Ok, so a bit of background. We recently towed our 5th wheel from Ontario to Alberta and back for a wonderful 3 week vacation. Total of about 9300 kms. Trailer is a Grand Design Reflection 28BH and it weighs in at 11,300lbs. Both slides are on the driver side and the larger slide has the dinette and fridge in it. Upon arriving in Alberta, I noticed that the right rear tire had significantly uneven wear to it as seen in the pic below.


right rear tire

Based on this wear, I knew it wouldn't last all the way home and replaced the tire in Alberta and we completed our trip. Once home I measured the axles and they do not appear bent based on the measurements or by eye. The front axle tires are wearing evenly, although the driver side is slightly more worn due to the weight of the slides on that side (3/32 remaining on left side and 5/32 remaining on right). The left rear tire is wearing similarly to the original original right rear tire, although not nearly as quickly as I made it home and there are still 2/32 to the wear bar on the inside tread and 3/32 on the outside tread. The new tire is still wearing unevenly with 4/32 on the inside and 5/32 on the outside.

What are some other things I can check to determine what may be causing the issue? The trailer tows straight behind the truck and doesn't wander. The tanks were empty with the exception of fresh water which was about 40 gallons and it is centered over the axles in the middle of the trailer. The original tires now have about 16,000kms on them and the new tire has about 4000 kms on it. brakes and bearings were serviced/repacked in the spring.

Thanks.

 

We bought a 32' travel trailer as our first RV and towed it from GA to Seattle WA and back (6000+ miles) one summer. About 1000 miles from home on the way back home we stopped at a rest stop for the night. I was doing my usual walk around and noticed the rear tires of the trailer were severely worn on the inside a bit worse than yours. This was on both tires on that axle though, not just one.

I put the stabilizers down, removed the tires and put them in the back of the truck. The next morning I was the first customer in line at the nearest tire shop and paid a handsome price for two tires to be mounted. This gave us peace in thinking about the remaining 1000 miles to home.

Once home, I diagnosed the issue as a bent axle likely from being overloaded when the previous owner still had the trailer. I replaced the axle in my driveway and everything was good after that for many thousands of miles later.

Your problem may be a bent axle, but since only one side is wearing abnormally, maybe not. What about alignment or straightness of the axles and wheels? Are the pressures within specifications as noted by the GCVW of the trailer?

Based on the image, it appears you do not have a "Correct Trac" system. There are videos and how to's out there that show how to check the alignment if you care to look into it. Check your spare for serviceability and pressure before heading out again if you do before the abnormal wear issue is resolved.

The best advice I can offer is to avoid a RV service center if possible. Most of them leave A LOT to be desired and are a hassle to deal with. Not all of them, but a shameful amount. At least down south of you in the states.

I hope this helps or at least gives you some ideas.

 

You simply need to take it to a trailer alignment shop. Without professional measuring equipment there is no way to measure what is wrong.

My guess - it needs an alignment. Most do when there is bad tire wear.

 

I can be one of two things, camber or tow in. Both are from a bent axle.
Me personally I would look at a couple of new axles and springs heavier than what you have.

Denny

 

I tend to agree with Sous...at least learn the process for alignment so when you go to a shop you'll have an idea if suggested remedies make sense. Or you may decide to take on the corrective action yourself.

Our fiver camper had weird tire wear until I installed morryde x-factor. I feel those leaf spring brackets need some reinforcement.

 

I looked up the receipt for the axle I bought and installed. It was purchased in January of 2016 from Sturdy Built Trailer Parts out of Palmetto FL. They had exactly what I needed for the best price.

If you decide to fix the issue yourself once you identify it, shop around because E-Trailer is not what it used to be.

Lastly, I installed the X-Factor cross bars mentioned by '65Ford last summer on our current 5th wheel before a 5,500 mile trip and they seem to be worth the cost.

 

Thanks for the replies so far. I am looking into a cross brace solution, whether it is mor-ryde or a custom welded solution. I will also check out the correct trac system.

I have another short trip this season and then I will see about taking it to a trailer shop for an alignment check. The trailer does have an extended warranty, but I want to know what the issue is before I take it in to be dealt with. I wonder if they will allow me to pay the difference for beefier axles if it turns out that is the problem?

 

A couple of years ago I noticed the same wear on a single tire after a 900 or so mile trip to Florida. We had just traveled 4000 miles a few months before and all seemed fine then. I changed the tire for the spare at the camp site and drove it back home the next week. The new tire looked ok when I got back but I took it in anyway. They said that the hub was a little loose and the tire had a little play in it. Right before I left for the 4000 mile trip I took it in and had all the yearly stuff done to it, part of which was greasing the hubs. I figure that they just didn't tighten it correctly and there was likely some wear after the longer 4000 mile trip but I didn't notice it. Since they have tightened it back I haven't had any issues since and I have put about 3500 miles on it. Anyway, maybe just check for play in the wheel?

Oh yeah, and I also added the Moryde Crossmember to mine earlier this year. I would liked to have added 3 of them but there are various things that are too low for me to install the crossmember so I just added 1 at the center of the tandem axles.

 

I had a rear axle tire that looked exactly like that on my fifth wheel. Took it to a HD truck/RV alignment center. It had camber AND toe-in issues. They adjusted to axle and we are now getting even wear.

 

Trailer axles are bent, they're not straight. They have a bit of a frown to them. The idea is they flatten out when loaded. They could be overloaded, causing the inside of the tire to wear out quicker. Is the trailer towing nice and level? If nose high, that could cause the rear axle to be loaded too heavy and cause uneven tire wear.

 

All the bent axles on contractors trailers Ive seen over the years had tires that looked like that.

But not all tires Ive seen like that, had bent axles.

You can thank me for shedding light on the subject now..

 

Or a bent spring. My rear axle tires looked worn like that and then I replaced the springs on that axle.. My kitchen slide has over 1,000lbs more on the driver's side. My axles are rated for the weight but not unevenly distributed like it is.
As soon as I get back to civilization I'm installing 8k axles with disc brakes and 4k lb springs on the passenger side and 4500lb springs on the driver's side.

 

Trailer is setup perfectly level and I'm running Sumo Springs as well. Even before the Sumos, the springs still had a good amount of curve to them. They are 5200lb axles and the load on them is about 8800lbs between the two of them, so not overloaded as they should still have about 1600lbs of capacity.

Thanks so much... I feel much better. LOL

I have an appointment at a trailer frame and alignment shop in a couple weeks, so we will see what they have to say about the matter. I will update this thread once I know more.

 

Well, just thought I would resurrect this thread to put some closure to it. The shop I had an appointment at for alignment had a fire 2 days before my appointment last fall so I wasn't able to get an alignment done. Over the course of the winter I managed to find the next closest shop that does trailer alignments is about a 2 hr drive away so I waited until spring to get an appointment. I finally went in 2 weeks ago and as suspected by most, the axle is bent, in fact both axles are bent. Front axle has a Toe of -0.31 degrees and the rear axle a total toe of -0.81 degrees.

Long story short, I ordered a couple of new axle beams, swapped the brakes and hubs over and reinstalled everything. Hopefully these last longer than the factory ones!