The Carlstar Group’s Carlisle Tire has a line of five high-speed trailer tires. Two of these are the Sport Trail LH and the Radial Trail HD. Both tires are suitable for use on trailers that require “standard” car/light truck tire sizes, but they’re usually used quite differently.

Industry insider says there isn’t much difference between the two

Traction News spoke with an industry insider intimately familiar with both the LH and HD trailer tires and he told us that there really isn’t much difference between these two tires. The major difference is that the LH is a bias ply tire while the HD is a radial ply tire. One main difference between the bias and radial construction is that the radial tires have higher treadwear ratings than the bias ply tires.

He went further by saying that the radial has steel belts and most people are buying them for use on heavier trailers such as travel trailers, large toy haulers, and livestock trailers. The LH has nylon belts, which deliver a stiffer ride for the trailer, and because of this it’s usually used on lighter trailers such as utility trailers and boat and Jet Ski trailers.

Technical Information

Carlisle’s Sport Trail LH ST205/75D14, part number 6H01351, is a Load Range C tire with a mounted diameter of 25.8 inches and a mounted width of 7.9. Optimal rim width for it is shown as 5.5 inches. Max load capacity at ten MPH for it is 1760 pounds at 50 PSI. No max speed rating is given for the LH.

The Radial Trail HD, part numbers 6H04551 and 6H04561, is available in both Load Range C and D. Its mounted diameter is 26.1 inches and it has a mounted width of 7.8 inches on a 5.5-inch wide rim. The LRC tire has a max load of 1760 pounds, while the LRD tire’s max capacity is 2040 pounds at ten MPH. Max inflation pressure for the LRC tire is 50 PSI, while the LRD tire’s is 65. The Radial Sport HD is rated for a max speed of 81 MPH.

Carlisle stocks the Sport Trail LH in 16 different size and load range combinations from 4.80-12 LRB up to ST225/90D16 LRE. They also have an LRF in ST205/85D14.5. The Radial Trail HD is available in 15 different size/load range combinations from ST175/80R13-LRC up to ST235/85R16-LRF.

carlisle 2 — Left: Close-up of the tread of the Sport Trail LH bias ply trailer tire. Right: Close-up of the tread of the Radial Trail HD trailer tire.

What Carlisle says about the two tires

Marketing hype for the two tires is surprisingly light. Carlisle says the “Sport Trail LH brings an optimized tread pattern for larger bias ply tires (>12 inches rim diameter)” and that’s it. There’s even less said about the HD: “Radial Trail HD is the next generation of high-speed trailer tires.”

Independent and Consumer Reviews

Reviews on both tires vary but the majority of them are very positive. It appears that a few buyers of each tire got unlucky and received tires that shouldn’t have passed quality control. Most consumers reviewing the tires on independent sites appear to be very happy with their purchases — even those who’d had problems with Carlisle tires in the past and had been hesitant to buy again.

Here’s the spec sheet for the Sport Trail LH and the Radial Trail HD.

Tagged: Radial Trail HD

How good is Carlisle’s Sport Trail vs. Radial Trail?