Tire and Wheel Options for Trailer with 12 inch Wheels for Increased Speed Rating

Question:

Hi E-Trailer dudes. I am modifying an old old trailer 48 years old from a jon-boat trailer to a canoe trailer. I have lots of questions on tire size. My simple question to you today is if there is any benefit to upgrading the wheel/tire size from the existing 12 inch rim to something slightly larger. Characteristics I am looking for are: 1. Light duty is OK - canoes and related gear is pretty light. 2. Bounce - Id like to not bounce these canoes all to pieces. 3. Longevity - Id like to get quite a few miles out of the tire 4. Speed rating - Well be pulling this behind a van at 70mph. 5. Roughness - Some canoe landings can be pretty rough - gravel roads and pot holes. Id like a tire/wheel combo that can handle it. 6. Value - of course, Im not looking to go broke on this wheel/tire expenditure. At the moment, I have a 12 inch wheel and dry-rotted tire on a 4 on 4 hub. The hub has lug bolts not nuts, and the lug bolts are tapered at the head. Thus, I believe this is a lug-centricinch hub. Other than pros/cons, can you provide any suggestions? Thanks so much!

asked by: Dan

Helpful Expert Reply:

Going to a larger diameter wheel and tire will give you a marginally improvement in terms of bounce. But most of the bounce comes from the less sophisticated suspension found on trailers. Since speed is a factor that you mentioned we have the 5.30-12 tire part # TT53012C which has an 81 mph speed rating. Unfortunately, this tire is sold separately and not mounted on a wheel. This is the only way to get the 81 mph speed rating in this size. There are many wheels from which to choose base on your preference of style and color. The Dexstar Steel Spoke Trailer Wheel - 12" x 4" Rim - 4 on 4 - White Powder Coat # AM20122 is a popular choice. You could have these tire mounted onto the wheels at a local shop.

We do have the Loadstar ST175/80D13 Bias Trailer Tire with 13" White Wheel # AM3S120 which has an overall diameter of 24 inches (4 inches larger that other size I mentioned) and also has the same 81 mph. This is a bias ply tire construction which tends to do better in rougher conditions.

expert reply by: Jameson C