Have those spares

[schmism]

The story of how to use 3 spare tires in 2200 mile cross country trip.

Had a good friend that recently complete a 2200 mile trip moving every single possession he owned with his wife and 2 boys, dog and cat from Alton IL to New Port OR.

He purchased an old IH 26' (5spd diesel) 1985 uHaul truck for $3000. Traded his small boat for a dual axle "landscape" trailer.

He put his VW station wagon on the car trailer, behind the van. He pulled his 5x10 ish utility trailer behind his expedition (which is wife drove).

Every sq inch of room in every car/truck/van was packed.

We spent about an 2 hrs the day before we started packing the truck (a 3 day process) running around finding a spare tire for the car trailer, he previously had a spare for the utility.

On day 2 (middle of NE) a tire blew (destructed) on the interstate on his utility trailer. Took him an hr to change the tire, and another hr at the next walmart to buy new walkie-talkie radios (his old pair wernt holding up well) getting a replacement spare and buying and installing a new set of lights on the utility trailer (the tire destroyed the light)

2 days later in the montians of utah the other org tire on the utility trailer blew out. (minus one hr) then about an hr after that one of the car trailer tires puked its tread, although still held air. (minus one hr)

A 8hr day covered only 400 miles that day combined with 45 mph mountain speeds. The next morning an hr was spent at the local tire shop getting 2 more spares.

The last day and a half were uneventful other than some hot brakes on the van coming down the mountains into Portland.

I had spent an hr on day one of packing the truck checking tire pressures on every rubber tire he owned. (some 18 of them between 5 vehicles)

IN short. People may underestimate the need for a spare tire. Many may figure that after the first tire blew what are the odds your going to need a second spare (for the same vehicle) let alone need a third spare for a different vehicle!

Keep those spares ready to go on those road trips! :thumbsup:

 

[yooper1]

I agree.

I always have to laugh when I see a trailer on the side of the road with one side held up by a jack or a block . No tow vehicle in sight because the tow vehicle had to run into a town to get either the tire fixed or a new tire.

When I bought my 5 X 10 carry on utility trailer I bought a spare to match it.

I will NOT be that person who leaves a trailer on the side of any road with any of my property in it while I run around trying to get a tire fixed.

 

[Ford850]

I had a similar double blow out experience one time heading west in a pickup with a bed camper to the Dakotas. Blew the first tire and we spent hours trying to get the tire replaced so we had another spare before heading much farther. Once we got a new spare on board we were bak on the highway, and sure enough within hours we had another flat. Glad we spent the time driving around small towns to get the first tire replaced rather than playing the odds.

 

[jayste]

Good story as well as advice!:thumbsup:

400 miles with mountain driving and trouble still isn't a bad day of mileage for that caravan.

The important thing is that everyone made it there safe.:thumbsup:

 

[Diamondpilot]

I have blown 3 of the the 6 tires the boat trailer in my Avatar has in one 300 or so mile trip. The kicker was the trailer and boat were less than a year old. This happened with a 6 month old baby in the truck and at about a 100 mile stretch on I74 on a Sunday. No tire places opened. I had one spare and had to buy 3 used car tires and limped home on these 3 used car tires. Just junk Carlisle tires. Put a set of Greenballs on it and still going strong to this day.

Chris

 

[buck12]

Just having a spare is not enough. Check air pressure on spare tires every so often. Ask me how I know

 

[FlaDon]

I replaced 4 trailer tires before heading south this last trip just so I has piece of mind. 4 new Deestones didn't show any wear in the 1400 miles since putting them on. Nubs are still on them whereas the China made tires would have been thru the cords in 3K miles.

 

[Ken45101]

As loaded as you said the trailer was, I would guess that there was too much weight for the tires. Add a long, high speed haul, and it's asking for tire failure.

But I do know that multiples can happen. Years ago, going to Cape Hatteras, at a daybreak refuel, we found one of the camper trailer tires missing the tread. Put the spare on and watched for any possible tire store. Not easy to find in the middle of NC on a Sunday morning. No luck finding a spare On the ferry to Ocracoke (last island in the Outer Banks), noticed that the other tire had lost it's tread too (and no spare, of course). Carefully limped the 15 miles to the campground and spent the next day going back to the mainland and finding two tires. These were older tires (with good tread) that had been sitting too long.

It's especially easy for trailer tires to deteriorate from sitting. Rarely will they wear out first. Sunlight on a tire causes sidewall deterioration. Generally 5-7 years is the max one can expect from a tire even if it's not used much and the tread is excellent. There are DOT manufacturer dates on all tires (WWYY where WW is the week of the year, YY).

I've also had both duals on one side fail at once on an ambulance.

Ken