tires - Big singles vs standard duals

We have run SS now for over 4 years. We have never damaged a rim due to blow outs and blowouts are VERY rare.

 

Go to a local T/A and look in the tire junkyard at all the super single in there. Most of them still have the beat and ate to crap rim with what is left of the tire. It doesn't matter if you run super singles or duals you are going to have blowouts. The only difference I can see between the two is like I have stated before with duals you are not stuck in a hazardous situation as you would be with super singles. Duals you can get on down the road as with super singles you are stuck and can not go any further with out causing alot of damage.

 

This blowout concern is not that much of a deal. I have been at this for 30 years, and have NEVER had a drive tire blowout. I have had flats, sure, but blowouts? If one is meticulous about checking air pressures frequently, checking for damage to tires, watching for uneven wear patterns...... you know, the things one is supposed to do when they pre-trip a truck, then the odds of a blowout are so slim as to be almost non-existent. And I have driven above the Arctic Circle for several years, and traversed the hot deserts a lot of years, and just about everything in between. I stick my tires and run my hands over the tread surface looking for anything that may be wrong each and every morning as part of a pre-trip. I don't just walk around in a daze and just see if they still look aired up. Hardly adds much to my time in checking things out. Trailers are another story, but they belong to the carrier. That is the only blowouts I have ever had... on trailers.

I am running wide based on my truck. I like the ride. I like the ease of checking tires and inflation. Traction can be an issue with the standard fleet wide based tires, but the Michelin XDN2's I have on are not a problem. Sure, they have a little more rolling resistance, but they still offer better rolling resistance overall than running duals and fuel mileage is good. And I also have what 95% of trucks on the road do not have.... full lockers in both drive axles so when the need arises, I have all four hubs going to work. If you use a balancing product with them, rotate them on a regular basis, and run proper air pressures, wide based will do a fine job and give good life cycles.

But, not all are comfortable with them, and I can understand that. I love it that we have choices we are free to make one way or the other.

 

In the begining I hated them--but things have changed--we just got 4 new multi unit trailers in recently---(lots of changes round here lately)the new trailers ans single set-ups are MUCH better--first off the manufacturers have lengthened the axles so the tires now actually come out to the edge of the trailer where they belong--and I must say they ride very nicely--even heavy--and I always am! LOL Second the new ones come with(at least these danes do--might be a spec option don't know) an air pressure system--there is a braided line that runs out of the wheel hub--constantly keeping air pressure regulated in all 4 tires--there is also an amber check lite (like early abs lites)on the front of the wagon just above TK indicators--that warns you of a low tire!
of course time will tell--but let's just say I don't hate em as much as I used to!
Just my $.02

 

Did you know that the earth could be impacted by a big meteor in Feb ? Yes its true...
http://theextinctionprotocol.wordpr...pacted-by-large-asteroid-february-15-16-2013/

Another one predicted on April of 2029 (just in case the 1st big one misses us)
http://phys.org/news2505.html


This is what I think about when someone begin talking about "What if".... Yea right, what if I get a blow out... This has to be the lamest excuse I've ever heard.
What if you blow a steer tire ? What if we get hit by a big old meteor ?

You buy a tire that suits your needs, not based on other peoples opinions, most of them speculative... No offense intended to anyone, but speculation is just that. And one or two peoples bad experiences still doesn't warrant not using a product when there are millions of wide base tires on the road at any given day. Personally I'm on my second set and personally I can't break traction (that I can notice) with a 525 N14 unless the roads are slick and I could do that with any dual just as easily.

Snow and ice ? I couldn't tell you with the latest set, but with my previous set... all I can say is while there were truck stuck going up Elk Mountain, I was buzzing by.. EMPTY on hard packed icy snow. Another unrealized fact, SS are 17.5" wide, where as dual tires are only 8" wide each. That 1.5" on each tire will give you 6" of more rubber on the ground. More rubber on the ground is better in my book.

Sorry if I sound so impatient about this topic, but after 8 yrs of hearing the same baseless arguments, I think I would have a better chance of getting hit by one of those meteors mentioned above then getting a blowout.

 

My last company truck had Super Singles (Michelin XDM2's) and I had zero traction problems for two years on them. That was running Flat/Stepdecks in 80/90/94 corridor all winter long. They wore like iron ,and still had at least a half inch of tread left when I turned the truck in.

I recently switched over from duals to Super Singles on my own truck. I went from Goodyear G362's on all aluminums to Goodyear G392SSD's on polished Accuride rims. I only saved about 300-400 lbs, but noticed the immediate increase in my fuel mileage. Traction hasn't been a problem on any wet surfaces so far. This will be my first winter on the SS's so I'll update my opinion of the traction later. I really don't expect any real problems. I have noticed that the ride has improved quite a bit since putting them on. I'd also be willing to bet the shock absorbers will work better/last longer, as all the weight that has been lost is unsprung weight. That's weight that has a direct impact on on the speed that the suspension reacts at.

The guys complaining about SS's not having any traction on snow and ice have usually been running something like Michelin XDA Energy's, that have very little in thje way of voids and blocks in the tread pattern. This is great for attaining low rolling resistance and long treadlife, but a tread pattern like that is going to have jack-squat for traction in snow & ice, regardless of being standard duals or super singles. SS or dual, you get the tire you need for your specific application, or you pay the price in performance, traction, lifespan, etc.

As for the question of being stranded by a blowout, I've had that happen with duals. It my be just my bad luck, but the two times I've blown a drive tire (both times on duals), they did enough damage that I was stuck on the side of the road anyways. Wouldn't have mattered if i had been running SS's or duals, I was gonna be stuck either way.

In addition, my Goodyear G392SSD's have a layer of sealant designed right in the casing. I could run over a bolt as big around as my thumb, and that goo will seal it up & let me keep on keepin' on. Anything that sealant won't handle is going to destroy any tire... dual, SS or whatever.

As stated by others, good preventative practices go a long way toward heading off any problems that might strand you on the side of the road. Regular tire pressure checks and inspections for damage or any foreign objects in the tread just make sense. All the money I pay for maintenance is out of my pocket. It affects my bottom line. You take care of your truck, or it won't take care of you.

Now, as for the discussion of cost, I crunched the numbers on my particular truck (before I made the decision to switch to Super Singles), and found that after factoring in the trade-in value for my eight aluminum rims against the cost of the new Accurides, plus the casing credit from my old G362's, it was cheaper to make the switch and buy the new rims with the G392SSD's than it would have been for me to just purchase eight new Bridgestone 726EL's, Michelin XDN2's, or other comparable tires. (Note: I left out replacing the Goodyear G362's with the same tires, as Goodyear stopped producing them before I needed new drives. It wasn't an option, and I did not like the new G572's or G305's. Not enough voids & blocks for winter traction).

So after making the change, here's what I ended up with: A loss of 300-400 lbs, better rolling resistance by far, better fuel economy, self-sealing tires AND it cost less than just sticking with dual drives. Anyone care to figure out where I'm losing anything in this?

Anyways, there's my long-winded experience and opinion of the Super Singles vs. duals debate.

(and yes, I know I haven't updated my signature picture since I made the switch. Trust me, they're there...)

 

I drive with both, but prefer the SS's because of fuel mileage and handling. If I drove primarily in the North, would probably stick with duals for better traction.