BLOW OUT SALE!!--GREAT! BLOW OUT TIRE!--NOT SO MUCH!
10-08-2015
Author: in RVing Ruminations by Russel
There are two kinds of tire blow outs. On your rig and on others. Flat tires—they are a fact of life. Always unexpected and most times inconvenient. Everyone's blow out stories are unique. Here are a couple of mine. Perhaps something can be learned from them.
When I first began full timing it and working to support that, funds were very tight. My '86 Chevy Pick-Up, Kloud Kicker, was badly in need of new rubber. The tire store I went to had retreads on sale. For those who may not know, that is recycled tires to which new tread has been attached. I got two for the back and drove on them for quite some time. Then one day I heard a huge boom and saw in the rear view mirror rubber being strewn out behind me. Even with the blow out, I managed to get safely onto the shoulder. I couldn't believe what I saw! Of course there was little rubber left on the rim with a few chords but what I stood in awe of was the fact that my tailpipe had been bent upward in the explosion and had actually been driven hard enough that it had left a two inch dent in the edge of the wheel well. (In 1986 trucks were still made of real steel, stiff enough you couldn't bend it by hand.) That is the last time I ever ran retreads on one of my rigs.
We have all seen retread remains off semi-trucks on the highway. Big chunks of rubber, harmless looking but . . .. well let me tell you this little story. Prior to this, in twenty years on the road, I had only been in the close vicinity of two rigs that blew a recap and bizarre as it may seem, both of them occurred within ten minutes of each other. No issues with these.
Different story with this one. It was one of those perfect summer mornings in northern Idaho. I had stayed at an RV Park the Native American Casino ran, come back from the casino in the evening after dinner and a few hours of slot machines with a few more dollars in my pocket than I went in with. A side note: most Indian Casinos allow RV's to dry camp in their parking lots but some have hook ups and some have fully developed adjacent RV Parks as does Seven Feathers RV Resort. I had found a nice little cafe, had a wonderful breakfast had full tanks of gas. Oh wait that doesn't sound right, reverse the order on those last two things. Had three days to go only a couple of hundred miles through beautiful scenery, sun was shining, air, fresh—it doesn't get much better than this.
I had been driving about an hour, typical light rural road traffic, occasional unloaded log truck headed back into the woods for the next load going by in the opposite lane. One of those log trucks and I had just started to pass each other when I heard this tremendous explosion, big twisting chunks of rubber flying right at me, then horrible sounds of metal impacting metal and my engine grinding to a halt. Steam started pouring out of the front of the truck. I managed in spite of all this sudden excitement, to turn down a side road that appeared as if by magic and got to a safe stop. A couple of deep breaths later and I deduced correctly what had occurred. I got out to have a look. I could not believe my eyes!
The hood of old Kicker had a two foot long rip from the front edge right down toward the middle. Remember what I said about the metal in old trucks, but this was torn like it was a piece of paper! And of course the radiator was shrapnelled almost beyond recognition. I called my towing service. I have used Allstate Motor Club with only the best of experiences most of the time I have been on the road—though there are a number of great such services available. Best hundred dollar or so investment I make every year. It took the rest of the day and part of the next with the help of a very small town mechanic (I admire efficiency any time I find it and this guy was the epitome of that.) but I got back on the road late the next morning.
There is not a lot we can do about other people's blow outs but there are a few things that we can do to reduce the chances of having our own.. Many tire service chains such as Les Schwab here in the west offer free tire pressure checks. They are the first place I stop at the beginning of every journey. They check the pressure in each tire, including the spare. I watch the person doing it around so if one tire is really low, I know and take what ever action is appropriate. Know what the recommended pressure is on your vehicles and strive to maintain that. If you know what it is, you can tell the person doing the checking with certainty what you need. They will even the pressure up all the way around for you, usually without charge. For safety, it beats the heck out out a quick look and weak kick before pronouncing them roadworthy.
Nothing I know of can prevent blow outs and flats from happening. But preventive measures such as buying the best tires you can (watch for sales, nearly every dealer has them) possibly afford and keeping constant surveillance on their condition and pressure can add some degree of insurance. If your rig will be sitting for extended periods in the sun, find of way of shading the tires. Keep your spare in good order and if you aren't capable of changing a tire, it is best to have a service that will.
My personal take away from nearly being killed by the log truck tire is this. Trust that the speed you are moving is getting you to exactly the right place at the right time and pay attention to that instinct. How does that apply? Well, if I had been ten minutes later or earlier that morning I would probably not have had the experience at all. Had I been only a few seconds later, I might not have had it; a few seconds earlier, and it may have come right through the windshield and I may have died.
Well, those are a couple of my blowout stories. I'd like to hear yours in the comment section below, especially if it has a good resolution and perhaps taught you something.
Until next time, walk in beauty and keep it between the ditches.
Russel
Though from my travels I have come to roost
I hope my experiences will give yours a boost
About the Blog Author
Russel Micnhimer is retired after twenty-five years of full time RVing. During that time he was a sales representative for Southeast Publications http://southeastpublications.com/ selling advertising on Site Maps (aka Guest Guides) for RV Parks and Resorts and Fairgrounds. He traveled in a pickup truck and travel trailer primarily in the Western United States logging nearly 500,000 miles. In his blog he shares many experiences and insights in hopes they will be helpful to others who pursue the RVing lifestyle.
When I first began full timing it and working to support that, funds were very tight. My '86 Chevy Pick-Up, Kloud Kicker, was badly in need of new rubber. The tire store I went to had retreads on sale. For those who may not know, that is recycled tires to which new tread has been attached. I got two for the back and drove on them for quite some time. Then one day I heard a huge boom and saw in the rear view mirror rubber being strewn out behind me. Even with the blow out, I managed to get safely onto the shoulder. I couldn't believe what I saw! Of course there was little rubber left on the rim with a few chords but what I stood in awe of was the fact that my tailpipe had been bent upward in the explosion and had actually been driven hard enough that it had left a two inch dent in the edge of the wheel well. (In 1986 trucks were still made of real steel, stiff enough you couldn't bend it by hand.) That is the last time I ever ran retreads on one of my rigs.
We have all seen retread remains off semi-trucks on the highway. Big chunks of rubber, harmless looking but . . .. well let me tell you this little story. Prior to this, in twenty years on the road, I had only been in the close vicinity of two rigs that blew a recap and bizarre as it may seem, both of them occurred within ten minutes of each other. No issues with these.
Different story with this one. It was one of those perfect summer mornings in northern Idaho. I had stayed at an RV Park the Native American Casino ran, come back from the casino in the evening after dinner and a few hours of slot machines with a few more dollars in my pocket than I went in with. A side note: most Indian Casinos allow RV's to dry camp in their parking lots but some have hook ups and some have fully developed adjacent RV Parks as does Seven Feathers RV Resort. I had found a nice little cafe, had a wonderful breakfast had full tanks of gas. Oh wait that doesn't sound right, reverse the order on those last two things. Had three days to go only a couple of hundred miles through beautiful scenery, sun was shining, air, fresh—it doesn't get much better than this.
I had been driving about an hour, typical light rural road traffic, occasional unloaded log truck headed back into the woods for the next load going by in the opposite lane. One of those log trucks and I had just started to pass each other when I heard this tremendous explosion, big twisting chunks of rubber flying right at me, then horrible sounds of metal impacting metal and my engine grinding to a halt. Steam started pouring out of the front of the truck. I managed in spite of all this sudden excitement, to turn down a side road that appeared as if by magic and got to a safe stop. A couple of deep breaths later and I deduced correctly what had occurred. I got out to have a look. I could not believe my eyes!
The hood of old Kicker had a two foot long rip from the front edge right down toward the middle. Remember what I said about the metal in old trucks, but this was torn like it was a piece of paper! And of course the radiator was shrapnelled almost beyond recognition. I called my towing service. I have used Allstate Motor Club with only the best of experiences most of the time I have been on the road—though there are a number of great such services available. Best hundred dollar or so investment I make every year. It took the rest of the day and part of the next with the help of a very small town mechanic (I admire efficiency any time I find it and this guy was the epitome of that.) but I got back on the road late the next morning.
There is not a lot we can do about other people's blow outs but there are a few things that we can do to reduce the chances of having our own.. Many tire service chains such as Les Schwab here in the west offer free tire pressure checks. They are the first place I stop at the beginning of every journey. They check the pressure in each tire, including the spare. I watch the person doing it around so if one tire is really low, I know and take what ever action is appropriate. Know what the recommended pressure is on your vehicles and strive to maintain that. If you know what it is, you can tell the person doing the checking with certainty what you need. They will even the pressure up all the way around for you, usually without charge. For safety, it beats the heck out out a quick look and weak kick before pronouncing them roadworthy.
Nothing I know of can prevent blow outs and flats from happening. But preventive measures such as buying the best tires you can (watch for sales, nearly every dealer has them) possibly afford and keeping constant surveillance on their condition and pressure can add some degree of insurance. If your rig will be sitting for extended periods in the sun, find of way of shading the tires. Keep your spare in good order and if you aren't capable of changing a tire, it is best to have a service that will.
My personal take away from nearly being killed by the log truck tire is this. Trust that the speed you are moving is getting you to exactly the right place at the right time and pay attention to that instinct. How does that apply? Well, if I had been ten minutes later or earlier that morning I would probably not have had the experience at all. Had I been only a few seconds later, I might not have had it; a few seconds earlier, and it may have come right through the windshield and I may have died.
Well, those are a couple of my blowout stories. I'd like to hear yours in the comment section below, especially if it has a good resolution and perhaps taught you something.
Until next time, walk in beauty and keep it between the ditches.
Russel
Though from my travels I have come to roost
I hope my experiences will give yours a boost
About the Blog Author
Russel Micnhimer is retired after twenty-five years of full time RVing. During that time he was a sales representative for Southeast Publications http://southeastpublications.com/ selling advertising on Site Maps (aka Guest Guides) for RV Parks and Resorts and Fairgrounds. He traveled in a pickup truck and travel trailer primarily in the Western United States logging nearly 500,000 miles. In his blog he shares many experiences and insights in hopes they will be helpful to others who pursue the RVing lifestyle.
Comment
November 2, 2015 | 01:34 PM
The good, the bad and the ugly with traveling! Thanks for the tips and we hope this doesn't happen to us anytime soon!
Author: Russel Micnhimer
