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05-13-2011, 05:59 AM
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#1
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1 Rivet Member
Currently Looking...
Catawissa
, Pennsylvania
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 7
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Tires for 1987 Excella 8300 lbs. Load Range D or E?
Just bought 1987 32' Excella! Weighs 8300 lbs. Tires have dry rot. Need to tow 150 miles only and will park. Current tires are labelled H78-15ST. Should I buy Load Range D or E? Is 8-ply sufficient? Or do I need 10-ply? Must buy tires by 5/15, so all advice is welcome! Thank you, Barbara
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05-13-2011, 06:15 AM
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#2
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Rivet Master
1999 34' Excella
Joshua
, Texas
Join Date: Apr 2002
Posts: 548
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I would look at "C" or "D" load rated tires....the stiffer the tires, the stiffer the ride which will eventually cause vibrations in the trailer....
__________________
History doesn't repeat itself, people do!
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05-14-2011, 10:40 PM
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#3
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3 Rivet Member
1988 25' Excella
Trumbull
, Connecticut
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 197
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Tire rating
Quote:
Originally Posted by barbann
Just bought 1987 32' Excella! Weighs 8300 lbs. Tires have dry rot. Need to tow 150 miles only and will park. Current tires are labelled H78-15ST. Should I buy Load Range D or E? Is 8-ply sufficient? Or do I need 10-ply? Must buy tires by 5/15, so all advice is welcome! Thank you, Barbara
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Hello Barbara. If the trailer is 8300 lbs that means each tire must support 2075 lbs. The tires you buy should have that capability as a minimum. This is what determines if you can use D or E tires. Good luck, happy camping
Regards nm1oqrz
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05-15-2011, 08:12 AM
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#4
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Rivet Master
1974 31' Excella 500
Charleston
, South Carolina
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,073
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You are going to buy all new tires to tow the trailer 150 miles "only" and then let is sit?
That is a lot of money for 150 miles,
__________________
As I grow older, I pay less attention to what men say. I just watch what they do.
- Andrew Carnegie
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05-15-2011, 08:20 AM
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#5
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Rivet Master
Airstream Dealer
Corona
, California
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 16,497
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Quote:
Originally Posted by barbann
Just bought 1987 32' Excella! Weighs 8300 lbs. Tires have dry rot. Need to tow 150 miles only and will park. Current tires are labelled H78-15ST. Should I buy Load Range D or E? Is 8-ply sufficient? Or do I need 10-ply? Must buy tires by 5/15, so all advice is welcome! Thank you, Barbara
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Barbara.
Your Airstream more than likely came with "D" tires.
Use those as a replacement.
If you wish to go to "E" tires, all wheel manufacturers say that you should also change the wheels, if they are steel.
The issue is that when a given steel wheel uses as an example a "D" tire for years, if you increase the tire to an "E" it will cause the wheels to split.
We had a customer that did not wish to believe that, so between Corona and Phoenix, he split 3 out of the 4 wheels.
Mag wheels do not share that same problem.
Andy
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05-15-2011, 09:17 AM
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#6
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Retired.
Currently Looking...
.
, At Large
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 21,276
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Quote:
Originally Posted by barbann
Just bought 1987 32' Excella! Weighs 8300 lbs. Tires have dry rot. Need to tow 150 miles only and will park. Current tires are labelled H78-15ST. Should I buy Load Range D or E? Is 8-ply sufficient? Or do I need 10-ply? Must buy tires by 5/15, so all advice is welcome! Thank you, Barbara
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If all you're ever going to do is tow the trailer 150 miles and park it forever, ST225/75R15D tires will suffice. Load range C tires are only about $5 each cheaper, so there's no real savings using the lighter duty tire. If you're planning on towing it after you get it home and get everything working, you can look at the same size tire in a load range E. Maxxis makes them. You don't have to inflate the tires to the 80 psi shown on the sidewall, you can run 65 (D load range pressure) in them. You will then get the benefit of the heavier duty tire without beating the trailer up with the higher pressure.
__________________
Meddle not in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy, and taste good with ketchup.
Terry
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05-15-2011, 09:24 AM
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#7
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Rivet Master
2000 25' Safari
Davidson County
, NC Highlands County, FL
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 4,493
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Hi Barbara,
Welcome to the forum!
Andy's and Terry's advice is right on, like always!
If you decide to use E rated tires, like I did, in lieu of the original D rated, and you already have aluminum mag wheels, make sure you know what the wheels' maximum allowed pressure is.
The wheels on my Safari have a max pressure of 65 psi. The max pressure on my E tire is 80 psi. So, I cannot safely inflate my E rated tires to the max, to get the best load rating.
Alan
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05-24-2011, 05:33 AM
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#8
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1 Rivet Member
Currently Looking...
Catawissa
, Pennsylvania
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 7
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Tires for 1987 32' Excella-Thanks for the good advice!
Hi everybody! Thanks so much for all the advice! There is a lot to learn about Airstreams. We bought new Load D tires; the ones on the trailer were Load C, and my husband did the weight/4 calculation and Load D 8-ply seemed sufficient. Yes, it cost some money, but a lot less than the trailer itself and we didn't want to risk a blow out. Now I have a question about an anti-sway bar, which I'll post in the other section. Airstreamers are SO nice! Barbann
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