help with my drive tire choice

A computer engine should do better than a mechanical in most situations.

 

Been running Yokohama 703 drives and 101 steers for last couple years like them before that was running mich xda3 drives and xza3 steers for bunch of years and just couldn't justify michs prices anymore.

 

heavyhauler, so Mike says he will definitely buy some of those 703ZL's again. He's got 40% tread left and has put 250,000 miles on them. His truck VNL 780 got great fuel mileage with them 6.5+ driving avg 70mph interstate with light loads pulling dry van, plus idle time. They look almost identical to Bridgestone M726 - that's why I wouldn't try them. The M726's never did wear right for me..

 

The Roadmaster tires that the TA/Petro sells for $2,999 out the door look identical to the M726 as well. So much so that I even took compareable pics once.

 

The compounds they use or how they reinforce the shoulder is where the difference will be. The appearance of the tread is copied because it sells tires to the B/stone guys looking for a cheaper alternative.

On the other side of the coin, a B/stone sales guy told me the funny wear on the shoulder of the tire was Peterbilts fault for how the axle flexes. Funny, right smack at the top of Bridgestones literature marketing the new B/stone M710 Ecopia is print of how they reworked the shoulders so they would NOT wear like that. Sales guy did not have a response.

 

Cowpie posted this a while ago. It's a rr calculator it does retreads too. http://locator.michelintruck.com/RRListings.aspx

 

When I ran Michelin XDE M/S* drives and XZE2 steers, I'd send them back to a Michelin facility to be capped with the XDE M/S tread. I only had an issue with 1 tire in 4 years...tread blocks started flying off from the center section of tread. The shoulders remained intact, though, and the tire held pressure and stayed together until I got to where the load was going. I pulled the defective tire off and drove the truck home where I had another tire to put on. This was a 2nd capping of that case, and the affected section of tread was between 2 previous repairs.

I have no problem having my own cases capped...but I'm just not sure I'd trust somebody else's cases that I couldn't be 100% certain hadn't been abused. Michelin facilities do a pretty good (and thorough) inspection, though, so they ought to be more reliable than the cheap caps a lot of fleets use.

 

just because it is all highway miles means nothing. In fact you have more chances slinging a cap running highway speeds as that's when the tire is its hottest and has the beat chance to heat the rubber glue comp used to mount the cap to the casing.

Now you don't want to hear you get what you pay for so I will put it this way. A cap Is like walking in to vegas with a grand in hand and walking out with that grand in the morning. Its a gamble short and sweet....would I run them heck no. Before I put caps on I would buy a cheaper vigin that if it goes wont hurt as much. I have ran every brand of tire you could thank of. currently running 8 double coin drives with mich xza1 plus steers which will be replaced soon I hope with xze 2 but I am getting as good wear on these as I did with the mich xdn2 I had before and as the firestone drives we put on at the same time on the other. come to think about the firestones are wearing faster. half price always sounds good and some people have all the luck with caps. I left trucking for 2 years and went to a tire shop and got to see a tri axle put all recaps on his rig and 2 years later came in to get new ones only because the casings where about to be outdated for recapping again...lol so its you gamble And no matter what best of luck. If you go caps I hope you have the better luck and If you do great I will not be mad about it. I will be happy for you....

 

did you work for UPS at some point....lol that's what they run and do. xze steers than capped xde m/s which for those who don't know the M/S is mud and snow...lol