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#11
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
On Tuesday, April 27, 2021 at 3:35:41 AM UTC-4, wrote:
I have a 2009 Cobra trailer designed for a two seat glider. The tires need replacement. The original tires are of size 195/70R14. I cannot find the direct replacement trailer tires in the United States. I can find passenger tires of the same size, but not trailer tires. There are a couple of trailer tires manufactured of the size 195/75D14. These tires are relatively the same size (0.5" taller), but they are bias ply tires, not radial ply. It looks like I will have to make a choice between either using a passenger/light truck radial tire or a bias ply trailer tire. Any thoughts on this? I'm sure there are many folks out there who have the same Cobra trailer. What do you use for a replacement tire? David Cleveland David - just out of curiosity: is your two-seat trailer a single- or double axle one? Uli 'AS' |
#12
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
On Tuesday, April 27, 2021 at 11:53:22 AM UTC-7, wrote:
All good replies. Sounds like a high load index passenger car/light truck tire may be the best option absent a dedicated trailer tire. I agree that the trailer tires have a different construction, one being stiffer sidewalls. The stiffer sidewall prevents swaying. My concern with bias ply tires is that they would wear faster and also be prone to swaying. Having said that, I must admit that even at my advanced age, I never had the opportunity to use bias ply tires. As I became of auto age, radial tires were plentiful and inexpensive (relatively). Ralf from Alfred Spindelberger mentioned that they ship Cobra trailers with "C" rated (Cargo) tires. Cargo tires are constructed with stiffer sidewalls and are overall more heavy duty. That's the type of tire Mike mentioned.. His link is to a local Florida chain, but I was able to find a store in the Salt Lake City area where I live that advertises the same tire. We shall see. David My own personal experience with using car tires on glider trailers is that they would last a little over the warranty period (4 years). And they would fail by blowouts. I would only use car tires if you are only going to tow locally. Tom |
#13
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
On Tuesday, April 27, 2021 at 5:58:37 PM UTC-6, AS wrote:
On Tuesday, April 27, 2021 at 3:35:41 AM UTC-4, wrote: I have a 2009 Cobra trailer designed for a two seat glider. The tires need replacement. The original tires are of size 195/70R14. I cannot find the direct replacement trailer tires in the United States.. I can find passenger tires of the same size, but not trailer tires. There are a couple of trailer tires manufactured of the size 195/75D14. These tires are relatively the same size (0.5" taller), but they are bias ply tires, not radial ply. It looks like I will have to make a choice between either using a passenger/light truck radial tire or a bias ply trailer tire. Any thoughts on this? I'm sure there are many folks out there who have the same Cobra trailer.. What do you use for a replacement tire? David Cleveland David - just out of curiosity: is your two-seat trailer a single- or double axle one? Uli 'AS' It's a single axle trailer. |
#14
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
Trailer tires are designed for stability. They are 6 ply bias treads and run inflated to 50-60 psi. All this to minimize sway caused from side wall flexing. Not all normal tire stores carry these, you will need to shop around. Don't be tempted to use normal car tires, unless you never want to drive at highway speeds, the risk is too high. I have Cobra trailer with a DG 800b pulled by a Range Rover sport with low profile tires and can drive all day at 75mph with no problems at all with sway. I use to pull the same trailer with a 4 Runner with high profile radial tires, nearly have multiple accidents with sway problems, I was lucky.
Buzz Graves |
#15
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
If you are having trouble locating a specific size trailer tire locally, you might try etrailer.com. I got new tires for my 1983 Cobra at a decent price and essentially free delivery. They probably have a wider range of sizes than any local dealer. I went ahead and got the "ST" trailer tires, but my hangar partner, airshow pilot Bob Carlton towed hundreds of thousands of miles with his jet Salto glider in a trailer equipped with normal, everyday radial car tires and never had a problem. But he always towed with a Dodge 2500 diesel pickup, so trailer sway was never an issue. If you tow with a smaller vehicle, get the ST trailer tires and pay attention to proper fore/aft loading and tire pressures.
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#16
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
On 4/29/2021 9:49 AM, BG wrote:
Trailer tires are designed for stability. They are 6 ply bias treads and run inflated to 50-60 psi. All this to minimize sway caused from side wall flexing. Not all normal tire stores carry these, you will need to shop around. Don't be tempted to use normal car tires, unless you never want to drive at highway speeds, the risk is too high. I have Cobra trailer with a DG 800b pulled by a Range Rover sport with low profile tires and can drive all day at 75mph with no problems at all with sway. I use to pull the same trailer with a 4 Runner with high profile radial tires, nearly have multiple accidents with sway problems, I was lucky. Buzz Graves "Highway speeds"? 60, 70, 80? ST tires are generally not rated for 80, but some can be used at 70/75 IF you follow the instructions for the increased tire pressure over the label rating. And, please don't get bias ply (so 1960s)! The ST radials are superior in all respects except cost. LT truck tires are an even better choice, with much higher speed ratings than ST tires. -- Eric Greenwell - USA - "A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1 |
#17
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
On Thursday, April 29, 2021 at 12:34:19 PM UTC-7, Eric Greenwell wrote:
On 4/29/2021 9:49 AM, BG wrote: Trailer tires are designed for stability. They are 6 ply bias treads and run inflated to 50-60 psi. All this to minimize sway caused from side wall flexing. Not all normal tire stores carry these, you will need to shop around. Don't be tempted to use normal car tires, unless you never want to drive at highway speeds, the risk is too high. I have Cobra trailer with a DG 800b pulled by a Range Rover sport with low profile tires and can drive all day at 75mph with no problems at all with sway. I use to pull the same trailer with a 4 Runner with high profile radial tires, nearly have multiple accidents with sway problems, I was lucky. Buzz Graves "Highway speeds"? 60, 70, 80? ST tires are generally not rated for 80, but some can be used at 70/75 IF you follow the instructions for the increased tire pressure over the label rating. And, please don't get bias ply (so 1960s)! The ST radials are superior in all respects except cost. LT truck tires are an even better choice, with much higher speed ratings than ST tires. -- Eric Greenwell - USA - "A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1 I have inquired about LT tires and found them unavailable in the size used by Cobra. After all, they are light TRUCK tires. Tom |
#18
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
On 4/29/2021 7:58 PM, 2G wrote:
On Thursday, April 29, 2021 at 12:34:19 PM UTC-7, Eric Greenwell wrote: On 4/29/2021 9:49 AM, BG wrote: Trailer tires are designed for stability. They are 6 ply bias treads and run inflated to 50-60 psi. All this to minimize sway caused from side wall flexing. Not all normal tire stores carry these, you will need to shop around. Don't be tempted to use normal car tires, unless you never want to drive at highway speeds, the risk is too high. I have Cobra trailer with a DG 800b pulled by a Range Rover sport with low profile tires and can drive all day at 75mph with no problems at all with sway. I use to pull the same trailer with a 4 Runner with high profile radial tires, nearly have multiple accidents with sway problems, I was lucky. Buzz Graves "Highway speeds"? 60, 70, 80? ST tires are generally not rated for 80, but some can be used at 70/75 IF you follow the instructions for the increased tire pressure over the label rating. And, please don't get bias ply (so 1960s)! The ST radials are superior in all respects except cost. LT truck tires are an even better choice, with much higher speed ratings than ST tires. -- Eric Greenwell - USA - "A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1 I have inquired about LT tires and found them unavailable in the size used by Cobra. After all, they are light TRUCK tires. Tom I'm using Yokohama LT 195/75R, which are plentiful. My advice was also intended for other countries, as they may have a wider selection of LT tires than we do. -- Eric Greenwell - USA - "A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1 |
#19
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
On 4/29/2021 7:58 PM, 2G wrote:
On Thursday, April 29, 2021 at 12:34:19 PM UTC-7, Eric Greenwell wrote: On 4/29/2021 9:49 AM, BG wrote: Trailer tires are designed for stability. They are 6 ply bias treads and run inflated to 50-60 psi. All this to minimize sway caused from side wall flexing. Not all normal tire stores carry these, you will need to shop around. Don't be tempted to use normal car tires, unless you never want to drive at highway speeds, the risk is too high. I have Cobra trailer with a DG 800b pulled by a Range Rover sport with low profile tires and can drive all day at 75mph with no problems at all with sway. I use to pull the same trailer with a 4 Runner with high profile radial tires, nearly have multiple accidents with sway problems, I was lucky. Buzz Graves "Highway speeds"? 60, 70, 80? ST tires are generally not rated for 80, but some can be used at 70/75 IF you follow the instructions for the increased tire pressure over the label rating. And, please don't get bias ply (so 1960s)! The ST radials are superior in all respects except cost. LT truck tires are an even better choice, with much higher speed ratings than ST tires. -- Eric Greenwell - USA - "A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1 I have inquired about LT tires and found them unavailable in the size used by Cobra. After all, they are light TRUCK tires. Tom What size tires does your trailer use? What is it's weight with the glider? Did you also look for C type tires? I just found out those are similar to LT tires, but with higher load ratings for a given size, and was told that's what Cobra now provides with their trailers. -- Eric Greenwell - USA - "A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1 |
#20
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Two Seat Cobra Trailer Tire Replacement
On my last Cobra trailer I found my tires were old, and the standard wheels were not very attractive either. I measured up the lug nut hole pattern and ordered a couple of new wheels with the same bolt pattern, but in a wider and larger diameter wheel size. I think I went from a 13 inch wheel to a 15 inch. Check for clearance with the fender first of course.
Then I ordered 2 new Michelin car tires. Got it all on eBay for about $300. Had a local tire shop mount and balance them. Kept one of the original as a spare. It looked a lot better, and rode a lot better too. The larger outside diameter rides over bumps and holes smoother. The total load on the tires, weight of the trailer and glider, is well within the load limit of the tires. Sway was no issue. Driving down the highway at 70 MPH there was little worry about a trailer tire blowout. |
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