Tread wear on steers really bad - chewing outsides

What do you mean swap the tire? Rotate or get a new tire?

 

Thats what I would suggest rotate the tires side to side and see if it pulls the other way. If it does you know you have bad tire/tires.

 

I was going to suggest to catch the trucker that is chewing on your tire and hit him with your tire thumper.

 

If the tire sidewall says max psi for single application 105 or max psi for dual application 105 you need to air your tires down to 105. Check your air pressure every day in the morning before driving it at first light before the sun comes up (your tires can show 10psi difference if one tire is in the sun and the other in shade) and put it right on 105.

 

Does this truck have the hendrickson air-tek steer axle? That is the air ride axle. This is a really important question....

 

Could be frame is a little outta wack and have to go to someone who can adjust
the specs to make it work. Someone with some real experience.
Maybe bad shocks.
Might try centra-matics.
I've had that cupping problem before.
Was a combination of above plus 3 axel alignment.

 

Ok here goes....
the air-tek axle has some funky points to keep in mind. The ride height is absolutely critical. Too high or low and the toe goes way out of wack and it burns tires.

Vovle has an update out there to put a ride height control valve on each side. Get it put on! The ride height spec is 7 and 7/8ths of an inch plus or minus and 1/8 of an inch. This spec is next to impossible to measure without the special tool. But you measure from the top flange of the air bag to the bottom mounting flange of the airbag.

If you run this axle at uneven ride heights from side to side you will have uneven castor, camber and toe settings from side to side. Any tech who aligns one of these axles without setting the ride height first, don't let them go any farther. The special tool we have is just a piece of plastic that fits alongside the airbag that gives you a a very easy to understand visual if the height is good or bad.

Next to check is the wheel bearings. If you have the sealed units you need to jack the truck up and roll the tires. While the tire is rolling place your hand on the brake chamber and see if you can feel any kind of vibration. No vibration is good. Any little amount and the bearing is on its way out.

Chewing up the outside edge of the tread is a sign of high toe in. Cupping is balance or shocks.

By the way if rotating the tires cured the problem, its only temporary, it will be back. Don't believe me...take a tread depth gauge and measure across the face of each tire in several places side to side. You took a set of tires that were worn running downhill to one side and swapped them around. So now the uphill side is on the downhill force side. The wear is canceled out until the tire wears out going downhill and then the problem will be back.