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Old 07-31-2019, 04:44 PM   #1
Mini-Skoolie
 
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tires

I need to buy six 11rX22.5 tires. I have no idea what I should be looking for. Whether to buy them locally or is there a good place to have them shipped from and change them myself. What spec's should I look for? Different tires on rear than front?
'77 Gillig with 855 Cummins big cam. It's heavy.

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Old 07-31-2019, 05:32 PM   #2
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Shop around. I've found good prices locally and sometimes truckstops will have tires on sale. I'd expect *Good* name brand tires at around $300-400 each. I run typical steer tires on the front, open shoulder drive tires on the back (on a tandem axle that does a lot of parking lot and city street turning, the shoulders will wear faster so for a use like that I'll switch to a closed shoulder design).


Most tire shops will insist on valve stem replacement with new tires. Balancing is sorta up to you, I rarely do on big vehicles, others swear by it.
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Old 07-31-2019, 07:07 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brad_SwiftFur View Post
Shop around. I've found good prices locally and sometimes truckstops will have tires on sale. I'd expect *Good* name brand tires at around $300-400 each. I run typical steer tires on the front, open shoulder drive tires on the back (on a tandem axle that does a lot of parking lot and city street turning, the shoulders will wear faster so for a use like that I'll switch to a closed shoulder design).


Most tire shops will insist on valve stem replacement with new tires. Balancing is sorta up to you, I rarely do on big vehicles, others swear by it.

balance the steers for sure.. drives its up to you.. if its not a huge expense, why not.. ive done balance beads and weights.. balance neads seemed to work great in my DEV bus.. in my superior they FUBARd the balance more than ever and now it has weights....
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Old 07-31-2019, 11:49 PM   #4
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I just bought new steer tires, Michelins 1100x22.5 at Petro Truck Stop and it ran about $1300 if you want the best, otherwise pick your favorite brand, HO-CHI-MINS are ok for rear but I want good tires on front, if you ask they will put beads in them so they are balanced for life of tires. sportyrick
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Old 08-01-2019, 06:57 AM   #5
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Originally Posted by sportyrick View Post
I just bought new steer tires, Michelins 1100x22.5 at Petro Truck Stop and it ran about $1300 if you want the best, otherwise pick your favorite brand, HO-CHI-MINS are ok for rear but I want good tires on front, if you ask they will put beads in them so they are balanced for life of tires. sportyrick



another brand not to forget is Uniroyal if you are looking for name brand, they are a division of Michelin and i got mine 3 years ago for much less than michelins.. so far so good.. that bus ive only run about 20k on but the tires have been great.. I rarely ever have to add air to any of them.
-Christopher
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Old 08-01-2019, 07:47 AM   #6
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A few additional things may prove useful.

You may find more options if you switch from the 11R to a more commonly available size. You'll have to confirm but I think you might would be looking at 275/80R22.5.

The front tires must always be "steer tires." The back tires can be steer or drive.

If doing all highway driving, get OTR (over the road) tires. If planning to do a lot of mudding, consider "terrain" tires (make more noise on the highway).

You will find plenty of debate online about 'expensive' vs. 'cheap' tires, balancing vs beads, and most everything in between.

If you've got the tools and know how to change these massive tires, go for it yourself. If you've never done it.... well... it will be a learning experience!!
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Old 08-01-2019, 08:28 AM   #7
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Tires

Thank you guys, all this info helps. Even just hearing the terminology helps. I had never heard of the beads.
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Old 08-01-2019, 11:25 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JDOnTheGo View Post
...You may find more options if you switch from the 11R to a more commonly available size. You'll have to confirm but I think you might would be looking at 275/80R22.5.

The front tires must always be "steer tires." The back tires can be steer or drive....

I dunno, the 11R22.5 is a *VERY* common tire size on big trucks. Not sure how much more common you can get.


On the front you can either use steer tires or "all position" tires. Using "drive" tires on the front, while legal, is not recommended (I would only do this on an urgent, temporary basis) and *NEVER* put a recap/retread on the steer axle.
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Old 08-01-2019, 11:37 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brad_SwiftFur View Post
I dunno, the 11R22.5 is a *VERY* common tire size on big trucks. Not sure how much more common you can get.


On the front you can either use steer tires or "all position" tires. Using "drive" tires on the front, while legal, is not recommended (I would only do this on an urgent, temporary basis) and *NEVER* put a recap/retread on the steer axle.
+1


11R22.5 are fairly common on school buses as well. That is what I am running on my Bluebird.

275/80R22.5 are what I run on my pickup.

I am with Brad NEVER put recaps on your steer. I run recaps on my drives and have had good luck with them.
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Old 08-01-2019, 11:45 AM   #10
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tires

Yea, I want no part of caps. I figure the cost of one roadside service to replace one would pay for the difference between caps and new, not to mention the inconvenience and even danger.
I actually wired up a Bandag plant in Yreka Ca in my youth. They told me they had some secret proprietary system that resulted in superior caps.
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Old 08-01-2019, 12:16 PM   #11
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Yea, I want no part of caps. I figure the cost of one roadside service to replace one would pay for the difference between caps and new, not to mention the inconvenience and even danger.
I actually wired up a Bandag plant in Yreka Ca in my youth. They told me they had some secret proprietary system that resulted in superior caps.

I've had good luck with recaps. The government wouldn't allow them if they were in any way unsafe. In many cases you'll get better quality control since *EVERY* recap is (supposed to be) thoroughly inspected, where new tires only like 1 in 10 gets checked. Reputable recap makers stand behind their tires - Bandag will replace any tire on which the tread separates.


The main thing that kills tires - recaps or new - is heat. That's a leading cause of tread separation on recaps and tire failures/blowouts. Low/flat tires flex more, generating more heat, which ultimately can lead to a blowout.
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Old 08-01-2019, 01:02 PM   #12
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I live close to I-10 and I see the results of what heat does to caps every time I drive on it. Here in the Sonoran desert where I live heat is to be taken seriously.
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Old 08-01-2019, 02:38 PM   #13
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Number One preventative measure to take is keeping the rubber properly inflated to manufacturer's spex.
I prefer flirting with the top-end sidewall psi rating: less rolling resistance, marginally better fuel economy, less heat generation.
Caveat emptor: may make for a lumpier ride, howeva...
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Old 08-01-2019, 02:41 PM   #14
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Are you sure that your Gillig uses 11R22.5 tires? That seems small for a heavy bus. What does your manufacturer's data plate inside say (it's the one that specifies the bus's tire sizes and axle weight ratings)? I use 12R22.5, as do many other Crowns and Gilligs. Do not go smaller, i.e. lower weight capacity; if you were to be inspected by DOT and they saw smaller tires, that would be A Big Problem for you.

I recently bought six Yokohama 104ZR for my bus to replace the Michelin XZE that were aged out and cracking - it's the only 12R22.5 made by Yokohama, and I'm very happy with them.

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Old 08-01-2019, 02:52 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wireguy View Post
Yea, I want no part of caps. I figure the cost of one roadside service to replace one would pay for the difference between caps and new, not to mention the inconvenience and even danger.
I actually wired up a Bandag plant in Yreka Ca in my youth. They told me they had some secret proprietary system that resulted in superior caps.
I worked in a tire recapping business one time - I was surprised to learn that the aircraft industry had less blow outs on landing with casings that had been recapped once or twice than they had on brand new tires - I used to run recaps on my one ton on duals - specifically with the 'Suburban' tread - never had better traction in snow or ice before or since - I consistently got over 100,000 miles on them before they started 'losing their grip' - I was very often severely over loaded on the truck as well, and I've never been shy about pressing down on the gas peddle when I'm going somewhere - never did lose a band or have a blowout - the style of retread we used in the shop I worked at had thin rubber that covered all the scratch marks that were made on the casings during the process of removing the old rubber - they looked nicer to the eye than the Bandag types you see on larger vehicles because they don't cover the marks made in preparation
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Old 08-10-2019, 08:33 PM   #16
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If you do a lot of OTR driving and little cold weather driving you might even consider Super singles on the rear. You would need 455 22.5 not the 445 22.5. You would also need 0 of set wheels, they ride great, Carry a big load with less weight.
They suck on ice though.
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Old 08-10-2019, 10:01 PM   #17
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tires

OK, I just bought 6 new Ameristeel tires 11RX22.5 for about 338 each, 259 for mounting and balancing and 49 for tire disposal. There was 300 difference between new and caps for the drivers and for 300 I'm going with new all the way around.

There is this other tire company up the road. New tires, used tires, truck tires, farm equipment tires. My wife called them twice and told them what we wanted. She is real nice and professional. They called back after the first call and she reminded them that we were looking for six tires. "OK I get back to you." Never heard from them again. Business must be good.
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Old 08-10-2019, 10:01 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sportyrick View Post
I just bought new steer tires, Michelins 1100x22.5 at Petro Truck Stop and it ran about $1300 if you want the best, otherwise pick your favorite brand, HO-CHI-MINS are ok for rear but I want good tires on front
And right you are... Some examples of heavier vehicles blowing steer tires...







And this is what you do to keep control in such situations...

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Old 08-11-2019, 10:47 AM   #19
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Be careful purchasing tires that seem to be a good deal. Especially, from vendors who don't cycle through much inventory. It is likely the tires are of old stock and could be a few years old, so check the tires date code.

The Bridgestone tires on my Crown have like new looking tread but the tires are more than 12 years old according to the date code and the School maintenance records which showed date of purchase (this was another way I confirmed it was used as a backup Bus). I noticed very small cracks in the sidewall from age but that was after we drove it back 1800 miles from CA.

We plan on replacing the tires after the conversion is completed.
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Old 08-11-2019, 11:02 AM   #20
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Originally Posted by GWRider View Post
Be careful purchasing tires that seem to be a good deal. Especially, from vendors who don't cycle through much inventory. It is likely the tires are of old stock and could be a few years old, so check the tires date code.

The Bridgestone tires on my Crown have like new looking tread but the tires are more than 12 years old according to the date code and the School maintenance records which showed date of purchase (this was another way I confirmed it was used as a backup Bus). I noticed very small cracks in the sidewall from age but that was after we drove it back 1800 miles from CA.

We plan on replacing the tires after the conversion is completed.
Aye, my truck has 15 year old tires that look nearly new. Always check dates.
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