The Radio Flyer received six new rubbers today.....

[TERRA]

My 2017 comes with Firestone TransForce LT275/70R18E front and rear. The sticker indicates 60 PSI front and 80 PSI cold. Unloaded I am running 60 Front and 52 rear. 1) Why such a big discrepancy between different years on the front PSI 2) What PSI would you recommend for the rear (250lb cap on bed). Not a big fan of Firestone in general had full tread separation on 1982 Econoline and partial tread separation on a 1990's vehicle.

2107 Big Horn, Aisin, automatic rear air suspension, 3.42 gears,

 

[gsbrockman]

^^^^^^ Where are the tires made? I am VERY disappointed in this set of MS2's.

VERY disappointed??? How??? I *thought* Michelins were infallible..............


When one clicks on the Tire Rack link and then selects that tire and then clicks on the "specs" link.....it says JP (Japan) and US (United States).

 

[Cummins12V98]

Well first pic is my 11 HO Dually never rotated front tires with 38K, second pic is 15 Dually with 35K. Same air pressure 80 all the time. 15 is a few hundred pounds heavier on front axle. See why I am NOT happy. I have ALWAYS gotten superior wear from Michelins but not this time.


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[gsbrockman]

Well first pic is my 11 HO Dually never rotated front tires with 38K, second pic is 15 Dually with 35K. Same air pressure 80 all the time. 15 is a few hundred pounds heavier on front axle. See why I am NOT happy. I have ALWAYS gotten superior wear from Michelins but not this time.


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Should have kept the Nexens :-laf

 

[Cummins12V98]

^^^^^ Based on that I think you are right!!!

 

[gsbrockman]

^^^^^ Based on that I think you are right!!!

OMG.......you ACTUALLY said I was RIGHT for ONCE!!!! :-laf

That "chunking" in the 2nd set of tread blocks looks bad. On a sidenote.....if you were running commercial, you could be placed out of service based on what I perceive the tread depths to be. DOT says no less than 4/32nds of tread depth on steer tires and no less than 2/32nds of tread depth on drives & trailer tires.

 

[Cummins12V98]

Oh now I have said you are right at least one other time!

Yes there are worse spots than what shows in the pics. When I get back North later this month I will be going to the Discount Tire where I bought them since I am only 1/2 of the 70K warranty and are about shot.

 

[gsbrockman]

Oh now I have said you are right at least one other time!

Yes there are worse spots than what shows in the pics. When I get back North later this month I will be going to the Discount Tire where I bought them since I am only 1/2 of the 70K warranty and are about shot.

If they warranty them out based on remaining tread depth (and most dealers do) you won't get diddly back on those......

 

[Cummins12V98]

If they warranty them out based on remaining tread depth (and most dealers do) you won't get diddly back on those......

I am sure you are RIGHT on that also! I will give it a shot. Only bad thing is if they give a decent credit I will have to buy another set. Still bugs me with all the great mileage I have gotten from Michelins over many years.

 

[NIsaacs]

Only bad thing is if they give a decent credit I will have to buy another set.

That was the problem my son had, he almost had to buy them again. Three sets (MS 2's) in 120k, the oems went 30k.

His new truck has 18k on the Nexin's, almost to the wear bars, they do look over inflated tho. He don't know what to buy this time so I recommended the Bridgestones

Nick

 

[Cummins12V98]

^^^^^ He is for sure running the rears overinflated.

 

[gsbrockman]

I can honestly say ANY tire I've ran on the 2014 Dually has done well; with that being said, I'm sure the fact that I have the el-cheapo steel wheels and can thus rotate economically sure does contribute to a little extra life versus owners equipped with the OEM Alcoa aluminum wheels.

 

[shorthorn]

Holy cow 12V98... Those fronts look awful... Might you need to take some more toe out of the front? Looks very much scrubbed. How are the rears wearing? You will probably not believe me, but my factory Nexen's looked better than that when I pulled them off at about 40K.

 

[Cummins12V98]

I am sure some of the wear is from not getting the front aligned until 24K. The other set of MS2's were with 100% of their miles with 1/32 toe like these trucks should have from the Factory. The rears look better but no where near as good as the rears did on the other truck at similar mileage.

I am glad you brought this up, I am not ad disappointed now that think of the real differences in trucks. There are reasons as in hotter weather for more of the miles than other set along with more pin weight by 1,500# and 3-400# heavier front axle.

Bottom line get front aligned to 1/32" toe with any new Dually.

 

[gsbrockman]

I snapped a few pics of my tires today. They're at 45,044 miles.

First one is an "aerial" view :-laf of the R/F tire.

Second one is another shot of the R/F tire.

Third pic is the R/R/I tire. Note that this tire has spent the previous 13k +/- miles in the L/F position. One can tell a little bit of the uneven wear based on the dust / contact patch from the lot where I pickup my trailers. At the PSI I run, a little pin weight generally gets all of contact patch on the road. When crossed to the rears from the front, any chopping / feathering / uneven wear goes away fairly quick.

The last pic is the R/R/O tire. To date---it has not been rotated to the steer axle. It has always been a R/R/O tire. Since DOT requirements stipulate a minimum 4/32nds on the steer tires and 2/32nds on the drive tires, I generally will rotate these to the front when the tires are near the end of their useful life.

 

[Cummins12V98]

^^^^^^ I know a lot of why your tires look so good is mostly highway miles but they REALLY look good!!!

 

[18Dodger18]

Greg, I have been "lurking" in the background for a couple years, just musing at some of the chatter between you and several other Ram-Runners on here, but one topic that nobody seems to grumble much about is MPG, with their newer 6.7's. I have owned a dozen 5.9's and only one 6.7, which my youngest son now drives. What kinda numbers are you guys seein' towing around 20K gross trailer weight? Thanks for yer feedback.. I'll tell ya more 'bout me in a later post.. Olde Bob (18Dodger18)

 

[Cummins12V98]

I tow a combined 33K West Coast AVERAGE mpg is 9 towing at 60mph. I would guess Greg get's a bit better than that.

 

[18Dodger18]

Thanks, C12V98, for your reply.. I'm not "shotting" yet, but....have the opportunity to get in towing lite-wate frate in the north-east. I have noticed that both you and Greg run 4X4's... Is there any real benefit in that? My '09 6.7 is a 4X4, and I am convinced that the reduced MPG does not justify me having the added weight and expense.. I believe that you run the High West, is this correct? You may need it a lot more than I.. I am thinkin, a REG cab, cause our runs are always 400 or less.. I see Greg is running a very nice extended cab, haven't seen photo of your rig yet.. but.. is there any advantage to go extended, other than maybe slightly better ride.. I may be older than dirt, but still have lots of questions before I sign the paper.. hope you guys will share your know-how with an "old geezer".. Thanks...
Olde Bob (18Dodger18)

 

[Cummins12V98]

With the front axle disconnect there is no mileage loss, yes there is extra weight. I rarely use the 4x4 but it is a priceless option when needed. Also resale needs to be considered. Standard cab may be all you need but again consider resale.