16 in. wheels

[schuylski]

Has anyone upgraded to 16 in wheels? Will they fit? My only reason is for availability of load range E tires... I've got single axle - although fortunately no axle troubles knock on wood.

Also- does anyone else frequently tow their boat - like a lot. We ate through 2 tires in just over a year and I'm wondering if that's normal or if those tires were junk. It may have been towed around 4000 miles- is that about all I can expect to get? I know there is no way to align trailer tires, I guess most avoid this issue as the boat hardly sees the trailer. But Jpage was talking about wear with a few others a while ago - any others out there?

Gas mileage is bad enough $$ when towing, add in trailer tires too...... I need a lake house. :D

[KG's Supra24]

What tire are you running? Are you running trailer tires? 4,000 doesn't seem like near enough but I have nothing to base that on really.

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[yearround]

we have more than 7000 miles on our 08 LSV trailer, dual axle, original stock tires.

[Nobodyrides4Free]

Good Topic. I was thinking of going to 15 or 16 inch wheels as well. Not sure of fit either.
I tow my boat a lot with tandem axle trailer, I have one tire that wears faster than others. The inside edge gets eaten up fast, the others wear fine. Couple of tires I put on trailer have been on for 3 years. Replaced another last week. Put a lot of miles on them. Live in Wichita, Ks and go to TableRock (600 round trip) at least once a summer (and Grand lake(400 round trip) 10 to 15 times a year to our lake house. Not to mention lakes around here. Roughly 6 or 7 thousand a year. They hould last longer than one year. I buy Radial tires , not Bias. What kind do you run?

[bergermaister]

I'd say your axle alignment is jacked up or you had a set (sets?) of crap tires.

My 2001 is still riding on 3 of the 4 original Goodyear Marathons - 205/75/14. Had every intention of replacing all 4 last summer but the truck got new ones instead. With the year of my boat/trailer I'd estimate a solid 1,500 miles towing per year so that's at least 15,000 miles. Maybe more.

I do have a tandem but still, sum tins up widdat!

[schuylski]

Hmmmm... sounds like things are off with my trailer. It had the stock Trail America's it came with new, 225/75R15. Which I've heard are crap, but then searching the web I seemed to find that all trailer tires are crap...

The outside edges actually wore more quickly on mine. I noticed the wear and it worried me - then the tire with MORE tread on it blew. I'm not sure how that works - I was real careful checking tire pressures. I can say we did a lot of highway miles, and did not keep it to 65 or under... I don't know if that would be an issue or not.

I've got Goodyear marathons on it for now... I've read plenty of horror stories about them, but I did some fairly extensive web searching and found horror stories about all of them. These were in stock and nearby when i needed them. Also, didn't want to spend a lot if they're only going to last a year...

You guys all seem to have tandems tho, anyone else with single axle who tows a lot?? (And maybe that's just a clue that I should have the tandem...)

[maxpower220]

How often do you check the pressure in your tires and what pressure do you keep them at? You really should check at least once every 2 weeks if you tow a lot and you should be running close to the MAX pressure that the tire specifies. A single axle means that your tires will flex a lot, as you only have 2. If your pressures are low, your tire will overheat quickly. That heating will break down your tire and cause failure.

Wheel size can be changed if you can find trailer tires that will keep your same diameter. The problem is that there are only so many sizes in trailer tires. Also, check the weight rating on the wheels that you choose.

[tnbrooks01]

+1 on what Maxpower said. I have single axle trailer and I tow mine 4-5 times a week to our wakeboard lake thats approx 35 miles away. I drive for a living so I am meticulous about my tires and I probably check them way more than necessary but now it has become habit.

[viking]

I tow many many miles in a summer season. Every weekend at least 200miles round trip (usually more). Had the same thing happen last year with my single axle.............noted a bad tire and then the "other" side blew out and ripped apart my fender. Needless to say, I replaced them both. The local tire shop said that when one starts to go they both are innevitable so replace them!! I also read that they are really only good for about 4-5 years if you tow alot. Sucks........but probably cheaper to buy new every four years than push it and have to buy a new fender and do body work? Not factoring in the inconvenience of being roadside with your family while you change out the flat and do some pry-bar work to get the mangled metal out of the way :(

[bergermaister]

I have been shown that trailer tires have an expiration date branded right on them and yes, only 4-5 years typical life expectancy. I gotta say, I feel way safer towing with a tandem to the point where I wouldn't want a boat or travel trailer that's not. I had a blowout on the freeway last summer all loaded down with camp gear and it was pretty uneventful with the tandem. With a single axle I think it could have been real ugly...

[NCSUmoomba]

I just noticed something with my trailer tires (single axle) this weekend. Mine are 3 maybe 4 years old and are the Goodyear Marathon radials. It appears that the outside of one, and the inside of the other, are wearing more. Maybe I turn too much in that direction? Anyway, I plan to "rotate" mine for a temporary solution.

As far as upgrading wheel size, anything is possible as long as the overal tire diameter remains close to spec. If you notice the guys with the 20's on their trailers all have low profile passenger car tires. It is my understanding that trailer service tires are designed for prolonged loading and that care tires are not recommended for trailers.

Any good tire store should be able to help you out. I would suggest trying to find a tire that you want first (that is about the same overall diameter and width as your current one), and then getting a rim that works with that. It would suck to buy rims and then not be able to find a proper tire for them.

[bergermaister]

One other thought - running "non" trailer tires on your trailer and you get in an accident may be grounds for your insurance to hold you personally liable because of non-standard or unapproved tires. Not sure this theory holds water but I recall hearing about this somewhere else as something to keep in mind when pimping out the trailer...

[Nobodyrides4Free]

Yea ,its not practical, but the rims on the NEW Supras sure look nice......Thats the one I want, They Look Sweeet!
I have one tire that wears on outside, its the side I usually back the boat in the driveway on.
Makes you wander how well they align the trailers on th build?

[murraymoomba]

We have a single axle and our stock tires lasted about 2 years. I went for maxxis load range E for ours and they are still holding up well, at least 3 years now. The inside is wearing faster than the outside but I might switch them around to wear the other side before it gets to bad. I should get 2 more seasons out of them.



Hmmmm... sounds like things are off with my trailer. It had the stock Trail America's it came with new, 225/75R15. Which I've heard are crap, but then searching the web I seemed to find that all trailer tires are crap...

The outside edges actually wore more quickly on mine. I noticed the wear and it worried me - then the tire with MORE tread on it blew. I'm not sure how that works - I was real careful checking tire pressures. I can say we did a lot of highway miles, and did not keep it to 65 or under... I don't know if that would be an issue or not.

I've got Goodyear marathons on it for now... I've read plenty of horror stories about them, but I did some fairly extensive web searching and found horror stories about all of them. These were in stock and nearby when i needed them. Also, didn't want to spend a lot if they're only going to last a year...

You guys all seem to have tandems tho, anyone else with single axle who tows a lot?? (And maybe that's just a clue that I should have the tandem...)

[schuylski]

Viking I'm right with you man, it sucks. Although instead of getting another, i went to work on the fender with a hammer. HA. looks terrible, but I'm not going to buy a fender until I get this tire thing figured out first. Luckily no real damage to the trailer.

Murray- great idea, I didn't think I could "rotate" them... it'd do the same thing on the other side. But I didn't consider remounting the tires flipped around, that's perfect.

Here's what one of the old ones looked like... The one that didn't blow...

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-chv6DIJA-5M/T4OhsLgRQ3I/AAAAAAAACTc/RMRUPqSsex0/s512/photo.JPG

[wolfeman131]

Man, I can't believe that one didn't go too.

[rdlangston13]

im having the inside tire wear issue too on my 08 tandem axle for my LSV. ive been fighting a leaky wheel seal and noticed the inside of left front tire wearing REALLY bad and I just replaced all 4 after a blow out last june. the left rear was also wearing on the inside although not as badly I dont think, remounting would be expensive i would imagine...

[kaneboats]

They'll do it at WalMart for under $20. I order tires from Tire Rack and Discount Tire Online all the time and just take them over to Wallys to get mounted and balanced.

[jpetty3023]

Can't go wrong with Wally worlds tire mounter's


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[rdlangston13]

Can't go wrong with Wally worlds tire mounter's


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20 bucks per tire or for all 4?? this may be a new yearly maintenance item

[NCSUmoomba]

I have noticed that with tandem trailers, it appears that when turning, the tires are kind of dragged sideways. Maybe the pivot point for the trailer turning is between the two axles? Or maybe it is pivoting on the rear axle. Next time you are the ramp, watch someone with a tandem trailer when they are turing fairly sharply. Its quite interesting.

[bergermaister]

Yep - I hate tight turns with mine, especially u-turns. The axles torque and twist pretty bad. Depending on the slope or road either a front tire or rear tire will skid a little in a tight turn.

[rdlangston13]

my wheels are visibly showing negative camber....crappy torsion axles

[jpetty3023]

All the talk here about trailer tire issues got me to looking at mine. While I don't have any unusual wear I do have some dry rotting in both and a bubble in one tire so I guess I'll be changing them out here soon.

I looked at tire size so I can start shopping around and this is what's on the trailer now:
TrailAmerica ST225/75/R15
Max load 2540lbs, Load Range D. My boat weights well over 2540 lbs, did I get wrong tires installed from the manufacturer? The tires are the original ones from when I bought boat and probably don't have 1500 miles on them yet. I'm guessing the dry rot is from the boat sitting on the lot for over a year before I bought her

[kaneboats]

I think you have two tires under there, don't you? (You can't count the spare.)

[jpetty3023]

haha Kane, so I guess it's a combined weight huh.

[KG's Supra24]

Yep - I hate tight turns with mine, especially u-turns. The axles torque and twist pretty bad. Depending on the slope or road either a front tire or rear tire will skid a little in a tight turn.

I have a tight u turn at my ramp. I used to think my wheel was going to pop off, lol

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[kaneboats]

haha Kane, so I guess it's a combined weight huh.

I think so, but you gotta wonder going around a corner when all the weight is to the outside. Slow it down on hot days anyway.

[rdlangston13]

What are the tire and wheel size for the tandem axle? I need a spare

[bergermaister]

205-75-14 is pretty common on the tandems but double check yours. I picked up a wheel off ebay and grabbed a cheap used trailer tire from a hole-in-the-wall shop here last summer for like $20. Scrub it down, shine it up, call it done. Good thing too because a month or two later was the first time I've ever needed a spare in 6 years...

pretty sure the wheel is 14x6 with 5 on 4.5 bolt patten.