Simple Questions

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

1. Do you balance your trailer tires?



2. Do you rotate them?



TOXIC

 

[Sam Elkins]

Don't know why I did but I had them balanced. Seems like they would bounce and shiver just like any other tire. I rotate them every time I go fishin'.

 

[Rich D]

Nope to both



Rich D

 

[Bill McElroy]

nope,..nope...

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

You don't count Mac.....You never put any miles on them before you have a bright shiny new one in the d-way!!



TOXIC

 

[Bill Corrigal]

I did have them balanced ...don't know why... but the only rotating they do is on the highway

 

[Dave Muniz]

Don't rotate or balance. No problems for 15 yrs.



I quess radials could use the rotating but thrailer wheels aren't aligned like car wheels. If you have wear it is usually indicative of another problem, IMO.



Dave

 

[Richard Whittemore]

NO and NO



No problems, no shake, rattle but does roll.

Never gave it thought.



What do you do????

 

[Texas Transplant]

New tire put on the old boat was balanced. Rotate, no.



We all should probably have the tires balanced, at a minimum, it would help.



Tex

 

[TOMMY RICH]

Yes and No...Yes I always balance them. Trailer tires are like any other tire..they need balanced to keep them from wearing mainly. In the old days most all the trailer tires were 12" or smaller and didn't really need balancing because of the size but, I think if you got 13" or bigger it only makes sense.

There's really noway to rotate bias-ply but, don't think it would hurt with radials especially with tandem trailers.

TEE

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

No consensus here hmmmmm, that is strange. Some say yes, yes, some say no, no, some say yes and no. My problem is twofold. I have one marathon that is wearing on the outside edge (actually it is bald on the outside edge) and I have one non-marathon tire on that was an emergency replacement. I discovered a problem. The odd tire was rated @ 35lbs and all of the marathons are 50lbs. All of the marathons were aired down to 35. That would explain my crappy gas mileage AND the sloppy behavior from the trailer. I aired the marathons back up to 45 and need to get the baldy and the odd ball replaced. My partner is a piece of work sometimes!!



You guys didn't help me any....what am I supposed to do, flip a coin!! LOL Seems to me they should get balanced.



TOXIC



BTW, I had a heck of a time finding a dealer who carries them in-stock. Most were a "I'll have to order that for you". Can you tell I'm scrambling for this Wisconsin trip!!LOL Still won't have a spare.....I'll have a spare tire, but no rim.

 

[Bryan McDonough]

Almost all tires need to be balanced. You may not notice an out of balance tire on your trailer, unless its really bad, but its a good idea to increase tire tread life. Rotating, well i assume were talking about a tandem trailer, i never pratice this. just replace when needed. Trailer tires are not like a cars 4 wheels. They should wear evenly in theory.

 

[Andrew Zuber]

...at least balance them...

its another "cheap" insurance policy...



I balance...but do not rotate...



az

 

[TOMMY RICH]

Tox...run em' at the max...50 lbs.PSI and I would get em' fixed..

TEE

 

[Jim B]

I do have mine balanced, im friends with a tire guy so i do mine once a year. I dont rotate them, my tire buddy tells me there is no need. Like TEE said run them at 50# that way they will hold max capacity and they will wear more even. I would bet you may be wearing more on the outside edge due to underinflation. I have always ran marathons at 50# and after well over 60k on my last boat they werent worn out yet.

 

[TOMMY RICH]

Hey Jim...who did your prop...Dam that looks good!

TEE

 

[Jim B]

TEE, Dah propellers in wisconsin, he did a full blueprint job in it. Believe it or not it works better then it looks. Major improvement over a standard issue tempest

 

[Michael Snow]

For those who don't know, on radials, you NEVER rotate a tire from one side to the other. The belts get used to rotating in one direction (you don't back at 50 mph, we hope), and turning them around, causing them to rotate the other direction at high speed will cause the belts to break.



As for balancing, to be honest, I've never "intentionally" balanced my car or truck tires. It's usually included in the rotation. In the days when I'd rotate my own tires (or not at all), I never got them balanced unless there was an issue.



Rotating trailer tires on a tandem axle trailer actually sounds like a good idea. The reason is, you can't align a trailer without a torch. So, if you have a wear issue on one axle, rotating them will give you better life.



Toxic, stop putting car tires on your trailer

 

[Dan J.]

I always balance and NEVER rotate my Marathons. You can feel the difference under a heavy load at highway speeds between balanced and unbalanced. Run them at 50 PSI and you should get 50K miles or more on a set. Just from what I've experienced.

 

[Bruce Freeman]

OK My Turn Balance yes rotate no. (never thought of it) Todays radial tires can and should be rotated (They fixed the belt problem years ago) Outside edge wear only indicates that A: there is an alingment problem, B: That the tire has been on the same spot since new and the edge is being scrubbed off during tight turns like at the ramp. Tox do you most alway load and unload you boat from the same direction? (pull down make a hard left to get lined up and then back her in?) if so is it the right front tire??

Just my 2 cents

BF

 

[Carlos Hathcock III]

Tox,

Wil the tire and rim from mine work for your Wisconsin trip? If so you can borrow that for the trip. Let me know.



Carlos

 

[Bruce Freeman]

When are you leaving and what size?? I don't know your route to Wi but I am only 5 miles off of 95 a few miles north of Balt?? I have 14" trailer tires in stock and can get almost anything you want in a day (Sat does not count)

BF

P.S once a tire (any tire) starts to wear it will ALWAYS wear out that area first. (roll a paper cup on a table that may help with why it does so)

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

CIII you home now???



Yeah your spare will work. That would save me from having to buy one of those cheap carlisle rims and tires. I have been trying to get a somewhat matching rim for the boat but started a little late. Wanna meet at Anna...or the river tomorrow?



Bruce thanks but I just dropped her off at a Goodyear in Gainsville, VA to have 2 of the tires replaced. He ordered a set for a guy and he never picked them up so they were in stock. I am having them balanced. I dunno why the one tire wore bad (a Marathon) it is on the same axle as the odd ball tire and like I said, they were all aired down to 35lbs. Not smart!!! If the new one wears then I'm gonna have to get the trailer looked at.



TOXIC

 

[Carlos Hathcock III]

Tox,

Yes hoem now for a week or so WEhoo Hoooooo. Going to the weigh in this afteroon at Leeavalinia Park.

What are you doign tomorrow?



Carlos

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

CIII, I actually need to run the fuel out of my boat before the long trip. I don't want to tow her with a 1/2 tank. If you wanted to do the river, (your boat or mine) I would be game for that also. What did you have in mind?



TOX

 

[Staci Matheis]

Balance, yes.



Rotate, no. Especially if they are radials.



Radial tires develop a "wear pattern" based on their position and whether or not they are on a "driven" axle. These wear patterns amy not be very evident on the smaller sized tires on our cars, SUV's and trailers, but they become very noticable on over-the-road trucks. If you rotate radials, the first thing they try to do is to erase the old wear patterns and begin new ones; this significantly reduces tread life.



me!

 

[Buzz Bouvier]

I don't balance or rotate them but may after reading this post.



Buzz