Tire dilemma

[octane]

Our 154bh came with st175/80/R13 LRC, rated for 1360lbs (2720 total)
the trailer is about 2600 dry, with about 350 on the tongue
I got a lot of comments that the tires were underinflated since they seemed to buldge under the weight of the trailer (they were at the max pressure)

so when came time to change them, I got a size bigger (Maxxis st185/80/R13 LRC rated at 1480lbs each) still have the buldge, and the new tires have more lateral flex than the old ones.

what would be better to increase the stability of the tire, more plies in the sidewall (like a LRD with a 1610lbs rating) or the more expensive option of getting a 14 inch tire/rim with a 1750lbs rating?

[eldermike]

I would go with the 14inch and stick with Maxxis tires.

[octane]

wouldn't the 6 ply maxxis tires in the bigger size still have the same bad stability?

is the instability caused by the low margin between the tire rating and TT weight? or because the tires are just soft?

[troutslayer]

I guess I'm not following why this is a problem. Is it just because it looks like they are underinflated? As long as you are not overloading the trailer, your current Maxxis tires are more than sufficient for the load. If, by chance, you are overloading the trailer, a heftier tire will not fix the real problem.

[DocBrown]

Originally Posted by troutslayer

I guess I'm not following why this is a problem. Is it just because it looks like they are underinflated? As long as you are not overloading the trailer, your current Maxxis tires are more than sufficient for the load. If, by chance, you are overloading the trailer, a heftier tire will not fix the real problem.

X2. I've had 2 trailers now with st185/80/R13, and even with the dreaded Chinese made tires to boot on the current trailer. I keep them inflated to their max of 50 PSI and never tow faster than 65, usually 62/63. In 13 years of towing on this size of tire I have never had a single problem with them.

Just fill them to max and enjoy your trip.

[octane]

Originally Posted by troutslayer

I guess I'm not following why this is a problem. Is it just because it looks like they are underinflated? As long as you are not overloading the trailer, your current Maxxis tires are more than sufficient for the load. If, by chance, you are overloading the trailer, a heftier tire will not fix the real problem.

the new Maxxis tires are very soft, and feel instable even when wind are calm, and the WD is setup perfectly, I still feel the TT "wiggling"... which is didn't do with the old blowmax tires!

[octane]

Originally Posted by DocBrown

X2. I've had 2 trailers now with st185/80/R13, and even with the dreaded Chinese made tires to boot on the current trailer. I keep them inflated to their max of 50 PSI and never tow faster than 65, usually 62/63. In 13 years of towing on this size of tire I have never had a single problem with them.

Just fill them to max and enjoy your trip.

yeah, but you have a dual axle setup, so you are not at the limit of the load rating and a dual axle setup is more stable...

I just feel that the TT is not as easy to tow with the new Maxxis tires.

[eldermike]

Originally Posted by octane

yeah, but you have a dual axle setup, so you are not at the limit of the load rating and a dual axle setup is more stable...

I just feel that the TT is not as easy to tow with the new Maxxis tires.

All the dual axle and even the triple axle trailers are running very close to load rating simply because that is the way they all come from the factory.

You need to look for all the possible reasons for the change in the way you trailer is towing. Softer tires is not it in my opinion. Changing the weight distribution even slightly inside the trailer will have a huge affect on how it tows. Move something heavy to the front and give that a try.