Trailer tire question

Bill Savoie

Bill Savoie

Active member
I picked up a small boat trailer with a Carsten Canvasback this fall. The current rims are 12" diameter, which makes the boat much higher off the ground and will be harder to launch on some of the shallow ramps around here. Any issue with installing 8" rims? I have 8" rims on my TDB and it weighs a lot more than this boat. There is plenty of clearance with the smaller tires. Anyone have an opinion?
 
Bill,

I prefer 12's over 8's because;
(A) smoother ride, 8'' tires drop deeper into potholes, ruts, cracks and such, generating more bounce going down the road.

(B) less RPM at any given speed, smaller tires make the bearings spin faster, faster spinning means more heat and more wear.


I sometimes trailer my boats several hundred miles away from home, shorter trips may not be as much of an issue with the smaller tires. I still prefer the 12 inch rims but it may be more of a personal preference issue.
 
Bill,
I have had both 8 and 12 inch tires and had no problems with either. I like the 12" ones for longer trips, but really had no problems with the 8" either as long as the hubs were maintained. If your trips are short and the 8" tires would make your unloading easier, I would say go for it. Just keep the 12's in case you need them. My 2 cents worth.
Ron
 
Bill,
I agree with Dave, and as you go on your quest you may have some pretty long drives.
IMO stick with the 12s.
Best,
William
 
8" should be fine if your only taking short trips. The real worry is heat build up in the sidewall of the tire. This is what kills trailer tires. Other than that if the hubs fit you're fine. I really wish Goodyear still made the Highlander CT trailer tire. they were better than anything you can buy today.
 
Bill - I second the 12 ". Have had a lot of trouble in the past with 8 on long trips to say the cape. If the car is going 60 - I think an 8 is up around 80 or so - I think it makes the bearings warmer too. Awile back, after lots of problems with trailers that were a little small, I went the other way and tried to have more trailer than I need for any given hull - end of tire and bearing and spring hassles. With a small boat you can also angle the bunks back down toward the back.
sarge
 
What's wrong with having both? I run 8"s around New England (3 hour one way trip is a long run) and have never had a tire/bearing problem in close to 20 years. I did upgrade class (#plys & rating) of tire to "C" from the cheaper "B". If your hauling the boat on long runs around the country 12"s would be better. Probably take all of 20 min max to switch back and forth with hand tools and torque wrench & you already have the 12"s.

I'm also a huge fan of grease thru bearing hubs/spindles. Especially if your dipping it in salt. Having the ability to push new grease through the bearing and pushing the old contaminated grease out, can really reduce bearing issues.

How about springs? I just busted my first and replaced with a higher capacity more appropriate for my 14-ft and have bought much lighter cap springs for my sneakbox as the big springs on the trailer are bouncing it around pretty good. Both trailers are 20 & 30 years old or better.

Scott
 
Don't forget to pack spare everything for your upcoming road trips. I have even graduated to a pair of spare tires, if you use one then you will still have a spare and not have to panic look for one OR if you hit one of those tire blowing ruts you could just take both out at once?? I bolted an ammo box right to the trailer and packed everything needed to put the trailer back on the road. Even if you only need it once it is time well spent to set up. Good Luck
 
On my first rig a smaller 14' john with 8" tires, It would wear out a set of tires during fishing season, then the new tires would get worn thin tread wise by the end of duck season. All my trailers after that one have had 13" or 14" & I put car type radials on them. They run cooler & pull easier, + the tires have to rot off the rims before they wear out!. Tis a pain in the backside, but changing to a drop axle makes it lower for a much easier launch.
Dennis
 
How about springs? I just busted my first and replaced with a higher capacity more appropriate for my 14-ft and have bought much lighter cap springs for my sneakbox as the big springs on the trailer are bouncing it around pretty good.
Click to expand...

Scott brings up a very good and often overlooked point. In essence, match the springs to the load. We sometimes require a "larger trailer" to handel a long narrow boat such as a sculler. If the trailer is rated for a much heavier load than what we will be hauling, the spring will be too stiff and never flex much if any. That ends up just beating the boat and contents to pieces over time.

Thanks for pointing that out Scott.
 
Scott,

That is simply brilliant! It never would have occurred to me. That is an easy solution, since I think this boat will do quite a bit of over the road travel. I'm a big fan of bearing buddies, given what the salt water does to anything it touches. I haven't given much thought to the springs on this trailer, I will look at them. This trailer has a break-away feature to allow it to tilt, but it is rusted together. Maybe I'll take a torch and see if I can heat it up and break the rust free.

Thanks for that thought.
 
Bill,

This is going to sound sacrilegious but I think Bearing buddies SUCK ! The true Bearing Buddy Design allows you to add new grease on the outside of the hub assembly and keeps the bearing assembly slightly pressurized by spring pressure. They never push the old, possibly contaminated grease out of the bearing. Back in the late 70s they were the best tech available but that was 40 years ago. The industry has gone to the grease thru design that provides a grease fitting and grease path behind the bearings that pushes the new grease through the bearings and pushes the old grease out of the hub past the spindle nut for an in place bearing repacking. Surelube Hubs are a retro-fit design hub that's slightly less convient as the grease fitting is to the inside of the wheel while the factory trailers have the grease fitting on the end of the spindle.

View attachment SureLube.jpg


Best,
Scott
 
Well, since this trailer has nothing at all, I will give them a try. My BB on the TDB both lose some of the grease out of the rear seals, which while not ideal at least lets me know some of the crap is coming out. They may need to be replaced as well, but the bearings showed no sign of damage when re-packed last summer.
 
The trailer for my old offshore boat had the Super Lube Spindles. They were fantastic!
Couple shots of grease every trip to push out some old grease before hitting the road and you are set.
Never had to worry about the bearings not having grease.
 
That is one issue with Bearing Buddy type caps: if you overpressure them, grease can break-though the rear seal.
Had this happen a couple of years back. They didnt throw all the grease out, just enough to drop the pressure, so no big deal. But it did make a mess on the rear of the rims and is a potential spot for water seepage when launching.
 
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