Darn China Bomb Castle Rock Tires

[My17Ram]

$400.00 for new Endurance tires is peanuts to me for the peace of mind that going up one load range and getting rid of the junk China made tires gives me.

[pdqparalegal1]

It’s a joke son. 😁

[67L48]

Originally Posted by camper70

Titan Mike I'm glad you didn't fall for the YOU must buy new tires for your new trailer. I didn't either.
[...]
I would not pay much attention to anything 67L48 says I think he just trolls on here trying to mess with others posts. Not much help.

What are you even talking about? I agreed that there wasn't much need to get new tires ... I'm running the factory Castle Rock tires. But, whatever helps you sleep better at night.

[NMWildcat]

Personally, I would never run Castle Rocks. I put them in the 'china bomb' category. After a few hard lessons, I never leave the OEM tires on long, as they have always been off brand cheapos with just enough load rating to barely handle the actual load.

I have noticed that the folks who seem to have success with Castle Rocks are usually running lighter RVs, so maybe that's a factor that is not being discussed in the supposed success rate a few folks have with them.........

[SailorSam20500]

Originally Posted by NMWildcat

I have noticed that the folks who seem to have success with Castle Rocks are usually running lighter RVs, so maybe that's a factor that is not being discussed in the supposed success rate a few folks have with them.........

Is it that they are on lighter trailers or the difference between the tire weight rating and the actual weight of the trailer? In my case, tires are rated for about 30% more than what my trailer weighs.

[JohnD10]

Originally Posted by NMWildcat

I have noticed that the folks who seem to have success with Castle Rocks are usually running lighter RVs, so maybe that's a factor that is not being discussed in the supposed success rate a few folks have with them.........

That has been my observation as well.

Most of the people I know from my camping club that had the 'China Bomb Syndrome' (ie.- blowouts) were on bigger, heavier TT's and 5'vers.

But I do know a couple of people that had them blow on smaller TT's as well.

I had a set of 'BlowMax' tires on my previous 28ft TT that weighed around 8000 pounds and never had any issue with them after 5000 miles, but after all of the hype I was glad to be rid of them when I traded it in.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by SailorSam20500

Is it that they are on lighter trailers or the difference between the tire weight rating and the actual weight of the trailer? In my case, tires are rated for about 30% more than what my trailer weighs.

Definitely a factor. Could also be that people with 5th wheels being tugged by well powered diesels tend to be driven faster down the highway, often with no regard to the speed rating of the tire.

You realize that anything going wrong just has to be the fault of the tire, never the operator of the vehicle

[NMWildcat]

Originally Posted by TitanMike

Could also be that people with 5th wheels being tugged by well powered diesels tend to be driven faster down the highway, often with no regard to the speed rating of the tire.

You realize that anything going wrong just has to be the fault of the tire, never the operator of the vehicle

HUGE, invalid assumptions!!! I find towing speed seems to be more a factor of age. That opinion is, of course, also based on absolutely nothing......

I always shake my head at all of your posts stating it's never the tire, it's the lack of maintenance and 'tire rules' ignorance by their owners. I find most RV owners I have met are fairly well versed in how to properly care for their tires.

I just figure you don't have any real experience in perfectly maintained tires failing for no evident reason. Otherwise you would be less judgemental and more open to reasonable discussion.

[bob213]

Since this thread has already gone awry let me hijack it as well. I have Maxxis tires that are kept in an enclosed cover, never seeing sunlight when stored. 62 mph max when towing and always properly inflated. They will be 5 years old in June with less than 10,00 miles on them. Should I replace them now before the season starts or do they have life left in them?

[itat]

Originally Posted by SailorSam20500

Is it that they are on lighter trailers or the difference between the tire weight rating and the actual weight of the trailer? In my case, tires are rated for about 30% more than what my trailer weighs.

I totally agree. It may be that "China bomb" tires meet their design spec but they are less tolerant of conditions that exceed the design specs, or accidental impacts like running over a curb or a tree stump or a big pothole. Maxxis M8008 tires made in Thailand have a good reputation so that's not universally true of all tires made in Asia.

As I said in my earlier post about the Castle Rock tires on my new 5er, "I’ll scale the rig after we’ve loaded it up and see if the tires are anywhere near their weight rating. If they are I’ll replace them earlier."

[5picker]

Originally Posted by NMWildcat

HUGE, invalid assumptions!!! I find towing speed seems to be more a factor of age. That opinion is, of course, also based on absolutely nothing......

I always shake my head at all of your posts stating it's never the tire, it's the lack of maintenance and 'tire rules' ignorance by their owners. I find most RV owners I have met are fairly well versed in how to properly care for their tires.

I just figure you don't have any real experience in perfectly maintained tires failing for no evident reason. Otherwise you would be less judgemental and more open to reasonable discussion.

X2
It is simply hard for some to understand that just because they have not had an issue... that there ARE indeed issues.

I mentioned it before that I never curbed mine, never run above their speed rating, always inflated to proper pressures, yet continue to get slammed into the group that have NO regard for their equipment because I had issues.

That is simply not true.

[Iwannacamp]

... I feel like Forrest Gump as I don't who was/is right, but I know this forum has made me nervous as a cat about many things. I think I watch the mirrors(I.E. looking for tires flapping) as much as I watch the road.

I also think Tireman was correct when he said "checking the tires pressure can cause failure" meaning the core can start leaking and you leave on a journey and have a failure.

[itat]

Originally Posted by bob213

Since this thread has already gone awry let me hijack it as well. I have Maxxis tires that are kept in an enclosed cover, never seeing sunlight when stored. 62 mph max when towing and always properly inflated. They will be 5 years old in June with less than 10,00 miles on them. Should I replace them now before the season starts or do they have life left in them?

ST Trailer tires usually age out before they wear out. Using them helps to keep them pliable. Sitting still for long periods, they can dry out prematurely. If they are 5 years old, watch them closely for any signs of deterioration due to aging. Look for cracks due to drying out rubber or bulges due to separating belts. If they've been kept under cover and not exposed to sunlight for most of their life they may well be good for a few more years. You could treat them with Aerospace 303 for protection.

General advice is to change them after 5-7 years but if they look in good condition you could get more life out of them.

[5picker]

Originally Posted by bob213

Since this thread has already gone awry let me hijack it as well. I have Maxxis tires that are kept in an enclosed cover, never seeing sunlight when stored. 62 mph max when towing and always properly inflated. They will be 5 years old in June with less than 10,00 miles on them. Should I replace them now before the season starts or do they have life left in them?

Maxxis have a good history (here and elsewhere) of being a good tire.

I would not change mine because they are Maxxis but the 5 year mark is certainly something to consider heavily.

I have tires on other trailers that are more than 5 years old but should they fail, they won't take out half the underside of the trailer. (flatbed, utility, and dump)

On my R/V, I want the best I can do since damage from a failed tire can be considerable.

[5picker]

Originally Posted by Iwannacamp

... I feel like Forrest Gump as I don't who was/is right, but I know this forum has made me nervous as a cat about many things. I think I watch the mirrors(I.E. looking for tires flapping) as much as I watch the road.

I also think Tireman was correct when he said "checking the tires pressure can cause failure" meaning the core can start leaking and you leave on a journey and have a failure.

Get a TPMS (if you don't have one) and many of those fears will go away.

Set the alarms and only worry about it when they go off.
(however a quick check at rest areas and such of bearing/tire/brake temps is ALWAYS good)

[babock]

On my 6000# boat, I switched my 14" tires to 15". 2 sets of Chinese 15" tires failed. A set of Towmasters had 2 violent blowouts within a 100 miles if each other and a set of Hercules all developed huge bubbles in the sidewall and tread. I was WAY under the capacity of the tires. The Hercules we're 4 years old and the Towmasters were 3. Speed was always 60mph or less. I have Maxxis now going on 4 years with no issues.

[Iwannacamp]

Originally Posted by 5picker

Get a TPMS (if you don't have one) and many of those fears will go away.

Set the alarms and only worry about it when they go off.
(however a quick check at rest areas and such of bearing/tire/brake temps is ALWAYS good)

I do and thank you. I still worry because I have 2 1/2 YO Castle Rocks on there. I will replace them when I run out of other stuff to buy.

[itat]

5picker and NMWildcat, I totally understand what you're saying. I sometimes wonder if the tires may have experienced a significant impact that caused damage during transport to the dealer where you bought the trailer. That might explain how you didn't abuse the tires but they failed anyway. The damage may have been inflicted before you took possession. Of course it might have just been poor quality control at the factory, too. Who knows.

[TheWolfPaq82]

Got 7 years out of the ones on my 2007 Jayco before we sold it.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by 5picker

X2
It is simply hard for some to understand that just because they have not had an issue... that there ARE indeed issues.

I mentioned it before that I never curbed mine, never run above their speed rating, always inflated to proper pressures, yet continue to get slammed into the group that have NO regard for their equipment because I had issues.

That is simply not true.

I certainly don't lump people who have had failures into any "abuser" category. I accept the fact that tires fail.

Experience in the tire industry has taught me that there are a lot of opinions but rarely based on industry wide data. REAL numbers, not just whatever is scraped from internet posts.

Remember, if a company builds a million tires, and they have a failure rate of 1% that's 10,000 tires. A failure rate of 1% is pretty good in any industry and chances are the actual rate is less.

Since companies don't share these numbers (except with NHTSA when requested/demanded) again I hold that nobody here really knows how good or bad any given tire is.

Having seen pallet loads of warranty tires, many of which were shredded from being run flat/underinflated, I can speak from first hand experience that people DO abuse tires. Not always intentional.

The best thing to happen to the tire industry and tire users was the development of TPMS systems. If they had been widely deployed back in the late 90's I doubt we would have read a thing about Ford Explorers and Firestone Tires.

FWIW I still see people driving down the highway totally oblivious to the fact they have a near-flat tire on their car/truck/trailer and sometimes it's even smoking. When it comes apart YOU KNOW what the owner's going to blame.

BTW, you can check your tires every time you start your day, at every rest stop, etc, but that doesn't insure you won't run over a piece of road trash and develop a flat. Without a TPMS you get no warning until someone pulls up alongside, honking and pointing. Especially with tandem axles.