Life is short

[Farmwithjunk]

And I almost made it shorter this afternoon. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

If there's a moral to this story, it's "When something just doesn't seem right, go with your instincts".

I had to load up the 2440 Deere on my gooseneck trailer, then haul it across town to do some pasture clipping. I hit the interstate, and let 'er roll. At 65 MPH, there was a strange vibration. It seemed "odd". Just couldn't put my finger on it, but something wasn't right.

2 miles from my exit ramp, with traffic tight on my tail, and the lane next to me jammed with home-bound traffic (4:30PM) the unexpected happened.

BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBANG!

One of the trailer tires blew out. The trailer hooked sideways about 5 feet. As I started to correct, it whipped the other direction. I HAD to get it out of traffic. I cut the wheel to the right, directing the truck and trailer off the highway. I hit grass at about 50 MPH.

Apparently, it was my lucky day. Almost the entire distance this road runs, it's lined withrock out-croppings, ditches, and guardrails. I found a wide grass run-off. It took about 200 yards to get stopped without loosing it in the grass.

6400 LBS of tractor, 5600 lbs of truck, and 3300 LBS of trailer was FINALLY at rest.

And then my heart about jumped out of my chest.

The tire that blew was almost completely shredded. It blew a chunk out of the tire next to it.

I had one spare, a jack, a lug wrench, and just barely enough composure to deal with changing the blown tire. I SLOWLY drove on to a tire dealer I do business with that's less than 5 miles from where I was at.

"CHANGE ALL FOUR"

4 Load range E, 265/16R radial trailer tires..... Mounted, balanced, and SAFE. $487.09

4 hours later, my heart rate is about back to normal.


The tech at the tire dealer said the 2 remaining tires were starting to "seperate" (Tread coming off carcas) They didn't look right either.

Next time something doesn't seem right, I'm stopped and outta the truck to examine the situation a little closer. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[gmsssi]

Glad your safe and safer now! Be careful..........

 

[wksinatl]

Wow! I bet the folks around you were alittle shook too. Glad everthing is OK.

P.S. sorry about your wallet (LOL)

 

[YanmarFever]

Wow that brings back shivers to me !!
That happened to me at 70 mph but mine was an exploxion in the trailer tire.
I had to change the tire with traffic 3ft. away at 70 mph.
I didnt need any coffee for 2 days after that one

Im glad it all went ok for you /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Ernie

 

[NIXON]

Great to hear your alright . Must have been one of those " my life went in front of my eyes " experiences . Do You have any idea as to why that tire let go ? John

 

[MikePA]

<font color="blue"> The tech at the tire dealer said the 2 remaining tires were starting to "seperate" (Tread coming off carcas) They didn't look right either. </font>
Why were they beginning to separate? Age? Under inflated?

 

[Farmwithjunk]

All we can do is guess at this point, as to why they started to come apart. They did get a few miles at low pressure one time, but that was last summer. MANY miles since then. (Had a nieghbor kid that was letting air out of everyones tires. I left the house one morning without knowing the tires were half deflated. Took a few miles before it became evident)

I've been using the trailer to haul lumber here of late. The company I work for is moving their storage yard. They gave me the contents of several sheds on the property. They were full of good lumber. To get in and out of the yard, I have to turn the truck 90* to the trailer, and literally drag the trailer around in the turn. The front pair of tires are sliding sideways. The sidewalls are stretched to their limits during this manuever. I've thought they were going to pull off the rim while turning. This has happened 5, maybe 6 times. It has taken a noticable toll on the sidewalls and tread near the edge of the tire. I'm thinking this has more to do with the problem than anything else.

Trailer tires take a thrashing. I've owned it long enough to completely wear out one set of brakes. It just might have been long enough to ruin a set of tires. The center of each tire still had plenty of tread, but the inner and outer edges were well worn.

The old tires, and the new ones, both call for 75 to 90 PSI (min. and max) For the weight rating, they call for 85 PSI. That's what I run in them normally. SOMETIMES, I let them down to 80 when out on the highway a lot. They build some heat, then the pressure goes up to 85 after a few miles.

The long and short of it is, I'm going to be changing tires whenever they look like they're STARTING to wear from now on. This wasn't any fun at all.

 

[KAB]

Just a reminder...
Check tires when they are COLD. Pressure will change even with a mile of driving. IF you check pressure after a drive, wait at least 2-3 hours.

Also, If the middle of the tire had good tread and the inside and outside were worn down, the tire was either overloaded or underpressured.

Do you remember to switch between summer and winter air /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif, oops.. check air pressure in the summer and winter. In winter it is not unusual for the tires to show a pressure loss, that it is actually due to temperature. So in the summer they will be overinflated again.

Kurt

 

[Mike_C]

You know, the tires on my trailer are showing signs of dry rot. Perhaps I should replace them before this happens to me. I have no idea how old they are as I bought the trailer used and it came with the tires...

 

[MotorSeven]

While driving a motorhome, the same thing happened....First was a very light vibration which had me thinking, "road surface", but it slowly got worse. I told my buddy riding shotgun, "Somethings not right" and started to attempt to move to the shoulder(3 lanes over). Well, several of these real considerate S FL motorists, just kept changing lanes and passing me on the right even though i was crowding that lane with a (frantic) turn signal on. The RF blew and it sounded like a bomb went off right as one of those "considerate" guys was even with that tire. We made it to the shoulder as the remnants of the tire tried it's best to rip the fender off. Later we had quite a chuckle and figure that the motorists had to go home and change his shorts /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif.
Couple of years later, when that "vibration started again, i pulled right over, and yep, had a rear tire separating from the tread. If you are lucky enough to get a warning....TAKE IT, and get to the shoulder asap!
Trailer tires and motorhome tires take alot of abuse(time,weather,weight,neglect). On a small trailer a blow out is no big deal, but when you are talking several tons, it is a whole different ball game.
Stay safe!

RD