Another Marathon issue

[RJI47]

Here's a good one... At a rest stop Thursday, I noticed the rear tire on my 3400RL was wearing ONLY on the inside rib. All the other tires (3) were still in like new condition. All tires have about 6000 miles on them. This is the only tire that shows any wear at all. I think I'm going to mount the spare before I head home on Monday. Does anyone know if these axels are "aligned"? I have the Mor-ride suspension and everything seems to look ok. I'm just surprised that just one tire shows wear and just on the inside tred.

[camper4]

It sounds like the tire has a defect and if you continued to use it it would blow soon. I had one like that. The tread was loose from the tire's core and wore heavily on the outside but not all the way around.
You are luck to catch it before it blew.

[HOOK]

Probably a broken belt.

[helmick]

Sounds like a bent axel(out of alignment) to me.

[bncinwv]

I agree with Ron, running over a curb or something similar can put enough strain on the axle to cause it to bend out of it's normal alignment. There are trailer repair shops that can align the axles properly.
Bingo

[camper4]

Wouldn't an alignment problem cause the two tires on that axle to wear unevenly?

[bncinwv]

A bent axle can affect one or both tires, axle alignment problems have been documented previously on the forum that resulted in uneven wear on one or both tires on that axle.
Bingo

[helmick]

We had the problem and it was only on the curb side. Changed the axel, replaced the bad tire and no more uneven wear.

[mhs4771]

Our solution to a similar problem was to replace the entire running gear with the MorRyde IS System, although rather pricey.

[Ishler]

Just went through the same thing at the same mileage with our 2010. Wanted to get it solved before installing G614's. Took it to axle & frame shop and the axle was bent. They straightened everything for $400

[RJI47]

Wouldn't that have been covered under warranty on a 2010?

[helmick]

I phoned Dexter, gave them my vin# and the (stamped on the axel)axel size. They gave me 3 local places I could order it from. I am a long way from Elkhart so the axel cost me around $200.00 and I paid a local hitch shop $90.00 it put it on. Much stronger than straightening the old one.

Warranty do not cover running into curbs.

[bigred715]

I think your best bet would to get your tires balanced and definately get the alignment because neither are done at the factory. This for new bought trailers. Even if you buy used, it will save you money in the long run.

[HOOK]

you could take the tire to a reputable dealer, and they could tell you if it is alignment or tire failure. Larry

[RJI47]

Took the tire off today and put the new spare on. The tred is worn on the inside but only on about 1/2 the tire. This is down to "bald", but there is tred left on the rest of it. Looks to me like it's the tire, and not the axel. Nevertheless, I think it's time for new shoes on this big fella.
Thanks for the responses.

[bncinwv]

The other thing to take a look see at is to see if the spring hangers on the Mor-Ryde suspension are bent and particularly on the side where the abnormal wear is occurring. What you are describing is not a bad tire, it is a problem with the camber, either the axle alignment or a problem with the Mor-Ryde suspension. Bent spring hangers are a common occurrence as well and a quick look beneath the rig may reveal your problem. That location will most likely continue to eat tires until you resolve the underlying cause.
Bingo

[8.1al]

If it were alignment the wear would be all the way around, a bad tire will give you wear part way around

[Ishler]

Rick
On my unit the the axle was bent at the spindle causing the one tire to wear. They said it looked like it had been curbed, but to bend it that much there should have been evidence of the strike on the tire and wheel. I suspect somewhere in it's travels before we purchased it, it was damaged and the wheel and tire replaced.

[HOOK]

Any bad alignment would wear the tire full circle. Bad tire IMHO.

[Art-n-Marge]

Ishler covered the other possibility for tire wear on one tire - the spindle if there is no suspension problem. There have been reports in the MOC from other members who discovered the axle had the correct bow which provides its alignment and it checked out fine at the axle shop, then they had found that the spindle at the end of the axle where the brakes, bearings and wheel is mounted and it was bent.

I don't remember if the spindle could be rebent into place. I think if the spindle is bent out of normal that a new axle is required. Please keep us posted.