Re: [A/S] tires?

[Charlie/Betty Burke <cbburke@xxxx>]

Bias ply tires have inherently sidewalls which cause the tread face to 
squirm and wear quickly. Does any one else remember the days of Tiger 
Paws and annual tire changes. When used on a trailer application the 
stiff sidewalls made for a straight tracking tire.

When radials came on the scene their sidewall did the flexing which 
allowed the tread to stay open thus offering lower rolling resistance, 
better mileage etc. Eventually the tire manufacturers or maybe some 
government agency saw the need for several different types of radial tires.
From that we got P series tires which are optimized for passenger car 
use. Nice ride, good turning strength, mileage etc. Then there is the LT 
series for pickup trucks. Stiffer ride, greater load capacity and 
turning strength. Finally there is the ST series. These are optimized 
for trailer applications. Stiffer sidewalls, added UV protection add 
better straight line tracking. Better straight line tracking is a trade 
off with turning resistance. Improve one and lose the other.
Having said that, it is not recommended to use P series tires in any 
trailer application. I've seen it done and the result is to often a blow 
tire tearing up the underside of a trailer.

IMHO
Charlie