Cupping trailer tires

[goteeboy]

As the topic says, my trailer tires are cupped pretty badly, but i think i'll still use them for one final season. Anyone see any safety issue in this? There is still some tread left, just the cupping.

 

So, anyone know why this is happening and how I can ensure it doesn't happen w/ my next pair? Hauling a 16.5 ft Lowe aluminum. Boat is tied down tight to trailer. And air pressure is correct.

 

Thanks.

[Pikeslayer]

As the topic says, my trailer tires are cupped pretty badly, but i think i'll still use them for one final season. Anyone see any safety issue in this? There is still some tread left, just the cupping.

 

So, anyone know why this is happening and how I can ensure it doesn't happen w/ my next pair? Hauling a 16.5 ft Lowe aluminum. Boat is tied down tight to trailer. And air pressure is correct.

 

Thanks.

 

Here you go;

 

http://www.ehow.com/...ping-tires.html

 

"Driving on tires that are cupping is not a safe scenario for drivers since there is less contact between the surface of the tire and that of the road. Less contact means less traction and control for starting and stopping."

 

I wouldn't be driving with them. You are putting yourself, your boat and anybody else on the road in harm's way IMHO. You're just a blowout away from a potentially tragic accident. I would think twice about trailering.

 

That's my nickel,

 

Slayer

Edited May 10, 2012 by pikeslayer

[lew]

Sounds to me like your wheels need balancing.

[davey buoy]

All I know if I'm pulling my 3,000lb boat and I notice something wrong with one or two of my tires I change it.!!! All i need is to have the boat and trailer all over the road not to mention possible injury to someone else. If we own a trailer and carry something of value,we need to budget or have the money to keep it going to the best of our ability.

[bassjnkie]

I wouldn't take that chance.

[I'mHooked]

Here's what can happen as a result of an unforeseen 'trailer' issue. 5 years ago on the QEW. Got jacknifed and ended up on the roof in the ditch...soft landing! Fortunatley I walked away with only some cuts from broken glass.

 

[Billy Bob]

Tires not balanced.

[spincast]

without more info on the type of tire, I would hazard a few guesses - 1 - bias ply; 2 you trailer relatively long distances at a shot (an hour or more), 3, you probably are exceeding their speed rating. One question - do you check the tire pressure before every outing?

 

Would I run with them? Nope. a set of radial tires is worth 160.00 installed. Damage to boat, trailer, other vehicles on the road when your tire blow. A little more. If a piece of that flying rubber hits a motorcyclist, convertible or even an open window the damage could be fatal - literally.

replaced my bias plies with radials and will never go back.

 

(edited for spelling)

Edited May 11, 2012 by spincast

[Wolf 3]

Tires not balanced.

Also, you might of hit something (pothole, curb) and warped the rim.

Some more reading...

 

http://www.carlislet...rvice_guide.pdf

[smally21]

were the boat and trailer a package? just curious as to the weight of the boat and the capacity of the trailer. not in the way you think..as in overloading.

underloaded trailers ride like lumber wagons, bouncing and drifting can lead to scalloping...

 

just an idea. everything else seems to have been mentioned..i can certainly understand your concern to just chew up another set..

[Fisherman]

Sounds to me like your wheels need balancing.

Ed Zacary, you'd be surprised how many people don't. Ask them what happens with non balanced car/truck tires...oh it shakes my car/truck, its unbearable.. Okay then, go balance your trailer tires too.

[Pigeontroller]

Continuing to drive (or trailer) with tires you know to be bad reeks of negligence! As stated, its not just your safety at risk!

[Nipfisher]

I know you say your air pressure is correct but make sure the air pressure is for LOADED trailer. THe tire pressure ratings on the tires is for empty trailer. Add the weight of boat,trailer, gas, gear, etc and your air pressure will be too much. I blew out a brand new tire on it's first ride (5+ hours) because I had too much air in the tires and balooned them causeing the centers of the tire to thin out.

[smally21]

Apologies but the weight a tire is loaded with has no affect on its pressure reading.

 

Same interior volume, same volume of air. the tire changes shape when loaded, not size. temperature is about the only factor that will change the measured reading. ratings are for cold tires.

[Nipfisher]

Apologies but the weight a tire is loaded with has no affect on its pressure reading.

 

Same interior volume, same volume of air. the tire changes shape when loaded, not size. temperature is about the only factor that will change the measured reading. ratings are for cold tires.

 

 

o.k. so more weight equals hotter tires equals more wear.

[SmokestackLightnin]

As the topic says, my trailer tires are cupped pretty badly, but i think i'll still use them for one final season. Anyone see any safety issue in this? There is still some tread left, just the cupping.

 

So, anyone know why this is happening and how I can ensure it doesn't happen w/ my next pair? Hauling a 16.5 ft Lowe aluminum. Boat is tied down tight to trailer. And air pressure is correct.

 

Thanks.

 

Cupping can also be a result of weak of poor suspension. Some people use their boat to carry stuff away which overloads the trailer creating the same condition as a weak suspension, which will lead to cupping. Best solution is to check your trailer springs, you might have to add a leaf or two and don't load the boat full of stuff when trailering.

 

If your plan is to use the cupped tires this season make sure you have a spare, a bottle jack and lug wrench that fits the trailer wheel nuts, you're likely to need them. Really important for the lug wrench as your trailer wheel nuts may not be the same size as the vehicle wheel nuts so your vehicle wrench will be useless.

[goteeboy]

Thanks for all the advice. Much appreciated. New tires have been ordered.

 

From my research online it seems that the main culprit is suspension. Trailers have the tendency to be more bouncy and of course in smaller single axle trailers the suspension is no where nearly as sophisticated as that of a car. I remember having this problem on an old Olds Delta 88 I drove. Terrible suspension in the front and as a result, cupped tires.

 

I'm almost certain that my cause is not from tire pressure as the wear across the tread is pretty even. Anyway. New tires on the way.

[bigbuck]

Good for you. Don't mess around with that. Also, get the suspension checked on the trailer. You don't need to take unnecessary risks. It could be a fairly easy fix. Check out iboats.com. You should get a pretty good idea of what exactly the problem is on the forums there. Great resource for anyone that has a boat.

[Garnet]

Sounds like you trailer a bit.

 

Can't believe I traveled all those years with out CAA RV Plus $225 and they take my boat home/garage. Would hate to leave my boat on the road.

[JamesG]

I had a blow out on the 401 at 3:30 on a sunday afternoon with no spare..... ended up measuring the hub size and distance between the lugs with a piece of paper and left the boat on the side of the road, raced to crappy tire and could only find a 12" tire on rim..... I guess i got lucky since i left the lake early, if it was past 5 i'd be stuck

 

 

 

I recommended changing the tires every 5-6 years or when they're worn. There is a D.O.T. number stamped on the side, the last 4 digits are the week and year it was produced 4505 is 45th week of 2005, if its only 3 digits, its in the 90's....

 

 

btw, i'm also running a 16.5ft lowe nice stable smaller boat

Edited May 11, 2012 by JamesG

[goteeboy]

So I took a look at the tires a bit closer. There are five rows of tread on each tire and it's the outer two treads that are badly worn and cupped. What does that mean? The passenger side a bit more than the other. So I did take off the spare and replaced the one that was more worn and I'll replace the other one when my new tires arrive. When i took off the worn tire i checked for play in the hub and there was none.

 

Tires are Maxxis 175/80/13 rated for 35psi cold at 1100lbs per tire. As well the tires are original and the boat/trailer is around 9-10 yrs old. The previous owner hardly trailered as i remember the tires being new when i bought the package 4 years ago.

 

If they were over-weighted, they would have the tendency to ride on the inside treads, at least that's what i think, but these are wearing on the outside treads so what does that mean?

 

One other question that came to mind was, are my leaf springs too strong or too weak? could that be a factor? So if they are too weak, then the weight of the boat has essentially maxed out the springs, there's no more give, so they will bounce. does my logic make sense?

 

Again, i have a single axle trailer which came w/ the boat. the boat is a 16.5ft lowe w/ a 50hp 2 stroke. So i don't think it's over weighted. Also, the trailer is nearly level when it's connected on the ball/hitch.

 

the mystery continues

Edited May 12, 2012 by goteeboy

[irishfield]

Worn on the out sides only... you are running them under inflated!! Simple as that...

[SlowPoke]

Cupping is usually caused by bounce.

Bounce is usually caused by;

-under inflation (tread and sidewalls constantly flexing)

-worn out shocks (same result but you probably don't have shocks)

-stiff suspension (same result because springs are too rigid to absorb load)