Odd Tire Wear

[Mike Lewis]

I had the same wear problem on one of the original tires on my trailer. I replaced all the tires in 2018. The new tires have more than 9,000 miles on them and they show normal wear patterns, nothing odd. Beats me what is going on.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by rotateclockwise

My passenger front tire is wearing severely on the outside (Escape 21). I noticed it for the first time this fall and am not sure what is causing the issue. The wear is only on the outside, and the three other tires have worn evenly. I'm a stickler for checking tire pressure before each trip and rarely needed to add air. The pictures are the passenger front and rear tire.

Michael: Just curious - what is the make/model of your tires?

[CharlesPou]

I had odd wear with my original tires, new trailer Jul 2018. after approx 1 year I replaced all four, and the issue went away. I attribute it to cheap tires. I have noticed the tires on my tandem axle trailer wear faster than on single axle Casita. I attribute it to tires scrubbing on sharp turns. often I notice tire marks left by my trailer at the gas station where I've made a sharp turn to get to the pump. also, what tire pressure is OP running? mine seem to scrub less with more tire pressure. I've been running mine at 60 to 65 psi, and seem to do better, but I know lots like to run less psi. cheers

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Just curious - what is the make/model of your tires?

Originally Posted by CharlesPou

I had odd wear with my original tires, new trailer Jul 2018. after approx 1 year I replaced all four, and the issue went away. I attribute it to cheap tires.

Michael never came back to answer but the tires sure look like Carlisle Radial Trail HD’s which I believe Escape was using at one time.

[AK snowbiker]

We finally replaced our original Carlisle tires last August with the Endurance tires when I noticed severe wear on the inner part of the driver’s side front tire. Don’t keep track of the trailers mileage but it’s been up and down the Alaska, Cassiar highway five times with side trips up the Dempster, Dalton highways and all over Alaska and the Yukon.

Leaving Washington in the fall of 2019 I didn't notice any abnormal wear on that tire at the start of the trip. And upon arriving back in Alaska put the trailer in storage shortly after. Don’t recall any big hits on that trip. This spring I will check to make sure I didn’t bend the axle or spindle, and redo the bearings. Scott

FAT BIKES ARE FUN!

[Rossue]

Scott- those tires didn't owe you a dime! And they were ageing out. Glad you didn't have a tire bomb ruin your day somewhere as has been reported recently.

My Carlisle's lasted about two years, yet probably had 20K miles at that point. Could have squeezed an extra trip or two from them, yet for $400 or so for new tires why wait?

[AK snowbiker]

Originally Posted by Rossue

Scott- those tires didn't owe you a dime! And they were ageing out. Glad you didn't have a tire bomb ruin your day somewhere as has been reported recently.

My Carlisle's lasted about two years, yet probably had 20K miles at that point. Could have squeezed an extra trip or two from them, yet for $400 or so for new tires why wait?

Yes, we got good service from the Carlisle’s, never a problem. The trailer is kept indoors most of the year so not much UV exposure. Hoping it’s something simple like a loose castle nut that I read in an earlier post.


I like bikes!

[rotateclockwise]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Michael never came back to answer but the tires sure look like Carlisle Radial Trail HD’s which I believe Escape was using at one time.

You are correct, they are the original Carlisle Radial Trail HD’s that came with our 2017 21. They have performed flawlessly. I decided to replace the tire/wheel with the spare (never used) and have gotten a new tire which I'll use as the spare. My plan was to replace all tires at the end of 2021, but It looks like I should go ahead and replace the remaining four soon. I'm also going to contact Dexter to see what they think.


I appreciate everyone's thoughts and guidance.

[Perry Butler]

Originally Posted by George Johnson

Just to add to the possibilities, it could be that you inadvertently hit a curb, rock or other obstacle and bent the axle. The fix would require a visit to a good alignment shop experienced with trailer axle repair.

We've replaced both axles in the first 6 months of ownership. I called numerous axle repair shops. Every one except one would not re-align a Dexter axle. They all claimed Dexter axles were hard to align, and most go back to their bent position. The one that would attempt re-alignment would not guarantee that it would work. I called serious alignment shops with great reputations, that worked on aligning axles and frames, not your auto repair shop that also did alignment. It's a crap shoot.

Dexter covered the axles, the labor, and two new tires. After 20,000+ miles all is well.

Enjoy,

Perry

[Chama]

Interesting thread. We have exactly the same wear pattern on exactly the same tire on our 2018 E21C. Seems to me if the axle was bent you would get uneven wear on both sides on same tire position but we do not. Uneven tire wear is just on driver's side front tire. Preplexing.

[Perry Butler]

Originally Posted by Chama

Interesting thread. We have exactly the same wear pattern on exactly the same tire on our 2018 E21C. Seems to me if the axle was bent you would get uneven wear on both sides on same tire position but we do not. Uneven tire wear is just on driver's side front tire. Preplexing.

Semantics. One side of each of our axles was bent. Was it the spindle or the trailing arm? Doesn't matter. One side was just fine, but the other side was bent.

Enjoy,

Perry

[kfsmith]

Mine was a result of a bent axle i noticed a difference in distance between the tires on both sides there is no alignment possible. Escape and dexter replaced the rear axle and tires.

[FFPaul]

For a quick look. Place a 4’ level on the outside of the tire and sight down the level. If it doesn’t point straight forward you might have a bent axle. Check them all and if the one in question is way off the others that’s your issue.

[HABBERDABBER]

Originally Posted by FFPaul

For a quick look. Place a 4’ level on the outside of the tire and sight down the level. If it doesn’t point straight forward you might have a bent axle. Check them all and if the one in question is way off the others that’s your issue.

Can you be more specific on technique. Is the level vertical or horizontal. Plumb or level measurement needed?


Thanks,

[tdf-texas]

Originally Posted by HABBERDABBER

Can you be more specific on technique. Is the level vertical or horizontal. Plumb or level measurement needed?


Thanks,

A picture is worth a thousand words. If you have a tandem axle, a six foot would probably work better as it would go across both tires and the slightest misalignment would be obvious.

[HABBERDABBER]

And from YOUR photo, what did this tell you?


It appears the top of the level edge is at different locations at the top of the spindle assembly. Is the level "on the level" in your photo?


What area of discrepancy indicates bent axle?

[tdf-texas]

Originally Posted by HABBERDABBER

And from YOUR photo, what did this tell you?


It appears the top of the level edge is at different locations at the top of the spindle assembly. Is the level "on the level" in your photo?


What area of discrepancy indicates bent axle?

If you were to look at where the level contacts the tires, any axle misalignment would show up as gaps between the tires and the level. This measurement would be for checking toe in / out.

If you were checking for camber, then the level would be used vertically on the tire. But, weight distribution of the trailer then comes into play as that affects the camber of the tire. So any camber measurement would need to be done with a fully loaded trailer. Also, the trailer should be level because if one axle is supporting more weight than the other, the camber would be affected.

A perfect axle would have no camber with a loaded trailer.

[Ronn]

Originally Posted by HABBERDABBER

And from YOUR photo, what did this tell you?


It appears the top of the level edge is at different locations at the top of the spindle assembly. Is the level "on the level" in your photo?


What area of discrepancy indicates bent axle?

Hi Tom, I think the word "LEVEL" is throwing you off, I believe what the poster is referring to is just a "straight edge".

[FFPaul]

Place the bottom of the level on the tire at 9 and 3 o’clock on the outside tire bulge. Avoid any areas that bulge out uniformly. This should place the level parallel to the ground. The top of the level (on the outside away from the tire) should point very close to strait ahead. If this is not consistent on all 4 tires. It should show you where the problem is.

[tdf-texas]

Originally Posted by Ronn

Hi Tom, I think the word "LEVEL" is throwing you off, I believe what the poster is referring to is just a "straight edge".

I tend to use my 4' level as a straight edge and confuse the terms sometimes.

Correcting myself. In the case of toe in, a straight edge is all that is needed. For camber, a level is needed. In my post, I used my 4' level for both.