I did run a string on each side of the frame and take some measurements. See pic for measurements. I did not jack up the trailer when I did it because I was in a pinch for time as I have family in town at the moment.



I looked under the trailer and everything looked OK. Nothing was broken or out of sorts. When I measured from axle to axle under the boat, they were exactly the same distance apart. I was getting ready to service the bearings as I have no idea when they were done last, but I need to get new rear seals and I'm unsure of the size at the moment.

 

[Coastiejoe]

STOP....

Do not run radial and bias ply. VERY DANGEROUS. The radial tires tend to grab and the bias tires want to slide. If you were to do so on a vehicle, it can easily cause accidents as one end grips and the other end slips.

On a trailer it is probably not as much as a concern compared to a vehicle, but I would not do it. They ride differently and react differently.

 

[JPass]

STOP....

Do not run radial and bias ply. VERY DANGEROUS. The radial tires tend to grab and the bias tires want to slide. If you were to do so on a vehicle, it can easily cause accidents as one end grips and the other end slips.

On a trailer it is probably not as much as a concern compared to a vehicle, but I would not do it. They ride differently and react differently.

I was planning on swapping the rear trailer tires with radials, but keep the fronts bias ply as they are still in great shape, then swap them to radials as well once they wear out. Are you saying this is going to cause problems?

All of our previous trailers were single axle (with radials), so this dual axle trailer is all new territory for us.

 

[Coastiejoe]

I was planning on swapping the rear trailer tires with radials, but keep the fronts bias ply as they are still in great shape, then swap them to radials as well once they wear out. Are you saying this is going to cause problems?

All of our previous trailers were single axle (with radials), so this dual axle trailer is all new territory for us.

The fact that it is being pulled will decrease the potential of issues. But yes, the bias tires will give where the radials will not. If it were mine, I would not mix and match. If it was a vehicle,, it would be a HUGE risk. On a trailer, the risk is certainly decreased. But in my opinion, not worth it..

If you Google "Mixing radial with bias tires" you will find many negative posts..

 

[ocod]

http://www.seadooforum.com/showthread.php?72799-Blew-a-tire-got-new-wheels-and-tires

I've bought all three set here.
http://www.trailertiresandwheels.com/aluminum-trailer-wheels

 

[JPass]

Took the trailer up to Ramlin Trailers today for a second opinion. Tech said everything was aligned properly and that that left rear was more than likely the "pivot tire" hence the excessive wear. At this point I'll replace the 2 rears with 2 new bias plies and rotate them regularly until they're all worn, then replace all 4 with radials.

He also said I could always ditch the tandem axle set-up and go with a heavy (5200lb) single axle set-up if I got sick of the tandem set-up. He said it would cost about $1000.

At least I have options in the future if I get sick of the tandem st-up.

 

[Premix]

At this point I'll replace the 2 rears with 2 new bias plies and rotate them regularly until they're all worn, then replace all 4 with radials.

He also said I could always ditch the tandem axle set-up and go with a heavy (5200lb) single axle set-up if I got sick of the tandem set-up.

How did you make out?

I changed the old bias tires to radials on my single axle and noticed an improvement immediately.

 

[JPass]

How did you make out?

I changed the old bias tires to radials on my single axle and noticed an improvement immediately.

Trailer checked out fine. Nothing bent or out of alignment. I did notice the following:

Hitch had a 2" rise to it from our previous trailer set-up. This had the trailer nose high, putting extra weight on the rear tires causing them to wear faster.

I switched the ball over on the hitch giving it a 2" drop and that resulted in excessive wear on the fronts. Swapped those out 2 months ago.

I now run a 3 ball straight hitch that has the trailer as level as it's going to get with our truck. So far so good.

 

[Premix]

I could always ditch the tandem axle set-up and go with a heavy (5200lb) single axle set-up if I got sick of the tandem set-up. He said it would cost about $1000.

I wonder how many people considered this. It's an interesting option.

 

[JPass]

I wonder how many people considered this. It's an interesting option.

Only downside that I was told would be that the trailer would sit a bit higher with the single axle.

 

[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Conversion to single axle is an option, depending on how you use the trailer. I prefer the single tire maintenance but IMO a dual axle trailers much better so if you do a lot of long distance hauling it's nice to have.

When we were hauling ours from LA to Nevada and back, that dual axle was nice.

 

[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Hitch had a 2" rise to it from our previous trailer set-up. This had the trailer nose high, putting extra weight on the rear tires causing them to wear faster..

Yes, this makes sense. Many axles have some arch in them too, for camber/toe and weight changes the angles slightly.