15" wheels and tires on tractor supply 4x8 no floor tra

[Bill_Storey]

Has anyone put 15 inch trailer rims and tires (0 offset) on the tractor supply 4x8 no floor trailer? If so, what size tire did you use, and how much clearance did you have between tire and frame?

I have aquired a new set of rims that were bought from Southwestern Wheel and then never used.

The reasons I want to use 15 in rims is three fold;

1. I like the look better with 15 in rims.

2. It will slightly raise the trailer weight capacity.

3. It will allow the bearings to run a little slower and / or me to tow a little faster.

Truthfully, it's more about looks than anything else. I had to reach to think of reasons 2 and 3.

[madjack]

#4...less rolling resistance

#5...better pothole resistance...

Bill, I haven't used a HF frame so can't directly tell ya but clearance would be your biggest problem...if you have the wheel/tire combo, then check for clearance...oh yeah...most of the HF frames have a 4lug hub and the 15's are probably 5 lug, so some sort of an /spacer/adapter is needed anyway...we run 205-70-15 car type tires on ours(and most of the trailers around the shop)
madjack

[Kens]

Madjack TS frame.

[angib]

#4...less rolling resistance

I think you'd be shocked by how much more rolling resistance larger tyres have.

Just swapping the wheels/tyres on most cars for the ones on the economy model is worth a several mpg gain.

Andrew

[Alphacarina]

#4...less rolling resistance

I think you'd be shocked by how much more rolling resistance larger tyres have.

Certainly true when you compare 15 inch tires with the recommended 30 PSI in them with the 12 inch tires running the recommended 80 PSI

No question which one is easier to roll

Don

[madjack]

#4...less rolling resistance

I think you'd be shocked by how much more rolling resistance larger tyres have.

Certainly true when you compare 15 inch tires with the recommended 30 PSI in them with the 12 inch tires running the recommended 80 PSI

No question which one is easier to roll

Don

...yeahbut, yeahbut, yeahbut....wattabout the "gyroscopic flywheel" effect kicking in once the tires ARE rolling
madjack

[mechmagcn]

My preference to run larger tires on my teardrop comes from the fact that the larger the tire, the less of a beating then trailer takes from rough roads, and we all know what shape the roads are in nowadays

[angib]

....wattabout the "gyroscopic flywheel" effect kicking in once the tires ARE rolling

Yeah, but that just beats seven grades of **** out of your dilithium crystals.....

Andrew

[brian_bp]

Larger diameter tires should be better for rolling resistance, but larger tire width is worse.

The Tractor Supply Carry-On 4 ft. x 8 ft. Trailer, 1500 lbs. GVWR is described on their web site has having "12 in tires rated 990 lbs each". With that capacity at 80 PSI, I'm guessing the tires are what they sell as Trailer Tire, 4.8 - 12, LRC.

A 4.8" tire has a nominal section width of only 122 mm, but an actual width of as much as 135 mm... if you could get a 135/85R15 tire (which you can't, although you could get close to the size with an unsuitable space-saver spare intended only for temporary use), I believe that the 15" setup would have smoother ride, higher load capacity, and less rolling resistance. You would have to find an unusually narrow 15" wheel in a trailer hub pattern and offset, or use an adapter of some sort.

In a quick search, the narrowest 15" tires I could find in North America from tire companies was a Bridgestone Blizzak LM-18 145/65R15 (a winter tire for passenger cars, Euro-sized). Due to the relatively low profile, it's less than two inches taller overall than the 4.80-12. Among other brands, the Michelin X-Ice 175/65R15 was next narrowest (again only a winter). I suspect either of these would roll pretty nicely, but the ribbing from other trailer owners about the winter treads might be hard to take.

The Smart ForTwo uses a 155/60R15 on the front, which would probably be a really nice trailer tire... although I don't know where you buy those tires other than as the Bridgestone Blizzak (Goodyear, Michelin, Continental... none list the size). The Smart wheels fit a three-bolt hub.

In Europe, Continental has the ContiEcoContact 3 in a 135/70R15, which sounds like a nice small trailer size... but only in Europe.

[BPFox]

A buddy of mine used to have a 1962 Chevy Impala. For effect he put a set of 15" Mag Wheels in front that were only 4" wide. Skinny tires up front were all the rage back then. Made your car look like the cars down at the drag stip. I'll bet a set of those would do the thick.

[brian_bp]

A buddy of mine used to have a 1962 Chevy Impala. For effect he put a set of 15" Mag Wheels in front that were only 4" wide. Skinny tires up front were all the rage back then. Made your car look like the cars down at the drag strip. I'll bet a set of those would do the thick.

That could actually work... Centerline 15" narrow drag-style wheels

[Bill_Storey]

OK folks. I was on the road on a borrowed computer and connection when I posted this question. The Tractor Supply 4x8 no floor has about 3 inches clearance between the frame rails and the stock 4.80 x 12 tire (5 lug, 4.5 in bolt pattern). I'm guessing the stock rim is 4 inches wide. The rims I bought (unused but 2nd hand) are 5 inches wide. I'm guessing 215-75r-15 mounted on these rims should leave me about 1 - 1.25 inches clearance per side and I was just wondering if anyone else had already mounted 15 inch tires and could confirm the clearance.

The reason I want to do this is 90% looks, 5% increased ground clearance, 3% pothole resistance, 1% bearing speed, and 1% increased increased weight capacity.

[toypusher]

OK folks. I was on the road on a borrowed computer and connection when I posted this question. The Tractor Supply 4x8 no floor has about 3 inches clearance between the frame rails and the stock 4.80 x 12 tire (5 lug, 4.5 in bolt pattern). I'm guessing the stock rim is 4 inches wide. The rims I bought (unused but 2nd hand) are 5 inches wide. I'm guessing 215-75r-15 mounted on these rims should leave me about 1 - 1.25 inches clearance per side and I was just wondering if anyone else had already mounted 15 inch tires and could confirm the clearance.

The reason I want to do this is 90% looks, 5% increased ground clearance, 3% pothole resistance, 1% bearing speed, and 1% increased increased weight capacity.

You know that the clearance that you end up with will depend on the offset of the wheels that you have???

[Bill_Storey]

Kerry, I was told they are 0 offset wheels, trailer wheels bought from Southwest Wheel.

[angib]

The 4.80x12 tyres will be about 5.1" wide (you would think they would be 4.8", wouldn't you?) and 215 tyres will be about 8.5" wide so, if both size wheels are zero offset, the bigger tyres will 1.7" wider each side.

This makes your reduction in clearance from about 3" to a little over 1" sound just right.

Andrew