I guess the age of the trailer....we will be buying a new set. Last trip we busted out the rear window of the truck.....this trip besides the blow out....the battery & converter had to be replaced the second day.....then a few days later someone busted the rear fender of my truck while parked in Disney parking lot.

Now new tires and body work to be done on 5er & truck!! I'm whining I guess! But, am thankful we are safe.... Not quite home as I write this!! :))

Thanks Ken and Mary....I am settled down now...just wondering if God is trying to give me a message....like sell!!

Terry,

Good point. Maybe we should together as a group come up with a "inspection check list" all you guys would
be especially good at doing that with all your expertise!

We haven't got on the road yet, but when we do you can bet there will be checks and inspections all thru-out
our travels.

Actually, we are only going to travel 2 times per year....once to the South in the fall and back here to Michigan
in the late Spring....that is good enough for me!

I guess I will chime in a bit on Terry’s comment.  Also, I have no idea if my comment below had anything to do with the blow out.  Probably not, but I’ll make the comment anyway.

 

Obviously I check the tire pressures, cold, before each move in spite of the fact that my tires “never” loose air.  But I check them anyway as we change locations and altitude.

 

I carry a torque wrench in the rear cab of the truck with a socket already installed.  When we stop, every time we stop, I check the lugs on the trailer until I no longer get any additional tightening of the lugs with the torque wrench set to the proper value.  “Depending” it can take 500-700 miles for all 32 lugs to seat properly on the trailer.  Then I check less often, but I still keep checking.  I check the temperatures on each tire by hand but also have a small infrared temperature sensor to backup that hand check.  I check all the temps on the 10 tires – 6 on the truck and 4 on the trailer.  I double check the hitch, umbilical connection and do a general walk around of the rig looking to see that everything is in place.

 

This all just comes from training as a driver, but also as a pilot.  I know it is pretty basic and simplistic, but you would be surprised at what you find over time.  Some will say I overdo the checking.u  Maybe so.  But it can’t hurt and besides, only one can use the water closet at one time.  So, just saying . . .

 

Make sure those tires are rated for the load they are carrying – or perhaps upgrade them as H & L, and others have done.  Especially if you are going to travel a lot.  It may be well worth it.  It was for us.

 

Safe travels

 

Bill

Hi! We just suffered a blow out on our 2009 Montana last October 9th, 2011. We do not know why except that they were the original tires. My DH checks tire pressure before we leave anywhere where we've been parked a few days. We had left Jackson, MS that morning on I-20 headed to our home base in Tuscaloosa, Al - a distance of approx 200 miles. We knew they were showing some wear but still had plenty of tread. However, 50 miles outside of Tuscaloosa, the blowout occurred. It damaged the side of our rig along with the fender over the tire. Luckily it was an outside tire so damage underneath except to tear the undercover. Luckily we had a spare and AAA came out and changed the tire and got us back on the road to get in to destination - after dark. That's always fun.

No doubt, we no longer have any of the original tires. We upgraded those suckers in Tuscaloosa - all 4 of them.

So don't be discouraged. Blow outs have happened to the majority of us.

Judy

There are a few things besides age that will help a tire to early demise:

-----> Low pressure is the biggest tire killer

----->Make sure if you drive up on blocks the blocks are wider and longer than the contact patch of the tire. Some folks use 2X4 for blocks. A single 2X4 is too narrow and will cause stress on the belts within a tire as it sits on top of the 2X4. If you use 2X4 makes sure you arrange multiples so they provide support for the entire tire contact point (patch).

------> Too much weight

Praise the Lord that you came through unharmed, it can get scarey to have a blowout. Personally I would not sell an rv because I had a blowout . It might be a warning sign to check your individual wheel weights, tire age and condition and keep tire pressure correct as well as lug nuts tight and wheels hubs greased. Eliminating possible problems can improve chances that things won't go wrong. I stated before that our blowouts happened on our first year on the road. We have been traveling for 4 years and have traveled from 6,ooo to 20,ooo miles a year so don't get discouraged. Many people have been RVing much longer than we have.

Melanie ought to meet up with Howard and Linda somewhere and have them weigh your 5er and tow vehicle.  When they're done you'll know exactly how much air to put in your tires and how well load is balanced on each tire.  It will be the best $60.00 you ever spent!

Camper_Boy wrote:

---

Hey Bill,

Just a side question if you can answer.  I was wondering about tire pressure gauges.  I have several and get different readings all the time.  Is there a brand or type you recommend?  Just concerned with getting accurate readings.  Thanks...Tom

---

Tom:

 

Funny you should mention that.  I just went and bought a new one from Northern Tools with a long arm for the truck duals and just threw it away. It was the store brand.  I checked 5 tires and couldn’t get the same reading on any one tire twice.  In the trash – my bad

 

I’ve used a “Victor” for years that has been extremely consistent and matches the pressure gauge on my compressor tire filler and also matches extremely well two others I have checked it against and carry for “backup.” (Also my repair shop's guage.)  So, I will try spending even more money and see if I can find one that matches these.  “Victor” makes what I need and they are not expensive at all.  So I’m going to try and find one of those in a long arm “truck gauge” model.  (The new dual rims are so big and deep I can’t reach the inner tire with the short arm one I have.)

 

http://www.victorautomotive.net/pages/items/vtg.html

 

I’m sure someone has a brand and model that costs much more that they can recommend.  But I’ve always compared mine to others and if they all are within a pound or two I’ve considered them “close enough” when we’re talking 65 -120 psi type numbers.  Besides, you can get a two pound variation between "cold" tires that are in the shade and the ones that are in the sun.   This isn’t NASCAR. :)

 

Bill

 

Edit by moderator:  Activated link.  Terry

-- Edited by Terry and Jo on Friday 2nd of March 2012 02:50:18 PM

Tom,

Back many moons ago, I worked a lot with different jobs of working on tires.  One of the largest suppliers for the service stations at that time was a company called Milton.

Milton is big in all kinds of air products, including inflators for compressors with guages built in.  We used a number of those in the stations because as soon as you released the lever when filling the tires, you got an instant readout on the gauge part.

Now, that said, I haven't been able to bring myself to buy one of the inflators with gauge and just use a regular dual foot Milton truck tire gauge.

They are higher than the Victors, but some prefer the Milton over all the others.

Milton website

Milton inflator gauges

Tester gauges (see bottom of page for dual foot gauges)

Terry

Blow outs must be going around. On our way south on 75 from the Gainesville area to Sarasota last week and saw total of 1 RV and 3 5th wheels pulled over. None were newer vehicles. Had not seen any debris on the road, but the speed limit is 70, think that creates a bit of heat? I am a stickler for walk arounds (DH doesn't think its that important). Always looking for different safety hints from everyone, you all are great. Had a professional do a safety check when I bought the rig and plan on doing that once a year. Can hardly wait until I know the rigs normal sounds and feel. I am the one who drives it so I will be the one to make sure everything is right. The rig is now my only home and do not want it to be a safety hazard :)

Laura