G rated tires for heavy 5th wheel

[cmptrkd]

I have searched and read many threads on tires but one thing I have noticed is it is still hard to get an opinion on G rated tires.

I am looking for size 235/80R16. I cannot go to 235/85R16 as I only have 2.75" between my two axles.

My wheels are rated for a max PSI of 110, and a max weight of 3,960lbs.

Goodyear endurance are not sold in G rated. Goodyear G614 are G rated however, they are not sold in 235/80R16, only 235/85R16 and I don't have enough axle clearance between the two axles to loose an inch moving up in size.

I have primarily been looking at Hercules H901 ST tires, and also have been looking at Sailun S637. The Sailun brand seems to be hard to find. I am near Lincoln NE. Their dealer locator on their website says Sapp Bros however, when I spoke with them they could only find a Sapp Bros in Cheyenne WY that sells them, and couldn't give me a price. Hercules H901 can be found almost everywhere around here. The Hercules H901 ST tires come with a 72 month warranty, if a tire fails, and it's under 50% of tread wear, they replace it free. I think the Sailuns have something similar as well as the Goodyear G614.

Of course, a few tires stores also suggested BlowMax, Carlisle, MasterTrack, and Trailer King.

For anyone who is running G rated tires specifically, what brand are you running? Are you happy with the brand you selected?

For anyone with experience with Hercules in other load ranges, have you had any good experience with them?

My unit came with Master Track tires on it. They were E rated, on 6,000LB axles. After a couple years, my unit was upgraded to 7K axles and these new wheels and tires were replaced with heavy duty wheels with new E rated MasterTrack tires (Thanks Forest River - for stepping up and making something wrong, right!) Then I replaced two of them 3 years ago after an axle was out of alignment and caused the tires to wear badly on the sidewall. The two other tires were replaced a year after with Goodyear Endurance. The reason I didn't replace them all at once or go with the same brand is when I had the axles aligned, it was a chunk of money I hadn't planned on, and we had an impending trip. The shop recommended replacing those 2 at the least, so I did. Then the following year when I was planning tire replacement, Discount tire told me no reason to replace the 1 year old Mastertracks as they were in good shape and didn't see a reason to throw away money.

A couple weeks ago, I blew one of the Mastertrack tires (towing since 1999 and never blew a tire). Pressure was fine, I have TPMS, tires were 3yrs old. I even had it in the shop the morning we left as I saw grease on a wheel and was concerned I had a leaking wheel seal. Turns out I did. They replaced the seal, greased the others, adjusted the brakes and gave me an "all good to go". My guess is I hit something in the road, but I am unsure. I know my unit is heavy, last time I weighed it at CAT scales, I was at 15,004lbs loaded, pin weight was 2,921 My passenger side is heavier. That's the side where the pantry is, the refrigerator is, the dresser in the master, our outside kitchen, outdoor fridge, and the most accessible (and most utilized) basement storage compartment. The tires on that side run hotter, and increase in pressure more. On this last trip, from 80psi cold to 96psi hot, and 113 degrees. The drivers side was running at 94PSI hot, and 104 degrees. Sun was on the drivers side as we were headed west.

I think moving up to G rated ST tires, specifically ensuring the brand I choose is all steel (which most seem to be once you get to G rated) would be a great idea. I do know if I take my GVWR and subtract my pin weight, I'm just about 12,000 and E rated tires should be okay for that, but if the one side is running heavier how does one account for that? I don't know everything, and I am hoping some of y'all can help me out with some suggestions and opinions.

Thanks!

[The Evil Twin]

We currently run the Taskmaster Contender tires in 235/85r16 G on our 14k TH. The previous set were Westlake from the factory. Honestly happy with both. The Westies were old (had no idea that they could be 2 years old on a new trailer!) but wore very well and aged well too. The Contender had good reviews and were easier to stomach on the price when it came time to swap. So far they only have 4000 miles on them but they wear well and pull straight. I always balance trailers tires and they balanced without a ton of weight.
Sailun are also highly rated tires from what I understand.
Thats about all I can offer

[SnowmanCO]

I had to read your post twice! I have a Sandpiper 365SAQ...I initially thought we have the same rig...but then I realized my mistake. Nevertheless, I am having the same question about tires.

My Sandpiper max GVW is 14060. The empty weight is 12639. I'm afraid that the E rated tires will be so close to their max capacity that I'll be inviting failure.

I hope somebody can chime in here on the G rated tires!

[SlowrideHD]

If you are convinced that ST235/85 R16 tires won't fit, then this won't help. I run Provider brand tires from etrailer.com (700 positive reviews). They are 14 ply rated, "G" and will carry 4400 lbs each.
I'd measure again if I was you. What is your axle to axle distance?

[cmptrkd]

Originally Posted by SlowrideHD

If you are convinced that ST235/85 R16 tires won't fit, then this won't help. I run Provider brand tires from etrailer.com (700 positive reviews). They are 14 ply rated, "G" and will carry 4400 lbs each.
I'd measure again if I was you. What is your axle to axle distance?

SlowrideHD, I posted a pic I took tonight however, it is hard to interpret where the tape measure is sitting. I could hold the tape inside between the two wheels but then didn't have a 3rd hand to take a photo.

Good thought on measuring the axles, should I measure middle of one to middle of the other, or just the distance between the two? Then I can post an update.

Thanks for the suggestion.

[cmptrkd]

Originally Posted by SnowmanCO

I had to read your post twice! I have a Sandpiper 365SAQ...I initially thought we have the same rig...but then I realized my mistake. Nevertheless, I am having the same question about tires.

My Sandpiper max GVW is 14060. The empty weight is 12639. I'm afraid that the E rated tires will be so close to their max capacity that I'll be inviting failure.

I hope somebody can chime in here on the G rated tires!

SnowmanCO, we do basically have the same camper, with the exception of the name and the fabric colors.

Our model is a 2012 however it was one of the first 2012, built in August 2011. The unit was understated on dry weight, and had virtually no cargo carrying capacity. That's why FR replaced our axles, springs, shackles, wheels, and tires. They did that for us in 2013. Then in 2015, the sent a guy from Lippert and he welded in a bunch of angle iron cross members as ours had bent and broken above the under-belly. I didn't even think about that, I am expecting the camper could be a couple hundred pounds heavier than I am thinking because my last cat scale ticket was done in March of 2013 just before they replaced all the suspension.

Might want to weigh your rig at a truck stop just to make sure you really know what you're towing. I was shocked as I never anticipated towing quite that much. Our original weight sticker had ours at 12,688. I had to look back at our pictures to see what it was since they replaced the stickers.

Now I don't want to upgrade our rig because I feel it's been reinforced and is probably riding on a stronger frame than the new ones.

[SnowmanCO]

Cmpterkd,

Thanks for the info. We've never towed ours yet. We bought it a year ago from a dealer and they delivered it. Turns out they had a blowout on the 5 hour drive to deliver it. We've had it set up in a campground full time for the last year. I just ordered all new brakes tonight. I'm researching wheel bearings that don't come from China. I'm also researching tires for the trailer as well as shopping for a tow vehicle.

I'll bet that our trailer is right at Max GW already. I'll keep watching this thread!

[cmptrkd]

Originally Posted by SnowmanCO

Cmpterkd,

Thanks for the info. We've never towed ours yet. We bought it a year ago from a dealer and they delivered it. Turns out they had a blowout on the 5 hour drive to deliver it. We've had it set up in a campground full time for the last year. I just ordered all new brakes tonight. I'm researching wheel bearings that don't come from China. I'm also researching tires for the trailer as well as shopping for a tow vehicle.

I'll bet that our trailer is right at Max GW already. I'll keep watching this thread!

if you go under the Sandpiper and Sierra specific forums on this site, and hit the page back all the way to 2011-2012-2013, Golfmedic was one of the "whistle blowers"on this model. Several of us you will see commented as well, and had many upgrades made to make the rig a little safer.

All that said, we LOVE this model. We look at new rigs and yeah, they have walk in pantries that my wife loves, and they have units with 5 slides now where the kitchen also slides out and gives even more room in the main space, but we have some nice features. We have the washer and dryer, and they are stacked in 1 cabinet instead of spread across the closet, we have 7 dresser drawers and 1 cabinet in our master, the later 2012 models and almost everything new have 4 maybe 6 drawers, our outside kitchen has a micro, a sink, drawers and cabinets, and in a separate outdoor area a taller style mini fridge. I haven't seen another model with a micro, and in the later 2012, they did away with the separate cabinet for the fridge, the got rid of the some of the cabinets, etc. Even the living room changed from the first 2012 models, to later ones all in the name of saving weight. But saving that weight cut down on things we really like. You can google 2012 sierra or sandpiper 365SAQ and click on the images button, and scroll through the pics. You can very quickly see the differences from the early 2012 and the later 2012. They even got rid of a window to save weight. Our unit had to be verified empty and drained by our dealer. They weighed it at a CAT scale and provided tickets to FR, the weight on our sticker from the factory was over 600lbs lower than it really was. I will reiterate though, I still wouldn't ditch this floor plan for a different model.

[SnowmanCO]

Thanks for the background info!

[The Evil Twin]

Originally Posted by SlowrideHD

If you are convinced that ST235/85 R16 tires won't fit, then this won't help. I run Provider brand tires from etrailer.com (700 positive reviews). They are 14 ply rated, "G" and will carry 4400 lbs each.
I'd measure again if I was you. What is your axle to axle distance?

They make them in the /80 size also.

[rzr4playtime]

We purchased our Sailun ST235/80R-16 tires from SimpleTire (online). Had my local tire dealer mount them, though had to find another source to balance them.

[tomkatb]

One of our WestlakeS blew last January.

Changed to the 614 Goodyear’s on the road.

The specs I looked at this am said the tires are the same outside diameter. Actually the 80 series Endurance in the Goodyear was actually larger than the 614 85’s.

Data from 614’s was tire discounter. Endurance was at e trailer..

We were at a commercial tire shop. Very professional. We had them balanced. They do seem to ride better. $1300 installed.

[cmptrkd]

Originally Posted by rzr4playtime

We purchased our Sailun ST235/80R-16 tires from SimpleTire (online). Had my local tire dealer mount them, though had to find another source to balance them.

Good to know, I will check out simpletire. My only concern with this brand is they seem had to find. If i were to have an issue with one, can I easily get a replacement? Other than that, there have great reviews and so many guys who run the Goodyear G614 have talked about the Sailuns being more economical, and many have even said that they would consider the Sailuns next purchase. I just wish I could source them locally. I will still checkout simpletire.

[cmptrkd]

Originally Posted by tomkatb

One of our WestlakeS blew last January.

Changed to the 614 Goodyear’s on the road.

The specs I looked at this am said the tires are the same outside diameter. Actually the 80 series Endurance in the Goodyear was actually larger than the 614 85’s.

Data from 614’s was tire discounter. Endurance was at e trailer..

We were at a commercial tire shop. Very professional. We had them balanced. They do seem to ride better. $1300 installed.

The G614 are definitely on the more expensive side, but so it the damage from a blow-out and most would probably agree the peace-of-mind that any of us drivers get when we can run down the road and have one less thing to worry about is priceless. I have heard that the G614 is more expensive because they will cover damages from a blowout. Not 100% sure if that is true or not, but I will research that more. I do have a feeling from everything I have read (which led me to create this thread) that moving to an all-steel specifically, G rated tire should solve my issues and as long as I monitor the pressure, and ensure tires are wearing properly (no axle out of alignment - etc), I should get good life from them. I will check and see if I can get an overall measurement of the Endurance E which I have 2 on the rig now, and the overall dimensions of the G614 at size 235/85R16. From what you're saying, there's a good chance they could fit.

Thanks.

[CHICKDOE]

we have a heavy trailer (16,000+ lbs). it came with goodyear G614's on it. so far we have not had any problems with them.

i also have read tons of posts about tires for heavy trailers and the goodyear G614's and the sailun S637's seem to get good reviews. the sailuns actually have a higher load carrying limit. there have been some recent posts about the same size tires from westlake.

the thing that does not seem to be included in all the posts about these tires is the mention of blowouts. i'm not saying they don't occur, but people don't seem to be making posts about blowouts on these tires. i believe both the goodyear and sailun tires came from the commercial trailer business where they were expected to be put on trailers and not have problems.

with trailers this big and heavy the peace of mind that comes from having reliable tires is worth any extra cost. at least it is is my mind. don't go cheap. you want the best.

[cmptrkd]

Originally Posted by CHICKDOE

we have a heavy trailer (16,000+ lbs). it came with goodyear G614's on it. so far we have not had any problems with them.

i also have read tons of posts about tires for heavy trailers and the goodyear G614's and the sailun S637's seem to get good reviews. the sailuns actually have a higher load carrying limit. there have been some recent posts about the same size tires from westlake.

the thing that does not seem to be included in all the posts about these tires is the mention of blowouts. i'm not saying they don't occur, but people don't seem to be making posts about blowouts on these tires. i believe both the goodyear and sailun tires came from the commercial trailer business where they were expected to be put on trailers and not have problems.

with trailers this big and heavy the peace of mind that comes from having reliable tires is worth any extra cost. at least it is is my mind. don't go cheap. you want the best.

No doubt on "don't go cheap. you want the best". We were very fortunate that our blowout only damaged the plastic fender skirt, and a small piece of metal. Skirt was $50.00 from our dealer, and metal was $25.00 and I'm handy enough to get both installed. Both have to be painted though, so once the fender gets here, I will take them in. Not sure what that will cost, but expecting it will be around $200. Even if I am off, I'm fairly certain we'll be under our $500 deductible so I won't even turn it in. All that said, spending an extra $500 on tires would save me from spending it on a deductible for a higher cost repair plus time lost being able to go camping.

[TandSH]

etrailer has the Westlake you need in stock today at $242.26.


I recently replaced the original Westlake ST235/85R16s tires on my CC 34RL2 with the identical tire purchased from SimpleTire because of the excellent service I got with the originals. They have my full confidence and I don't hesitate to recommend them.


HTH

[SlowrideHD]

Originally Posted by cmptrkd

SlowrideHD, I posted a pic I took tonight however, it is hard to interpret where the tape measure is sitting. I could hold the tape inside between the two wheels but then didn't have a 3rd hand to take a photo.

Good thought on measuring the axles, should I measure middle of one to middle of the other, or just the distance between the two? Then I can post an update.

Thanks for the suggestion.

You could measure from the center of one hubcap (or center wheel cap) to the next. That will give you your distance between axle centerlines pretty close. For instance, mine is 33 inches and I have about an inch and one half between the tires. My tires are ST235/85 R16 "G" rated.
The Provider brand tires above on etrailer are about $321 each today. Expensive, but if you saw them, they are worth it. Will outlast my camper, for certain.

[Rango]

I just replaced the WestLake G rated tires on our Cedar Creek 36CKTS after many, many miles with no issues. After a lot of research, I went with the Hercules tire because of availability as well.

We have been on 3 trips of about 200 miles each and a couple of shorter ones without any problems, these are nice looking tires and seem to perform as well as the WestLake.

I'll share a lesson learned ... not many auto tire stores are equipped to handle removing these 14 ply tires, their equipment can't break the bead. I finally had to go to a tire shop that dealt with semi trucks.

I hope this helps.

[High Country Duramax]

I just put Hercules on this summer after blowing the 2nd of my 3 yo factory tires. Went from 10 ply to 14 ply. The Hercules tires definitely look good. They look like a semi steer tire. My rims are rated for 110 psi and I run these tires at 90.