700-15 vs. ST225/75/15

[chuman70]

Which is better and why? I'm trying to find the best value for my 74 Tradewind.

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by chuman70

Which is better and why? I'm trying to find the best value for my 74 Tradewind.

Radial tires are better than bias ply.

If not, then why have all the auto manufacturers switched to them years ago?

Same for trailers, since they are better.

Andy

[DFord79]

It is even hard to find Bias Ply tires. The roll harder..dont wear...run hotter...take more gas....there is nothing Better about bias ply tires.

[63air]

Yokohama makes an LT 700x15 radial . I've used them and been qiute pleased.

[KeithC]

Radial tires make Vintage Airstreams ride better, use less fuel, and last longer than bias ply tires.

If you have old bias tires on your Airstream, think about replacing them soon. When they are worn out, replace them with name brand, deep tread, radials. If your current bias tires have sidewall cracking, they are damaged goods, replace them immediately with radial tires to prevent furture damage.

[scottanlily]

hello there radial guys

you may be partly correct ,run smoother ,better gas mileage yes .Better
overall ?with ALL the marathon failures as well as many other brands
all well documented on these forums and other RV sites ,I will stick with my
bias tires ,they have 9 full plys ,not just rated as the other tires are like 8
ply rated yet have only 2 sidewall plys or 2 or 3 tread plys .I have 5 tread ply
layers and 4 sidewall plys .which is the stronger tougher tire ? Everyone should do their homework and read all threads concerning the on going problems .What is really surprising is that many continue to buy install and
experience continuing blowouts with there radials every single day .you have
to go with what works ,careful consideration is important ,buying a solid
performing tire with a great history of reliability .thats the most important thing. so far with my 60 trdwnd bias tires have been great .mine are
cheng shin ,made in china ,and the thing is this ,no problems in all the years
Ive ran the Herculese or towmaster BIAS ply tires .Towmaster Bias are not goodyear made by the way as the ST radial is .this tire radial thing has been
going on the forums for years ,same thing blowouts blowouts for what reason
really should this be an ongoing problem ?

Scott of scottanlily

[chuman70]

I don't really plan on travelling any great distances. Is the gas savings that significant? I was absolutely aghast when I looked at the tires installed by the PO. Including the spare, there were 5 different brand of tires. Not one of them was Class D rated. In addition, it has bias ply tires on one side and radials on the other. I aksed the PO the condition of the tires before I pulled the trailer home (Ohio to Alabama) and he said they were fine. They were NOT and I as well as my family are very lucky to be alive right now. I had no idea about the tire condition as the PO seemed to be a VERY trustworty 85 year-old gentleman in failing health. He said he was a veteran Airstreamer as well. I'm beginning to wonder. Additionally, I had the spare tire in the bed of my pickup under the bed cover and heard a loud bang one day while driving at work. I thought I had had a blowout but checked all four truck tires to see that they were all fine. Later I opened the bed cover to discover that my spare had exploded sending rubber and steel belt shrapnel all over the bed of my truck. Good thing I did not have a flat on the way home from Ohio. That tire did not even have any weight on it.

[klattu]

The sidewall flex in radials is the only thing I can think of that bias wins out on.
That really helps preventing side sway.
And you will notice all mobile home tires are still bias.
You can get stiff sidewall radials, but too many put truck or car radials on and that can be a problem.
If you go radial, check the sidewalls.
If you can grab the bead and flex it easy, is too thin.
Bias run smoother too, after they warm up, but you will not be riding back there anyway.

Remember 'Radial Tuned Suspension' on cars back in the 70s?
That was to make up for the jolt radials transfered to the body.
Shocks were modified to have a few mm of free travel before resistance kicked in.

And I miss 8 tracks too!