super single tires

As far as getting stuck... I have only had traction problems in the same places I did when running duals.

In Vermont the other day, the guys with duals were chaining to get into a loading dock. I just rolled in on my wide singles.

 

Wider tires provide better traction only on dry pavement. You would especially not want to run one on a dump trailer. Get the load up in the air and blow a tire, on your side you go! And as for fuel economy making up for thinner tread? Sounds like it just counter acts which does not make it better by any means. I wouldn't use them.

 

I seem to have read where axle manufactures are offering axles designed wider for s-singles. I take it that this is a new option. But, if the truck and trailer are now spec'd properly the width of said truck or trailer should track just as wide. That's what I took from the article anyways....

 

Granted - that's why you want to ditch the wide tires on your Jeep in the desert.

On the other hand, my experience is that the locations I've had a momentary condition that needed a little work to get out of were no different for duals or wide singles. I run heavy, and I run my Michelins at the max cold pressure.

Not all tires are equal - that goes for duals or wide singles. A lot of carriers cheap out with XDN2's which have an abysmal rolling resistance = no fuel economy gain. XDAs however will get you as much as a 0.5 mpg increase depending on what you started with. Keep in mind that drives worn down to the minimum have a much lower rolling resistance (consequently better fuel economy) than the exact same tire when new.

 

Try running light on SS then see how much you like them, might as well be useing drag slicks. I was "Fully loaded 10,000lbs" going up a 7% grade on 2A in MA on 6" of snow with ice under it, got stuck had to be towed up. and there where guys pulling MT flat beds with duals going up just fine slow...but they where makeing it up. there where 8 trucks that where either stuck or jacknifed we ALL had SS and the guys with duals made it up with out a problem....



American Trucker

 

I did VT a few days ago up to St. Albans in that really heavy snowstorm - wide singles, empty. Made it just fine. Most of the guys who passed me on duals were either stuck in the snow or jack knifed.

Ever hear of something called a "chain?"

 

Ice under snow???


You should have parked it. If you have to go 10-15 mph, grade or not, you shouldn't be driving.

 

We over here at Conway Truckload(Former CFI) have been running them since 2005(and now all of our trucks are equiped),I for one will tell you that there are Pro's to Super Singles and only 1 con(yep only 1),well maybe 2

The Pro's:
Fuel Mileage-its a proven fact in our fleet that over a broad spectrum of drivers(their skill levels and abilities) that our fleet mpg has constantly been near 1 mpg(yearly,2500+ drivers) better than duals

Tire Wear: We are and have been getting near 100,000 miles more service out of a single tire compared to a dual set it replaced

Weight: weight savings is 830 lbs per axle=1660 lbs less gvw(for truck) and 3300lbs for truck and trailer if both equipped(which 90% of our fleet is now)

Cost: Less tires to buy every year,this is upfront and in the advent of a used tire less tire to dispose of(I.E. EPA costs of disposal)

Cons:

Flature and simple,blow a tire get stopped soon as possible,if not the rim is pretty much toast
We have national accounts for our tires,is the advent for some reason a super single is not available they will be replaced(temporary) with a set of duals to get you to a terminal where you will be fixed.

Chaining up: Throwing steel usually bad enough,but with a SS you just cant block the inner and roll up,so you have to either drape and roll,or roll over the chain and then secure(Sidenote; there are separate chain up requirements for SS in Ca)

Now My Observations:
1.In the 5 plus years I have been rolling on SS I have only 1 flat on truck(bolt in a yard,and the tire was plugged and then i ran the thing till it was not compliant)
1 trailer tire,i had a load of Budwieser and yes i did ruin the rim(was doin65+ at the time) and didnt get stopped quick enough,and at no time was their a problem with load stability.Was repaired in 2.5 hrs

My first truck equipped with SS was a 2005 T-600,I traded it in at 317,000 miles,4 months prior to that i had the SS replaced as they were out of DOT compliance

The way i see it,8 less headaches to deal with everyday,DOT likes them because they are very "cut&dry" about inspections,easy to work around and see brakes and such behind them as they are spaced out off the frame farther than a dual,rarely if ever do I ever get "uneven wear" or scalloping ,manage the tires and they will reward you with great service

Ride: well really that depends on the truck,The T-600 i had rode like crap b4 I had SS,rode less crappy after i had SS
My currentt ride is a FreightLiner Cascadia ,Much better riding truck all around and yes it has SS

Conclusion: Am I saying run out and plunk down your hard earned money and change ,,,NO but if you havent run them just dont be a "Naysayer" cause of something you might have herd (say on the CB,Truckstop etc...) call a major company who runs them and ask the Maint Mgr for their perspective,might be surprised what real facts loook like compared to "well I herd this about them"

 

I like them, only got stuck once on a solid sheet of inclined ice with them in a parking lot...Had a tire hanging over edge of lot which may have been the only reason I couldn't move, I'll never know...Other than that, I think they drive good...

 

That wasn't so with my company. I've been told that our trailers were spec'ed for the supers. We've been running them since the 1990's and we even compared the two with duels. The singles were wider. That's one of the good points with running them on tankers. I wouldn't want them on any OTR truck just because of the availability and if you have a flat you're stuck. But on a gasoline truck that does business all day long in town you can't beat them.

The reason we and many other gasoline companies went to them are mainly for two reasons. The tire makes the center of gravity lower and the weight savings. The COG might save a couple of roll-overs but the weight issue is where they make their money. If you can save 200lbs which is possible on a 4 axle trailer and a 4 axle truck then you can load about an extra 30 or so gallons per load. Times that by 12 then by 365 and you've hauled an extra 131400 gallons for the year. That's an extra 10 loads the company gets paid back.

As far as traction goes there's not much snow or ice in Las Vegas but I can tell you it's like ice when it rains for the first time after a long dry spell. With all the oil and junk built up on the road it's just like ice and you've got more problems with the drivers that don't know. I haven't noticed much difference in the duels vs the singles because they both lost traction very easily when you're empty and when you're loaded you're very heavy. Once we got ABS our problems with the slick streets went away. So I'd go with the singles in town and never OTR.