Dual axle trailer question

but you're worried about breaking it

If you walk the same path twice on St. Augustine it's dead and doesn't re-seed.

Just mount some air shocks on the rear axle, when u get home jack the crap out of it until the other tires are unloaded and back her in

Hollywood wrote: you're in FL. st augustine grass? roll right over it no plywood needed

Ha, yeah right.

63 Skier wrote: Question - I looked at the driveway pictures again. Could you approach at a shallower angle by letting the tires roll across the corner of the lawn? You could drop a 4x8 sheet of 3/8" plywood over it before backing in if you didn't want to tear it up. I bet it would take a lot of the bind out of the turn.

I absolutely could do that with a sheet of plywood. The reason I never did was because there are 2 water meter boxes there and didn't want to possibly drop a wheel into one of the boxes should I break the cover. Plus I also have irrigation in that corner as well.

The street is quite narrow compared to others. For instance, my brother's street is a little over 30' wide, where mine is roughly 21-22'. The extra 8 feet would certainly make my life easier.

I'll swap out the rears with 2 new tires and see how much life I get out of them, then I'll replace all with the radials and see how long they last. If I continue to burn through them quickly, the single axle may be a cheaper option long term.

I always go for fewer axles but larger axles. Less problems all the way around.

Took the trailer up to Ramlin Trailers today for a second opinion. Tech said everything was aligned properly and that that left rear was more than likely the "pivot tire" hence the excessive wear. At this point I'll replace the 2 rears with 2 new bias plies and rotate them regularly until they're all worn, then replace all 4 with radials.

He took several measurements to check for obvious alignment issues and everything was spot on.

He also said I could always ditch the tandem axle set-up and go with a heavy (5200lb) single axle set-up if I got sick of the tandem set-up. He said it would cost about $1000.

At least I have options in the future if I get sick of the tandem st-up.

8122pbrainard wrote: Alan, Is it possible that you are over sprung on the Hurricane trailer? With my X55 trailer, it too ran like a rock when I first used it. I took a look at the boat and sprung trailer weight and ended up putting a set of 2500lb mono springs on the trailer. Wow, BIG difference! Typically trailers come through with springs to match the axle rating without consideration of what you put on the trailer. BTW, the trailer has bias tires on it!

I pulled a leaf out of each spring last year Pete, it's much better but still a bit too much spring for the boat but despite that there is no disputing the difference between how each style of tire runs. I run 65-70 mph on several trips of over 1500 miles round trip each year.   The bias are just not the right tire for that kind of use.   We're leaving for the River Run in a few weeks and that will be 2400 miles,

To Jpass situation with his short hauls I wouldn't be as critical for the short term fix but would plan for a good set of radials down the road.

81nautique wrote: I'm in the Radial tire camp for my boats. After having been talked into a set of bias ply tires for the Hurricane a few years ago i can say I will never put bias on anything where ride quality is a concern. In my opinion bias plys are probably fine for utility trailers like a landscaper would use but they are not suited for something you have to tow over the road like to a reunion especially at highway speeds. Seems no matter what you do with air pressure they ride like a brick and are noisy as heck, you can feel every crack in the road at the steering wheel, Plus they don't last nearly as long as radials do. After just 2 seasons on the Hurricane tires I replaced them all with a new set of radials, One tow and the difference is amazing, I'm not seeing the huge price difference either as radials cost about 25% more but last 3 times as long. Never again will I use bias tires on a trailer unless I retire and start cutting lawns for gas money.

If the trailer turns out not having an alignment issue and it's simply the bias ply tires, then I'll switch to radials. I have time off on the 15th. I'm going to see if I can schedule an appointment with Ramlin to rule out any other issues.

I really appreciate all of the feedback.

After the last post about bias vs radials, I'm thinking maybe sticking with the bias ply. I do have a new tire and wheel coming Monday or Tuesday.

The majority of our boating is done on local lakes (less than 30 miles away and mostly side streets).

So far we've had no issues when trailering and she rides smooth and tracks nice and straight.

Maybe 5 or 6 times a year we will be hitting the East coast (approximately 120 mile round trip). I'd say we put about 1000-1500 miles on the trailer each year.

Ugh.....what a PIA.

JPASS wrote: 8122pbrainard wrote: JP, Do check from the rims and not from the tires. Will do. Still planning on bringing the trailer up to Ramlin for a second opinion. Question: I was planning on only swapping the rear axles with new radials as the fronts are in great shape. Any problems with running the 2 different type of tires? Yes, ideally I should swap them all out, but money is a bit tight at the moment as I'm swapping out all 4 tires on my car in the next week or so, plus the 2 on the trailer. 6 tires is already pretty expensive, let alone 8 new ones. It also doesn't help that we're in the middle of a master bath remodel that has us hemorrhaging more cash then we anticipated as well. Fun fun fun

on that point, you are probably going to get a lot of don't do it or you shouldn't.IMO They are not going to fail as a direct cause of running them at the same time. they may wear differently but the reality is, most trailer tires become unusable from dry rot way before they ever wear to the point of needing replacement. so i would bolt them up and press on.
definately measure up and make sure everything is within reasonable alignment too.

8122pbrainard wrote: JP, Do check from the rims and not from the tires.

Will do.

Still planning on bringing the trailer up to Ramlin for a second opinion.

Question: I was planning on only swapping the rear axles with new radials as the fronts are in great shape. Any problems with running the 2 different type of tires?

Yes, ideally I should swap them all out, but money is a bit tight at the moment as I'm swapping out all 4 tires on my car in the next week or so, plus the 2 on the trailer. 6 tires is already pretty expensive, let alone 8 new ones. It also doesn't help that we're in the middle of a master bath remodel that has us hemorrhaging more cash then we anticipated as well.

Fun fun fun

8122pbrainard wrote: JP, the measurements you are taking are from the rims correct? Have you checked for play in the wheel bearings? Jacking each wheel would be needed.

No Pete, I took the measurements from the sidewalls. I can definitely check them again from the wheels.

I was unable to jack the trailer and check the bearings as I was limited on time, but that's my next step as I was planning on servicing the bearings being that I have no idea of their current condition since we purchased the boat back in August.

I need to get the rear seal size, so I can replace them anyway, so I'll need to remove the wheels sooner or later anyway.

The only consistent thing I keep hearing between this site and the Sea Doo site is that the tires that come with these trailers are as cheap as they come. I believe they're $60 with the wheel as opposed to $70 - $100 just for the radial tires.

I was also told these trailers have little to no way to adjust them. I did climb under there and measure the distance between the front and rear axles as close to the trailer frame as possible and the distance between them was exactly the same.

Not enough space I suppose but too bad someone doesn't invent a system that lifts one axle like a dump truck. Lift while maneuvering, lower while traveling.

maybe you could do a google search????    

A good friend of mine owns a tire shop and Ive been pulling trailers for many years...so yes I do have experience and a limited background.

A bias ply tire doesnt have steel belts like a radial......there is only steel on the bead of the tire.

Bias ply tires have very weak side walls hence the reason they look like they are gonna pop off the rim when turning sharp.    

Trailers many times are sold with junk, Chinese bias plys.   As the tread wears out,   rock will cut the tires.

you pay for what you get