How can you tell if tires are 10 ply?
My understanding is that ply ratings are left over from the days when tires were cotton plies, rubber, and no belts. Literally, the more plies you had, the stronger the tire was and the more air pressure it could hold and the more weight it could support.
These days, most tires are two plies of polyester, maybe a third one in the sidewall, possibly of kevlar, and several steel belts in the tread. The various load ranges, D, E, etc are often called "ply equivalents". That is, a load range D is 8 ply equivalent, a load range E is 10 ply equivalent, and so on.
I think there are still a few off road tires that are made without belts, that are actually MADE with 8 plies, or 10 plies, or whatever, but they are unusual.
Valid questions; would love to hear concise answers...
My '05 Tundra AC SR5 w/ '16 Hawk is currently on Toyo AT2s ["C" or "6 ply"] and before our 5K Alaska trip next spring I moving up to "E" "10 ply" Toyo AT2...
I guess for me the proof of the pudding is that my current Toyo AT2s have seen
a lot of tough off road use and the unavoidable highway miles to get there and they have always got us through with no drama...
Going to "E"s is just my insurance policy being upgraded...don't like the additional un-sprung weight per tire...but nothing comes without a cost... $$$$$, more unsprung weight but more peace of mind and hopefully no ruined tires in BFE...
Where we go would hate to have to walk out....
Phil
Ps...Will go with a narrower tire this time 235 x 85-16"...size does matter...consider your use
PPs...Has anyone with a Tundra tried putting a larger tire under the truck in spare tire hanger? Would like to buy 5 tires and carry a 10 ply spare...