[wyatts dad]

We have a jon boat outfitted much like a bass boat and upgraded the trailer axle, wheels and tire to put a comfort zone on weight. We did that mostly because when we are close to home it is loaded with batteries for battery lake fishing and I strip that stuff out for hitting the river or lakes that permit the 20hp merc we have. We now have a saltwater axle and 13" wheels with Hercules tires. The thing on my mind is that most trailer tires come with a warning that you not exceed 50mph towing and I rarely see anybody on the road taking heed of that. If you dont run 60+ you will get run over out there. We would like to make a 6 hour run to the beach and use the boat in the back bay area, but I am not real comfortable pushing down the road and having a failure. All my running gear is almost new and have the good Dexter setup with the rear greasing ported hubs. What is you take on how we may make this trip and not have any issues?

 

[bigjim5589]

Don't drive like a maniac & you should be good.

I have a similar trailer & boat & used to tow to the Eastern shore for the majority for the fishing I did, but I lived near Annapolis, so usually less than 2 hours at a time. Never had any issues, even with running the posted speeds & up to 60. I towed mine to SC when I moved here. 9 hours. My boat is also decked & I had placed 8, 16' 2X4's on top, and on that I had strapped my Gheenoe. In the Gheenoe was a truck tool box with some things in it, and I loaded other things into the space under the 2X4's in the boat. The motor, a 9.9 Johnson was mounted on the back, and two batteries & fuel tank also in the boat. So, it was a lot heavier than it would have normally been. It was about a 500 mile trip, and I stopped a few times & always checked tires for excess heat. The speeds on I-95 going south are mostly 65 or 70, and I ran the speed limits. No issues at all. Be sure your tires are inflated properly. Improper tire pressures will cause you more problems than the speed you run, of course provided you don't get crazy with the speeds. I've driven a tractor trailer for the last 25 years, and those who have tire problems either run over something & puncture the tire, or run them with improper air pressures, usually too low. Tires heat up faster with too low air pressure & that's what causes a lot of blow outs. Those boat trailer tires are not the same as truck trailer tires, but the same thing applies. If you have everything in good mechanical order as you say, then take your time, stop & check a few times & you should do fine. Be sure to have a spare, jack & necessary tools just in case, as it's better to be prepared. I even carry spare bearings & grease for my trailer. Good luck with it.

 

[IPNURWATER]

With that light load you should have no issues at any speed that is posted.

 

[wyatts dad]

Thanks for the heads up, funny thing, tires are marked like so many others with 50psi max pressure, but I can find no recommendation for tire pressure, I called Hercules and they say they don't provide that information. you would think they would have a chart relative to weight. What the heck? I was thinking about running 40 cold to account for rise with heat to 45ish, seems safe to me, your take?

 

[bigjim5589]

Those max pressures are for supporting various weight. It's "up to" that max. provides the safest support, as beyond would be too much for the tire structure. Too little however can be worse. You also need to note the load rating for each. If they're rated at 950 lbs each @ 50 psi, and your loaded weight is 2000 on the axle, you've got them over loaded for a two tire trailer. That's not often a problem with small trailers like we have.

I run 40 to 45 in mine, so you should be good there. That's what I had in them when I towed from MD to SC. I do however try to make sure both tires are the same within a pound or so. You probably don't want 45 in one & 40 in other. Tire companies won't recommend anything, that's about "liability" if there's an issue.

 

[wyatts dad]

The trip went just fine,left home with freshly packed bearings, a spare hub, grease and seals, ran the tires at 44psi and pushed as high as 65for an 8 hour run and no problems. Ride home was warmer weather after the rain went away. One of the buddy bearing covers appeared to walk off the hub slightly, turned out it was egged out from removal for the grease packing, was gonna replace it, but gave it a hard turn or two and it seated down nice and tight. All is good, hope this thread helped somebody else, have a good summer. Wyatts Dad

 

[bigjim5589]

Good deal! Glad it went well!