12,320 on steers....

Iowa DOT has taken to reading tire ratings, especially the scales on I380 south of Waterloo. We've had two trucks ticketed for exceeding tire rating in the last two months.

 

Slide the trailer tandems three or four holes forward thus transferring about 1,200 lbs from the fifth wheel to the trailer. Since your fifth wheel is already way forward, the effect on the steers will be maximized. My guess is that your trailer will be 33,650, your drives 31,000, and your steers 11,590.

 

Missouri has been writing for over the tire rating as well...at the west end of I-70.

 

I'm not saying they're overly anal-retentive, but if his superiors can drive a toothpick up his ### with a sledgehammer, a 'Smurf' is sent in for retraining!

 

I am going to thow a totally different thought at you...

FIX YOUR 5TH WHEEL!

Get the #### thing loosened up, get it sliding, do what you have to do, it will be a lot easier than fighting a ticket I promise you, and your truck if over on this load, will be over on another load.

Why put off something that is nessasary?

Sure you could squeak by, sure you might get away with it, but what you are talking about isnt that hard to fix.

Put your landing gear down, dump your air and rock it gently, it will come lose, run it all the way back and forth a few times, then slop some grease on there and it will be good to go.

 

What brand tires are you using that make a 16ply LP 24.5? The only brand I found was Continental. Michelin, BFGoodrich, Bridestone, Firestone, General don't make a heavy LP.

 

A quistion too my mind is how much fuel is on board , you can dump some fuel too get legal too, just wondering Everett.

 

The weight chart is for state highways. Interstate and US highways is 20,000 lbs. on steers. Some states are higher. Maryland is the only state that has a law that the tire rating must be followed. None of the other states do and can be challenged in court by a brave trucker with money. Though it's common sense, DOT officers are stepping outside their boundries.

The law is covered under Title 23, USC, 127

If there was an exception to the tire rating clause it would be in the book and it's not except for Maryland.

Tire ratings keep the manufacturer safe. Tires can actually handle alot more. When you go downhill as much as 3,000 lbs shifts to the steers.

Though I wouldn't want to challenge the DOT, I would like to see it in writing what they are writing tickets for.

If you have a Pete 387, most have 7150 lbs. tires on the front. I beat one rookie DOT already that took me outside to prove a point. Lol, he learned something that day. 14,000 was okay.

 

Had to go to Michelin's site... I could have sworn that 24.5 LP had a higher rating than what the current tires show (and the 11R24.5 higher yet.) I'm thinking I was ok up to around 13,000 or thereabouts. It has been a year or two...

There are heavy LPs available in 275/70R22.5 and 295/60R22.5 ; the latter good for 14,400# (only on 9" wheels) and the former for 13,880# . If I remember right there's a 305/75R24.5 LR J as well. The data book is available on Michelin's site as a PDF if you want to download it.