TMBLSN
Washington State
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Joined: 04/07/2008
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I have 6 years and about 70,000 miles on my Toyos. Never had an tendency to lose control.
2006 Jayco 275BHS
1998 C2500
Lee
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LoudRam
New Jersey
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Joined: 04/20/2008
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chadsalt wrote:but I've never used a closed shoulder that was worth a******off the hardtop.
My tires seem to very good off road, in the mud and great in the snow too.
Now, In Dave's defense he said that they "tend to be" not "they always are". Every truck, tire, and towing combo are going to be different. I realize that. I have no idea what the 5th wheel's setup was. I just figured I'd throw this story out for discussion. Just one more factor to think about when picking out tires.
* This post was
edited 09/23/08 06:01pm by LoudRam *
Todd
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chadsalt
sc
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LoudRam wrote:chadsalt wrote:but I've never used a closed shoulder that was worth a******off the hardtop.
My tires seem to very good off road, in the mud and great in the snow too.
Now, In Dave's defense he said that they "tend to be" not "they always are". Every truck, tire, and towing combo are going to be different. I realize that. I have no idea what the 5th wheel's setup was. I just figured I'd throw this story out for discussion. Just one more factor to think about when picking out tires.
My 1/2 ton is a little more forgiving in the tire dept than the Dmax, which is an anchor and will find fault quickly with lesser tires. It stands to reason an open shoulder is better off road.
Yes, its a valid point for a guy selling tires to mention A/T tires wiggle a little more. But to tell a story of someone almost losing control and blaming it on the tires is a little excessive.
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Hannibal
Gas Station
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I bought a set of open shoulder off road tread tires for my '75 Dodge 1-ton van years ago. I couldn't tell the difference driving between closed shoulder or open shoulder until we got in just the right circumstances. While not towing anything, it was all over the lane of interstate highway I-75 north of Tampa that was pretty well bellied out from heavy trucks. Tread squirm isn't a problem on most roads but 60mph+ on worn bellied out asphalt can get dangerous real fast. I'm glad I wasn't towing anything on that trip and the off road tires got swapped for highway treads before our next trip. Those who haven't experienced tread squirm with open shoulder tread on the highway simply haven't been in the right circumstance for it to happen. Every time I read of a travel trailer suddenly out of control and rubber side up with no obvious explanation, I wonder if tread squirm finally caught someone off guard. It really is that bad when conditions are just right. But those perfect conditions for disaster are usually rare. You could easily drive a lifetime on off road tires and never feel it. I felt it once and that was enough.
'05 2500HD Dodge 5.7L Hemi 5spd auto/3.73 SLT. 95k miles
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SAS!
So. Cal.
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Joined: 04/29/2005
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Sometimes tires can make all the difference. I had a single axle buggy trailer that we towed monthly for about 6 years, I always had light truck tires on it for the capacity, while out of town one blew out not sure why but I bought some bias ply st trailer tires with a higher load rating from Big O (I think Towmasters?). I could hardly get the trailer home, it was fine until I got in a curve and I almost lost it the first time. I limped it home and Big O took them back. I switched back to some lt tires and never had another problem.
On topic, I run Toyo Open Country AT E rated tires, I bought them for the higher load capacity but I did notice a little less stability while towing compared to the BFG rugged trails I had on the truck before? I did go with a little taller tire, maybe that also had something to do with it?
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JIMNLIN
Big Cabin, OK
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Joined: 09/14/2003
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LoudRam wrote: (snip)
He said they are a nice tire but then he asked me if I tow anything. I told him about my TT and he said that open shoulder tires are more unstable than closed shoulder design tires when it comes to towing heavier loads. He told me he had a guy who had a 5th wheel come in who just bought a set of open shoulder tires off him and said that he almost lost control of his rig. It turned out to be the tires. Dave warned him ahead of time but he didn't listen. He put closed shoulder tires on his truck and no further problems.
(snip)
sounds like your tire dealer has been around trucks that haul heavy loads. Reading some replies reminded me of my BIL some years back when he mounted MT's on his 2500 HD Chev with a 10.5' 3100 lb truck camper. He said it handled great. I drove it and holy cow ....wow, the truck was all over the road. Just like bias ply on the rear and radials on the front. Your dealer is correct. The more agressive the tread blocks the more tread roll a loaded tire will have. Other factors involved if it has to much tread roll or if its handling is acceptable/unacceptable to some operators. AT tires are a compromise between a good handling/less rolling resistance HT tread and a full mud tire.
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Al B
Cowtown
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I have personally experienced the problems with "open shoulder" tires towing. I don't know if you could really call it a problem tho. The difference I found was a little sway, once in a blue moon towing at highway speed. Kinda like riding a motorcycle in the grooves on the highway made by tractor trailer units. Minor, but it did exist.
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blt2ski
Kirkland, Wa
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There was a time when folks were complaining about Cooper ATR's and squirming when towing. Yet I had a set on my old SW K3500 CC and no issues towing. I also have the toyo's mentioned on my dually, and no issues towing.
NOW with that, I "have" experienced the squirmyness of traction tires before that is being mentioned. BUT, I find it to be more of a sidewall strength/stiffness issue than the tread itself. As burbman mentioned some one with Michilens having some issues, "my" esperience with M's tires, is they squirm a bit, not matter the tread, as they seem to be (generally speaking, there are some exceptions)built with softer sidewalls for a better rid per say. Hence why I seem to feel more squirm when using them on my trucks. Where as a stiff sidewall, like the Good Year G series or my Michilen XDA M+S tires on my Navistar, both all steel cased tire do NOT squirm under a load in the bed or towing.
Above comments are my experience only, I am not trying to bash a given brand, attempting to use particular tires etc that have caused me issues, and seen others report.
Otherwise as noted by one, the topic is valid, but on the other hand, it will be a "need to agree to disagree" with one another as this issue can be personal depending upon how and where you use your rig. And in the end, why their are so many tire types, tread designs etc
marty
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PopBeavers
San Jose, CA
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Hmmm... I replaced Dunlop tires with Yokohama tires on my 2002 Chevy 150HD about a year ago. The Yokohama are a little more agressive, but not a lot. Immediately I noticed that it is a little squirrelly on the freeway, and I never understood why.
Maybe it is the tread pattern.
Wayne in San Jose
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