Trailer tire blowout

I had a tire blow out on my tandem axle trailer today. I was driving about 70 on the interstate. I didn't know it until another car pulled next to me and told me.

I used my "Trailer Aid" which I have used a couple times before and I love it:
https://www.amazon.com/Trailer-Aid-Tande...e+changing+ramp

So, how fast do you guys drive with your trailer? I think my tires are rated for 70mph but now I want to look again.

Thank you for adding the link to that ramp on Amazon, I just ordered one for myself.
Sorry you had the blow out and trouble...

I like that little ramp after using it 3 times this year. It's lightweight and compact. The only tricky part is getting in your truck and "feeling" when your good tire is up on the ramp. The first time I used it I had to go back and forth a few times to get it positioned correctly.

This blowout looks ugly and it could have been disastrous. I really think the tandem axle saved me.

How old was that tire ?

Very few "Special Purpose" (i.e., trailer) tires are rated for 70 MPH.

Bought the boat/trailer new back in January. Probably had no more than 5000 miles on it.

I looked up the rating on the manufacturers website when I first got it and I could have sworn it said 70 but now I'll be checking again.

Is there a general rule of thumb you guys use for maximum speed with bass boat trailers?

I remember Goodyear used to recommend increasing the tires max psi by 10psi if it was being used between 65-75mph

I can't believe that fiberglass fender survived the blowout. Just a suggestion but I would check the age of the other tires. Mileage isn't that big a factor with trailer tires because the average fisherman will not pull his boat enough to wear the tread out. If the tires are over 5 yrs old you might think about replacing them. Yes, the tandem axle helped your situation.

ST tires are rated for 65MPH.
I also run tires on all of my vehicles and trailers at max cold pressure. It puts less rubber on the road, less friction, and the tires run cooler.

Daggumit Toofy, sorry you had that happen. Looks like it seperate s & thank goodness it didn't tear up that fender. I will run 70 some but mainly 60-65. I know some guys that 70 is about the slowest they run. Yes they have more tire issues. The only tires I've had issue with were older ties that separated just like that. Tread separated from tire. Be safe out there.

Heat is the enemy of trailer tires. Air is your friend. Make sure tires are inflated to maximum cold pressure.

He's correct. So is another post stating that age alone is a factor. Several manufacturers have specifications stating a rather short lifespan for SP tires, regardless of mileage or remaining tread. This circumstance started getting bad when all the SP tire manufacturing moved to China a number of years ago. It seems the formulation they use for the tire carcass is just like a lot of other stuff they make - cr@p.

For those who have inquiring minds that may wonder "What does air have to do with heat?":

With higher tire pressure, the tire "squats" less on the road. In a given moment, that squat is a distortion in the tire's shape at a given spot. But, your tire rolls very fast, so the location of that spot on the tire where the tire shape is distorted changes constantly. Pick a spot on the tire, any spot. Now follow what happens to that spot. Every time it rolls onto the road, it flexes, creating heat. Every time it rolls off the road again, it flexes yet again. This never stops, and it happens constantly to every bit of the tire around it's circumference.

With lower tire pressure, the tire flex is more pronounced, and the tire heats up even more. This is why Goodyear recommends running higher pressure in their trailer tires if you are going to drive higher speeds. The faster you go, the hotter any tire will get. The most direct way to negate this is by adding more air to make the tire "harder" so it distorts less as it rolls.

So I just looked up the tire on the manufacturers website. Scrolling down the list, it's item #170035
http://automotive.kendatire.com/en-us/find-a-tire/passenger-car/kenetica/

It has a "T" speed rating which is up to 118mph according to this:
https://www.discounttire.com/learn/speed-rating

Now I'm even more confused.

Are you running a BassCat? They are the only ones I know that use non-trailer tires.

Looks like a Ranger based on the wheels

2017 Ranger Z21

Dang that’s some bad luck on a new boat.

Guess I should have read/looked at the rim a bit closer.

Toofy,

What pressure do you run in your tires? How often do you check them? Any tire will experience extreme service if run "out of spec". If a tire rated for 50 PSI is run at 30 PSI it is not going to fare well. The tire carcass will be cooked by the heat generated (and the material is pretty crappy in a best case scenario to begin with).

Making sure the tire pressure is at max. pressure is step #1 for avoiding trouble. I check mine weekly when I'm fishing. This is not because I think they leak down when OK, but to insure I haven't picked up a screw or nail, etc. that is causing leak-down. Run very far on a low tire, and it will tear up....in my experience.

I don't check them as often as I should. I need to just make that part of my routine, same as cleaning and setting up the boat every trip.
They are rated for 44psi and the others were around 40-42.
I guess there is no way to know if the tire tore itself apart or if I ran over something that tore it up.

70 MPH rated tires is an old thing or for the smaller utility trailer tires. Like you found toofy most are rated 118 or around that. Since you don't check them that often it could of had a problem with that tire but thanks to tandem trailer you didn't notice. Sometimes excrement happens and you have no control.

Good thing is you can now drive the speed limit on Texas highways and not worry about going too fast.

I really appreciate all the info guys. This was the 3rd flat tire this year. The other 2 were on a trip to Pickwick over the summer. After a 10 hour drive I got a flat just when I was driving down a gravel road on the way to my destination. The 2nd one came a week later at the end of the trip. I drove the boat to the ramp while I asked my wife to drive my truck and trailer to the ramp 2 miles away. When she got there I realized I left the parking brake engaged on the trailer. The left rear tire had a flat spot on the bottom where the pavement just rubbed through the rubber and metal inside the tire. I don't fault my wife because she had no way of knowing. She can barely drive, much less know how a trailer works.

Last week I bought a 2005 Ranger Z22 (59 hours) and it had the original factory tires on the trailer. Drove it home from lake of the Ozarks with no issues. Thought about putting new tires on before I got on the road but decided not too.

It doesn’t help that a lot of the tires that trailer manufacturers are using are now made in China

You are exactly correct. One article about trailer towing that I read indicated there was no longer ANY domestic based trailer tire production. They all came from China at the time of that article, and probably do today. The article discussed that the materials used changed (clearly to cheapen the tire for the sake of profit) and that decision played into the predicament we have now. The change also affected the age-sensitivity of the tires. The fine print now states the tires have a service life based on time regardless of mileage, and many tires seem to be failing via this new development. I don't think any tire company considers this a problem. They sell tires for as much or more than they once did, clear more margin, then get to sell you more tires after their short service life expires and the tires self-destruct.

Goodyear Endurance from now on. It is made in America.
New tire out this year for trailers, its heavy duty, inflate to 65 psi, the horse and cattle haulers have been raving about them, they run around $120 a tire.

Thanks for the link. I just ordered one. Sure beats messing with a jail.

Update:

I went out in my driveway and found another flat tire on my trailer. These were Kinecta tires. After my 4th flat tire in less than a year (new tires) I got fed up and went to a tire shop and started over with 4 new tires of a different brand. I told them just gimme the best there is because I'm tired of this. They recommended Yokohama Avid Ascend. Fine, gimme 4.

Back to the original post, a tire blew out on my tandem trailer and I didn't know it until a guy pulled next to me and waved me down. So to prevent this in the future, I got a tire pressure management system. I researched several and decided on this one:

http://www.tiretraker.com/proddetail.php?prod=TT500-4

I have used it for a month now and love it. It only took about 15 minutes to set up. I love it so far. It's got a solid suction cup thingy to stick it on my windshield when towing but I can remove it the rest of the time. For the tires, all I did was replace the valve caps with the new caps.

I've come to the conclusion that about 4-5 years is all a trailer tire is good for and you really can't tell what they look like without removing them from the trailer for a good inspection.

My tires are rated for 84mph and 50psi. I try to keep it under 70mph but find myself up around 75 sometimes.

While I guess any system is better than none, I don't care for the cap systems. I prefer the sensor to be inside the wheel.

toofy, you might be interested in this email I received from them regarding a question I submitted.

The TT-700 doesn't have the range to cover a trailer. We do have a 2-sensor version of the TT-500 for $239. It's not listed on our website so if it was something you wanted to order just give us a call at 866.200.9773 ext.1, or by replying to this email. Also, just as an FYI the sensors are water-resistant not waterproof. So, before you launch your boat you'd want to remove the sensors and put them in your cab.

Good info, thanks. I've launched about 5 times with them on. They look pretty solid and I don't think water will get inside very easily. But I guess I'll find out.

I run Nitrogen in all my tires because of the many benefits. Moisture in the air/tire is the biggest problem because it expands and contracts based on the heat generated. That is why you can put 32 psi in your tire and run it down the road and the pressure increases. I can run 5 - 10 psi more in a tire because my pressure won't fluctuate which helps reduce the flex spots which leads to premature wear. Moisture will also rot a tire from the inside out. NASCAR runs it because a 1/4 psi can mean a lot to a tire running 150 mph plus.

Glad you and the boat were okay.

It also helps that I have access to vacuum pumps and a 15,000 gallon purified N2 source.