spread axle

He could have put the wrong one on. They have two, open or closed.

 

When I had my spread axle step deck I was lucky to get 1 1/2 years outa a set of trailer tires because of the scrub... I had a dump valve (it dumped the rear axle) but when I had a FULL load it realy wouldn't put all the weight on 1 axle.. I still had quite a bit on the "dumped" axle" ... AND that axle with all the weight on it now was way over weight and the tires were squatted out bad.. No time to be pushing your luck and trying to ride up on a curb or somthing... you just might blow that sidewall a lot easier with all that weight on it...

YES, I love spreads, I had to have one, I couldn't get enough weight on my steers.. I could never gross out my weight to 80K... untill I got my spread. Mind you even though you have a spread you cannot go over 80K unless the state you are in allows you to and you are registered for it...
Another FYI about a spread:
It is different learning to back a spread.. It turns differently..

 

WOW! You only got 1 1/2 years out of tires? I got alittle over 3 on mine, roughly 225-250,000 miles.

 

What brand of trailer? The reason I ask is a weak trailer won't carry the load on one axle. Had a 48' benson that was so weak the bottoms of the rear mudflaps melted dragging the road everytime the axle was dumped. Also if you don't have big enough suspension you'll bottom out the front axle with the extra load and it won't recover enough to take any weight off the rear. We have an East 4 axle flat with HT230 suspension on the rear 2 axles (23k) when you lifted the front 2 to turn the tiny rear suspension would never pick the load up. We ended up doing what Les2 did and put 3 airbags per axle to compensate. That made all the difference in the world, might do it to another trailer soon.

 

what measures do u take to extend the life of ur tires? can u flip the tires over on the rim? do u just rotate? i'm still trying to figure out the 2x different size tires on the spread

 

i'm going to try to have a new valve put on this week,i think it's causing premature wearing on the trailer tires.

 

Well other than the stuff I'm sure you already know like make as few sharp turns as you can, there isn't much more you can do. If you buy new tires make sure you specify their for a spread. You need a closed shoulder with a hard rubber compound so they are less likely to chunk out. As far as the 2 tire sizes I think whoever the previous owner was just did that because that's what they had. There really isn't any other reason to do it.

Also like Les said, they have 2 "normally open" and "Normally closed" valves. Just describes how the valve is with no power. For a normal rear axle dump valve you need "normally open" so it allows air to the bags with no power and dumps with power.

 

i was thinking the rear taller tires would allow less drag on the front of the spread. i also have a couple of good questions for u guys. 1.) where is the grease fitting for the cruise control on a 379 2.) what components of the 379 are connected to the 3x fittings on the plate under the hood. 3.)does anyone have a problem with their power steering leaking on a 3406e model

 

IIRC, the 3 fittings go to the clutch. It's been a few years since I've greased a truck though.

 

Deffinately go with a closed shouldered tire. I put 8 new continental HSRs on last year and they are all holding up well. Nice even wear. They are designed as a steer tire, but many guys use them on spreads too.

Anyone who has put open shouldered lug tread drive tires on their spread knows firrst hand how fast they chunk out.