Front Trailer Tires wearing bad...any advice

[Worlds22SSV]

Just noticed one of my front tires is almost bald on the inside(only about 2" from the inside worn) when the outside is probably 70% tread, went to the other side and the same thing. Any idea of what would cause this. Thinking i may have to much weight forward...either boat forward on trailer or tongue too low forcing forward weight. I really can't get much taller with tongue as my jack is already maxed out just to get under the trailer. Any one else ever seen this issue?

[mmandley]

Just noticed one of my front tires is almost bald on the inside(only about 2" from the inside worn) when the outside is probably 70% tread, went to the other side and the same thing. Any idea of what would cause this. Thinking i may have to much weight forward...either boat forward on trailer or tongue too low forcing forward weight. I really can't get much taller with tongue as my jack is already maxed out just to get under the trailer. Any one else ever seen this issue?

Whats important on the trailer is the tongue on the truck measure 21-24 inches, this is the about perfect tilt on the trailer,

Measure that nest time and set the tongue height.

You can then take the two tires in question off, take them to a tire shop and have them rotated on the rims, this way the worn outer 2 inches is on the outside of the tire, not the inside. Then also put those 2 tires on the rear axle.

What this will do is, stop the abnormal wear on those tires because Radial's wear in a pattern on one axle, but when changed to a different axle or different rotation direction they stop that abnormal wear. This is why we Rotate tires on cars.

Also switching to the rear axle you will have less side ways stress on the tires due to the axle being the pivot axle and not the dragging front axle in turns.

If you only have a single axle trailer then just do the rotating i mentioned in the start.

If your tongue is too high the tires wont have proper weight and could be wearing the insides more, if you have too much weight it will do the same because the contact patch if the tire is off.

If your tongue is the correct height then it would be an axle alignment issue or a spindle issue and would need to be looked at by a professional.

[rdlangston13]

I have the same issue, im probably going to have the tires swapped on the rims after this season

[NCSUmoomba]

As Mike mentioned, if you every watch a tandem trailer while turning, one of the axles is basically dragged sideways. It is pretty weird to see, but that may be part of the issue. Also, tires just wear. My single axle trailer did a similar thing, except the inside of one was wearing, but the outside of the other. Not a problem, just swapped the tires side to side.

Also, as far as trailer position, this has been talked about before around here, and the trailer needs to be level when towing to have the fewest issues. I know that Mike mentioned 21"-24" tongue height, which may be right for his boat. For my Outback, the manual actually reads, "The standard height from the ground to the top of the hitch ball should be about 20 inches. With the trailer attached to the tow vehicle, the trailer should stand approximately level." It may be worth checking the manual for info for your Supra. If you have to max out the jack to get your hitch under the tongue, it sounds like your hitch may be too high, if this is on level ground?

In thinking about this some more, it would seem that for a tandem trailer, if the trailer is level, then the pivot point when turning would be between the two axles. This would result in an equal amount of scrub on each axle and tire. In your case, it would seem that if the tongue it too high, then there would be less weight on the front axle, which would "move" the pivot point towards the rear, which would cause more scrubbing on the front axle and less on the rear axle. This may account for the front tires being more worn.

I hope some of this helps.

[Worlds22SSV]

Thanks for the info, i do think i am too high. The manual states 20" so i will have it out this weekend to measure i've always done it by eyesight.

[bergermaister]

Unless you're pushing your boat around when it's unhitched you can always throw a block under the jack - I actually have one notched out with a low spot for the wheel to sit on. I do that simply to keep from having to crank the thing so far.