trailer tire failures... read on

[packman]

aside from the obvious, overload and underinflation, there are some critical things that can cause tire and wheel bearing failure. the first and foremost is in the the cutting and jacking that we sometimes have to do to get our trailer in a particular spot. we quit using "trailer tires" about five years ago and went with conventional, straight tread , 10 ply or 8 ply auto tires. we dont consider the savings of buying a retread or trailer only tire a bargain at all. the thing that has'nt been discussed that is critical to trailers is the way the the trl tires and the wheel bearings can stand the twisting that we all have to do to get our rigs in a certain spot. your tow rig , hopefully, will never see these grinding affects, it aint natural for that tire or axle to flex, chunking, flat spots, blown oil seals and bearing failure, usually result. the casual tower might not consider that, but i've seen enough over the years to know. we go through about 15 tires a month, mostly from tread sep at hiway speeds, when we retreive the "gator" the tread has always been good, but you could see the seperation point, dont pivot your rig too sharp, and all this time i thought it was only us....