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07-14-2013, 05:42 AM
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#1
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Montana Fan
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Florissant
Posts: 246
M.O.C. #13088
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OK, my last post on tires
Okay, I am going to throw this out for some thought and understand I am not an advocate of Marathon tires. First off, I have been trying to find some affordable tires and ones that aren't necessarily made in China and Taiwan. Most are imported from what I am learning. Now, I am wondering, since these heavy trailers sit more than they move down the road and since tires will age over time, that these things might have the greatest impact on the steel belts breaking down and causing unnoticeable flat spots on the tires. Considering these factors, one might conclude that Towmaxx, Marathon, Greenball and even the G614's and others, might all suffer the same fate regardless of who makes them. I hope I didn't open a can of worms here, but I am looking to buy another set of tires and can't afford to $pend two hundred plus dollars apiece for new tires. I guess I am trying to justify my decision to buy 4 Towmaxx tires. EVERYTHING, always seems to involve mass quantities of cash. Thoughts?
__________________
Jim and Diana
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07-14-2013, 05:50 AM
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#2
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Montana Master
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: _
Posts: 5,238
M.O.C. #6337
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Tis not a cheap sport.
Your life and limbs and life style are riding on those hunks of round rubber, no fun dumping the ca$h there, but, your life and limbs and safety are riding on them.
For us, if we feel safe, that is so much!
And, yea, we blew one of the safe tires.
You take your best shot, spend what you feel is appropriate and then hope for the best. Trust your Maker to keep you safe.
Do what you can, the rest will happen.
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07-14-2013, 06:16 AM
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#3
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: North Ridgeville
Posts: 20,229
M.O.C. #2839
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Many good LT tires do not have the tire load capacity for the larger Montana's. Many of us spend more time on the road than others. One of the reasons we purchased the 13 big sky was the G6 14 tires that have the proper spec's for the heavy Montana
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07-14-2013, 06:20 AM
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#4
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Montana Fan
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: stockton
Posts: 405
M.O.C. #11457
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Having suffered a catastrophic blowout with our Cougar TT in the middle of what was to have been a six week trip through Canada ($3500 damage had to cancel trip) I immediately switched out the Marathons on the 5 th wheel for G614s. Pricey, but now two years plus and about 20k miles in, I think the peace of mind is worth every penny. There are probably other options, but I will never put a China-made tre on any rig I own.
__________________
2014 Montana Mountaineer 331 RLT. Winneguard SWM Traveler Satellite Antenna, Progressive 50 amp portable EMS, 6 point Level Up.. 2016 Chevy 3500 Duramax Dually, long bed, B&W Patriot hitch.
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07-14-2013, 06:40 AM
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#5
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Site Team
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Wilsey
Posts: 18,799
M.O.C. #11455
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I have to agree with Carol. We put the 614's on at a very bad time for us financially, but we felt it was a necessary expense. Yes they will rot before we wear them out, but few things on the rig are as important than what supports it. Everyone must follow their own way of looking at the world, but putting our home on cheap tires would be, for us, like putting a modular home on an unsuitable foundation.
__________________
Dick, Joyce, Diego, Picatso and Gustav
2017 3720 RL, and 2013 HC 343RL
Pullrite Hitch, IS, Disk Brakes, 3rd AC, Winegard Traveler, Bathroom door mod, Dometic 320, couch for desk swap, replaced chairs, sun screens, added awnings, etc.
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07-14-2013, 07:59 AM
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#6
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Montana Master
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Haysville
Posts: 4,261
M.O.C. #3085
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I don't know what RV you have, but several of us with the medium to smaller rigs have gone with LT tires with equal peace of mind. They are not as pricey as the 614's which we weight capacity wise don't need anyways. My first two Montanas came from the factory with LT tires ... sadly my third came with Marabombs. Assuming no alignment issues ... as eluded to in earlier posts, no matter what brand of round rubber donuts you get they'll wear out from age well before you physically wear them out ... that's just part of owning an RV.
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07-14-2013, 08:10 AM
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#7
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Montana Master
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Frostproof, FL USA
Posts: 2,362
M.O.C. #13272
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We were very very lucky when we purchased our 2008 because the original owner had replaced the tires with 614's. That being said, we would have immediately replaced them if the original ones where still on it, no matter the cost. Damage to the rig during a blow out is one thing, losing control on a steep grade or curve is another.
__________________
Previous: 2008 Montana 3400RL & 2014 3725RL
Current: Full Time 2022 SOB TT Toy Hauler
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07-14-2013, 10:46 AM
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#8
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Montana Master
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Sioux Falls
Posts: 729
M.O.C. #3206
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We are fortunate because both tv and rv have the same size tires [ LT235/80R16E ]- My policy is to put new tires on the fiver every 3 years- The tires off the fiver are then put on the tv duals- This procedure has resulted in our having no tire problems for the last 13 1/2 years on the road as fulltimers- We have been fulltimers for 14 plus years- I think this gives us a less expensive method of keeping quality American made tires on our vehicles- The first 6 months on the road were an expensive education in tires, but that is another story [ a horrer story to end all horrer stories ]- JMHO- Don
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07-14-2013, 11:33 AM
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#9
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Montana Fan
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Calgary
Posts: 351
M.O.C. #10119
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If your planning on putting on Towmax tires which are an ST tire I would suggest putting on Maxxis ST tires. Maxxis tires have an excellent reputation. I have Maxxis on our monty for 3 yrs and have not experienced a problem with them.
__________________
DPAM
2017 GMC Denali diesel, crewcab, 4x4, regular box.
2010 Montana 3150RL- Moving to Montana Package , Hickory Edition Package, wet bolts
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07-14-2013, 11:48 AM
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#10
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Montana Fan
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Redmond
Posts: 274
M.O.C. #12815
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Upgrade to 17.5" wheels and GY G114's.
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07-14-2013, 01:07 PM
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#11
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Montana Master
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Northport
Posts: 624
M.O.C. #12724
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by dpam
If your planning on putting on Towmax tires which are an ST tire I would suggest putting on Maxxis ST tires. Maxxis tires have an excellent reputation. I have Maxxis on our monty for 3 yrs and have not experienced a problem with them.
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+1 on the Maxxis tires. I and quite a few others have had excellent service with Maxxis M8008 tires.
__________________
Paul Northport,AL W4XH
2013 358 RLT Mountaineer
2008 Silverado Duramax
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07-14-2013, 01:09 PM
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#12
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Montana Fan
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Crossville
Posts: 184
M.O.C. #10367
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I also put Maxxis on my previous 5ver. No problems and reasonably priced.
__________________
Crossville, TN
2012 3455SA
2013 Ram 3500 Swd
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07-14-2013, 01:36 PM
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#13
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Montana Master
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Kelowna
Posts: 1,475
M.O.C. #6237
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We put Bridgestone Duravis 250's on our Montana and we are very pleased with them. They are one of the few with steel belted side walls which I like.
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07-14-2013, 05:35 PM
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#14
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Montana Fan
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Florissant
Posts: 246
M.O.C. #13088
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I have decided to put a complete set of Towmaxx tires on my RV. My RV is a 2008, 3400 RL with a weight of approximately 12,000 lbs, and the tires seem to have come as original equipment, thus about 5 years old. To my way of thinking tires should, like any other equipment, be maintained and inspected on a routine basis. However, this seems to not have been the case with mine. Today when I took off one of the tires, which had no noticeable defects, I spun the tire and noticed significant sidewall imperfections.* Had I done this two weeks ago, tire problems while travelling could have been avoided.* If, every year or two I took the time to jack up the wheels and at least spin them for a visual inspection, maybe failure could have been totally avoided. Maybe it is not necessarily the type/brand of tire you use but the maintenance thereof. Possibly replacement should be an ongoing part of owner maintenance, versus waiting for a failure. Just sayin……………
__________________
Jim and Diana
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07-14-2013, 05:54 PM
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#15
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Montana Master
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Winfield
Posts: 7,327
M.O.C. #6846
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We did all the necessary tire maintenance, pressure checks, temperature monitoring and still experienced tire failures on two separate "Made in China" brands. There will never be another set of anything on our rig that says "Made in China!" As many others have said, it is not a question of if, rather when!! The above is presented as my opinion based on my experiences only, the choice as always, is yours!!
Bingo
__________________
Bingo and Cathy - Our adventures begin in the hills of WV. We are blessed by our 2014 3850FL Big Sky (previous 2011 3750FL and 2007 3400RL) that we pull with a 2007 Chevy Silverado Classic DRW CC dually.
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07-14-2013, 06:11 PM
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#16
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Montana Fan
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Stratford
Posts: 241
M.O.C. #9481
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Years ago my cousin decided to take up scuba diving. Naturally he wanted to get the best bang for his buck when buying equipment. So, He went to the local dive shop and asked about buying low cost equipment. The shop owner summed it up by saying "I can get you down there for 50 bucks." The implcation was that he might not make it back to the surface. There is no guarantee that buying expensive $300 plus tires will ensure safe tires. On the other hand, you get what you pay for. IMO tires are not the place to cut corners.
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07-15-2013, 03:13 AM
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#17
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Montana Master
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Lake Gaston
Posts: 8,773
M.O.C. #12156
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Marathons probably work for some folks who drive 75 miles to the local state park a few weekends a year. For serious highway driving, Marathons has a poor record with the weight of big rigs as reflected by failure rates. If ST tires are the choice over a good quality LT tire, MAXXIS is an excellent product.
__________________
Mike and Lorraine
2002 3655 FL, 2005 3650RK
2010 3665RE, 2015 3910FB
F350 crew cab dually 6.7
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07-15-2013, 03:56 AM
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#18
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Montana Master
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Okeechobee
Posts: 2,150
M.O.C. #11206
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Hi
I had a set of G614 tires that developed the abnormal wear pattern. Goodyear agreed to give me a free set if I upgraded my wheels to the 110-PSI wheels. I purchased a set of used wheels from a MOC member that had installed the IS suspension. They came with G614 tires that had newer date codes than the tires the dealer had in stock. So I didn’t get my free tires. I now have over 10,000 miles on them and they are wearing very well.
The most cost effective way to go is 17.5 steel wheels and the Goodyear Low Boy tires that are rated for extremely heavy loads are low profile so they are not any taller than the G614 and cost less than half of the G614. The fellows with the Low Boy trailers are having good luck with them.
Now the only draw back I can think of concerning the Low Boy tire is the ridged sidewalls. Will the frame and suspension system tolerate the loads imposed on some of the roads we travel?
Phil P
__________________
2009 Montana 3665RE
2009 Duramax 3500 DRW quad cab
personal web page https:// www.sallyscoffees.com
If you get a page not available then remove the "s" after HTTP
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07-15-2013, 04:12 AM
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#19
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Montana Master
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Sebring
Posts: 3,669
M.O.C. #9969
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Phil, I'll agree on the 17.5 G114s (4805Lbs cap/tire), but I don't know where you saw them for 1/2 the price of the 614s. I've put a full set of G114s on HiSpec wheels and they ran $600/tire & wheel combo (just over $200 for wheel and just under $400 per tire). Now we've upgraded to the Mor/ryde IS and our rig rides smoother now than it did with the OEM spring suspension and G614 tires. Yes and expensive upgrade, but our rig is pushing 17K loaded and we're headed for a summer long trip in 2014, including Alaska and I didn't want to worry about tires.
__________________
Michelle & Ann
2018 Chevy 3500HD High Country DRW 4X4 Crew Cab w/Duramax/Allison, Formally 2010 Montana 2955RL, Now Loaded 2016 SOB, Mor/ryde IS, Disc Brakes & Pin Box, Comfort Ride Hitch, Sailun 17.5 Tires.
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07-15-2013, 07:50 AM
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#20
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Montana Master
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Okeechobee
Posts: 2,150
M.O.C. #11206
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Hi
The price I got from my commercial truck tire dealer that I have been doing business with for the last 50 years gave me a price last year of $145 each. I just called him and they are now up to $185 for the 215 and the 245 is $550 but the 245 isn’t needed for this unit, I got a price of $80 for a steel wheel that would carry the load and pressure I just got the same price today for the steel wheels. So for the tire quoted last year I would have paid $225 per wheel. Today they will be $265 per wheel. The difference between the 2 tires and wheels is the width I failed to ask what the weight capacity difference was.
Phil P
__________________
2009 Montana 3665RE
2009 Duramax 3500 DRW quad cab
personal web page https:// www.sallyscoffees.com
If you get a page not available then remove the "s" after HTTP
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