MacGregorSailors.com

How do people make the call as to when to replace...ie...when do you consider the cracking 'serious' ??

I'm not usually an alarmist on these sorts of matters, but on a tire which is nearly always loaded very close to its capacity (if not over it) I'd say as soon as the cracks appear.

Cracks can allow water to penetrate to the belts, beads, etcetera. Don't know how much steel is inside the stock bias tires, but to boaters it's not any secret what water (particularly salt water) can do to steel in a very short time.

As many have reported, tire failure on a trailer tire at 50 psi can be pretty spectacular. And of course, you know it's not going to fail while sitting in your driveway.

At well under $200 for two, including installation, should be a simple decision. If you refuse to consider an additional axle for probably less than $50 additional, you could consider upgrading to 15" wheels and tires.

i've got "sag" issues with my springs that i need to take care of first.
that is, when the trailer is without Mac, it sits up great.
with Mac, the tires almost touch the fenders.

The stock fender clearance is pretty minimal even when everything is as it should be. And of course it doesn't help that most of us habitually overload the trailer. Before I added the axle to mine, there was evidence the tires were contacting the fenders. Of course any looseness in the mounts to the trailer rails will cause sag as well.

Unless it's really bad or there's evidence the fenders are actually being driven up into the sides of the boat, I don't think occasional contact will hurt too much.

The fenders and mounts are pretty sturdy, but if you've ever stood on them to reach something in the boat, you may have bent them down slightly. BTDT. Before you consider something more drastic you might try bending them up a little.

Chip Hindes wrote: The fenders and mounts are pretty sturdy, but if you've ever stood on them to reach something in the boat, you may have bent them down slightly. BTDT. Before you consider something more drastic you might try bending them up a little.

that's a good idea.
i'll check that.

Catigale wrote:On a related note, Im starting to see some cracking on my sidewalls of my original trailer tires, 5th season ... How do people make the call as to when to replace...ie...when do you consider the cracking 'serious' ??

IIRC, 5 years is about the lifetime for trailer tires. I guess you can greatly extend that by draping them to prevent UV exposure - I haven't done so, but have that guilt-pang every time I drive up to the trailer. FWIW, my first trailer failure happened in the sixth season, but it was a drum brake instead of a tire. Probably could easily have been either, but the dragging brake actually caused enough heat to "cook" the tire - hence, time for upgrades.

I bought Goodyear Marathon (15" load range C = 2,150#) from Tire Rack. I found my rims on-line, these Greenball Corp aluminum alloys (specifically for trailers, and higher air pressures). But instead of ordering the wheels, I went to America's Discount Tire. They ordered them, price was the same @ $75 each, and I paid tax instead of shipping. Starting over, I'd just have Amer.Discount provide the tires too.


. . . . GBC2000

P.S. My new tires/wheels clear the factory fenders (boat sitting on trailer), but just barely. IMO, extending the spring hangers by 2" would provide ample road clearance. But due to the DF60 hanging on the transom, I'm pondering an axle shift, aft by 8 inches or so. If I do so, I'll just have the welder fab some mounts for the plastic fenders that I bought last summer. (fenders that are currently part of the junk filling the bed of the pickup! )