Quote:
Originally Posted by Justfishin73
If going to 16s, does a guy have to replace the axle? 14' bass boat
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If you only have a 14’ then 16s are overkill i think. They are better for sure but it depends on what kind of trips you take, and depends on the weight of your boat.
Heres where i would start;
- check the weight of your axle on the trailer plate. Then compare to the weight of your trailer, boat/motor, and any gear/fuel you have. If youre over your axle weight max load then that may be part of the problem. Ps there will be 2 numbers, axle max and trailer max. Check the axle max.
- find out what kind of tire you have right now which will give you the bolt spacing/pattern for your tire. Then you can talk to a tire place and see what type of a max size radial you can currently get on it. (Assuming your axle is good for how you travel weight with your boat)
Im no mechanical expert but i personally was over my weight, and only by about 300 pounds or so with my old set up. But i was also taking a round trip of 1800 km per year to one spot we go to. Plus all the small trips. Close to 4000-5000km per year. And even when using the better plys like the A - C class ply(dont remember which was better, but i was using the most expensive) i think it was, they were getting eaten(almost a pair a year). Like i said maybe i would have been ok if i was under my weight limits and drove at 90km/h, but it was wearing unevenly inside to outside. As well as i think the speed i was towing - around 110km/h or so.
If this is a long term trailer i would find a way to get 13-14” radials and make sure i was within my axle weight. If you dont make a lot of kms per year, or are thinking about new trailer within next 5 years then maybe not worth it. When i bought 3 16” tires, 2500 pound axle, and needed new fenders it was about 1500 bucks. I went to city spring in edmonton.
Hope my essay helped. Haha, good luck my friend.