car tires not to be used on boat trailers?? proof please!

[hookahawg]

hello all,
i need to replace the rubber on my tandem axle ez-loader this spring.
ST tires are ridiculously expensive, but would appear to be the "only" choice for boat trailers, depending on who you talk to.
after reading nearly all the posts on BBC, as well as several other sites, on this subject, here are some of my observations:

-ST tires have stiffer sidewalls due to multi-ply construction.
-ST tires have high load ratings.
-ST tires are about $100 or more each.
-ST tires seem to start to "decompose" after about 4-5 years ( according to what i've read here)
-There are numerous horror stories about tread separation, blowouts, dry rot and cracking with ST tires.

-I have read dozens of opinions on this board and elsewhere, claiming that with car tires, "you're looking for trouble", "they can't support the load", etc. etc. etc..
-I have yet to read or hear evidence of a car tire causing any kind of trouble on a boat trailer other than trailer sway at highway speeds. tongue weight adjustment will fix sway in most cases.
-some bass boat manufacturers use car tires on their factory fresh boat and trailer packages.
-most car tires support somewhere close to the same load as any equally sized ST tire.

So here's my situation and question:

My rig weighs about 3250 pounds (boat, motor, trailer, batteries, gear etc..)
Why then, could I not put 4 car tires on my tandem axle, given that the tires are rated at a max load of 1565 lbs each, for a total of 6260 lbs max load capacity.
That's nearly twice my rig's total towing weight!, more than sufficient "backup" carrying capacity in my humble opinion.
We're not off-roading or racing with these things, we're dragging them to the lake on the same roads our tow vehicules are using right in front of them.

So unless I see some hard evidence proving otherwise, and not just here-say, I'm going with car tires this year, and saving some coin for more gear & beer!!

[transamz9]

Have you ever watched your tandoms tires when you do sharp turns it the ramp. There are times when you are scooting them sideways. That is very hard on the sidewalls. Have you ever cut a turn to quick and rubbed them or run them down a curb. These are just a couple reasons why the sidewalls on a "st" tire are built heavier.

[21XDC]

I bought car tires once 20+ years ago for my procraft trailer. The sidewalls bulged and got real hot to the touch. The trailer bounced alot as the tires were weaker than the suspension. I took them off right away and went with the reccomended trailer tires and that all went away. The tires are not rated for weight the same and dont take the air pressure of a trailer tire. The air is what actually carries the load.

This may be less important on a tandem, as this was a single axle trailer on a 17 ft glass boat.

[hookahawg]

i agree with you transamz, %100, but cars and trucks make sharp turns and scrape curb edges as well. i don't see the difference??

[transamz9]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by hookahawg &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">i agree with you transamz, %100, but cars and trucks make sharp turns and scrape curb edges as well. i don't see the difference?? </td></tr></table>

Not as bad as a trailer tire does.

[transamz9]

Here's a little write up I did......

http://bassnboat.com/bassnboat...Tires

[21XDC]

They cant all be wrong huh? http://www.championtrailers.com/tire_art.html

http://www.taskmasterproducts....s.pdf

[EL Skeeter]

Trailer manufacturers recommend ST tires for a reason. Ya think,,, It's your trailer,put whatever Tires you want.

[TRCM]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by EL Skeeter &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">Trailer manufacturers recommend ST tires for a reason. Ya think,,, It's your trailer,put whatever Tires you want.</td></tr></table>

Kinda, but it's my life, and if you are using the wrong tires, and they blow out, you may hurt or kill me or my family if you crash.

[CatFan]

ST tires are really just LT tires with simple tread patterns. The difference between LT and passenger car tires is load. For a tandem trailer with a bass boat on it, either would probably work fine, but a single axle rig can run up near the weight limit on a P tire. Most P rated 14" tires have a max load of less than 1500lbs.

[transamz9]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by TRCM &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">

Kinda, but it's my life, and if you are using the wrong tires, and they blow out, you may hurt or kill me or my family if you crash.

</td></tr></table>
I'm not worried he will reck with a tandom but when that P tire comes apart and tears that finder off and beats the side of the boat in, then he will wonder if he made the right choice.

[haveme1]

Here is a good PDF about the subject. It seem a car tire s Ok but the rated weight must be lowered from what it says on the tire to be used safely on a trailer.

http://www.serroscottycamperen...s.pdf

[adchunts]

Bass Cat puts "car" tires on their boat trailers every day. I have yet to hear anyone have an issue with them. I imagine it would make a difference on a big camper or equipment trailer, but not on a bass boat trailer. I will continue to use the type tire Bass Cat recommends.

[hookahawg]

adchunts, i'm kinda thinking the same way you are. it would come down to the trailer and what you're hauling. For example, I wouldn't put car tires on a flatbed trailer with a backhoe on it, or run a trailer that has a combined tire load capacity that is equal to, or just barely above the weight i'm pulling.
I'm looking to save some money,..aren't we all??
but in no way am i interested in putting myself, my family, or anyone else or their family,at risk or in danger.
I'm not opposed to using ST tires on my trailer, far from it, and i respect everybody's choice to use whatever they feel is the appropriate tire on their rigs. i'm just looking for some concrete evidence showing that a passenger tire, "P" or"LT", is "guaranteed" to fail on a bass boat tandem axle trailer through normal use.

[imthemedic]

I learned this the hard way last year. I have a single axle trailer with a 91 Stratos 201 on top. First for the life of me I can't figure out why Stratos put those heavy boats on single axles. I had old dry rotted trailer tires on it. I replaced them and the spare with light duty truck tires from a Ford Ranger we had. The tires had about 60% tread left and looked to be in good shape. You could tell that there was just too much side wall flex. When pulling at highway speeds the trailer tended to sway more than normal. Over the next 2 weeks I blew out all 3 tires while making the 50 mile trip back and forth to the lake. The tires seperated each time. Once while stranded on the interstate we put a passenger car tire on it to get it to the exit. The weight of the boat flattened the tire to the rim. We just had to go a mile or so luckily. Needless to say I bought 3 new trailer tires and havent had the first issue with them. Maybe it wouldn't be as much of any issue with tandom axles? I know for sure that my last boat had a tandom trailer and it didn't equaly distribute the weight between the axles. The rear always carried more weight.

[21XDC]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by adchunts &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">Bass Cat puts "car" tires on their boat trailers every day. I have yet to hear anyone have an issue with them</td></tr></table>

Well...... My friends BassCat has blown out atleast 3 of his 4 tires making trips to Florida from Michigan.... He replaced the tires and has blown a few of those out too... Now you have heard of some. BTW... Pantera3/200 V-max on a tandem trailer.

[jimfc3]

I suggest you contact the manufacture of what ever brand you plan on using and asking them why do they only recomend a st rated tire on a boat trailer. I do know that it has to do with trailers sitting in one spot for long periods VRS a car that gets used almost every day and the car that gets stored for long periods gets flat spots in the tires. ST tires have a different rubber compound and belt design also

[adchunts]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by 21XDC &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">

Well...... My friends BassCat has blown out atleast 3 of his 4 tires making trips to Florida from Michigan.... He replaced the tires and has blown a few of those out too... Now you have heard of some. BTW... Pantera3/200 V-max on a tandem trailer. </td></tr></table>

Gotcha...

That more than makes up for the couple hundred stories I've heard about trailer tires failing. BTW, I pull trailers several thousand miles per year as well. Never had a "car" tire explode. Have had a number of trailer tires do so. And, yes, I do keep an eagle eye on tire pressure.

[Stratos Steve]

Just wonder what the insurance company would say if you had an incident and were running car tires? Just a thought!

[adchunts]

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by Stratos Steve &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">Just wonder what the insurance company would say if you had an incident and were running car tires? Just a thought! </td></tr></table>

I am unaware of any DOT regulation that requires the use of "trailer" tires on a trailer. If there is no such regulation, that would be a moot point. Perhaps someone in the insurance industry will be by to weigh in on the subject. Would be a good question for Bob Luellen. I will send him a link and see if he will offer some input.