school me on bead locks
 

I'm putting new tires on my rig.

285X70R17 MT TA KM3

I think wheels with these specs should be ok
Rim & Tire Size Calculator. Custom Offsets - Wheel-Size.com

looking at these KMC
17x8.5 Machined XD Enduro Rim 6x5.5 (6x139.7) +0 Offset XD22278560500 | eBay

so of course don't run beadlocks on the road... I would like to be able to run my tires lower than I do now when off road. I have never had beadlocks. always wanted them so sexy!

so can they be balanced?
do the filler bead things work ok for balancing? have heard they get all clumped up once they get wet.

will I still be able to buzz down the road @ 75 MPH?

please advise?

For one thing you do NOT need to have actual beadlock wheels to run moderate lower tire pressure on the trails.

I found this website via quick search ...
What's The Bead Deal? The Importance of Beadlock Wheels - TREAD Magazine

What kind of a 4-wheeler are you?
* Weekend wheeler with 33s and locker?
* Badass with 35s, dual lockers and beadlocks because you air down to 8 PSI?

I don't have beadlocks because I have never needed to air down past 15 PSI.

If you don't actually need beadlocks then I wouldn't buy them. Kind of like putting an always empty roof rack on top or a winch on front that never gets used.

I don't know man .... I wouldn't spend $1,100+ on ebay for 4 beadlock eBay wheels. I would go so far as to say that true beadlock wheels are actually pretty damn rare on the trail unless you are one of the truly hardcore guys who really need to run at super low PS.

Running at super low PSI (vs moderately low) may not be all that its cracked up to be. For on thing you have to fill the tires up again at the end of the trail. You can air down with normal wheels. The question is do you really need to air down to super low PSI?

:yo:

Those wheels look great by the way. The Colorado jeep rescue guys use the bead locks on 35 and 37 inch tires and run single digit psi. Also high speed off road guys with long travel use them to take corners with out popping the tire. I don't have beadlocks and have run 15lbs without any issues when off road. Hopefully someone with beadlocks experience can chime in.

I've wanted beadlocks for years don't need them can't justify the cost, have run at 15 psi a bunch yet to pop a bead can happen though.
I would be skeptical of a $1100 set, the ones I've priced like Brian posted the one's Rock Racers use are $700 and up each, steel are cheaper.

I tried the balancing beads 10-12 yrs ago running the highways alot, beads didn't last as long as the tires did. Swapping back to weights requires breaking tire down and getting all them damn beads out. Tire shop cussed me a bunch won't use again.

I dig the look, you have the money go for it sets off the look for sure.

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that at least 90% of the guys out there wheeling their 4runner don't need beadlocks. With 33 inch tires I feel like they're going to be a total waste of money for a few reasons.

1 33s hold beads really well, I routinely ran my 33s down to 8psi and never had a problem without beadlocks. They aren't that much bigger than stock tires and on a decent rimthey hold just fine

2 no tire shop will mount your tires if you have beadlocks, mostly because of liability and also because it's a major pain in the ass. Lots of bolts that need to be torqued multiple times, 5 hours to mount 4 tires is about the norm I've heard with beadlocks if you know what you're doing.

End of the day it's your money and your truck but I think the money could be spent better elsewhere. Those rims also have a high likelyhood to cause rubbing on your upper control arms. Stock Toyota rims are 4.5" backspacing where those are 4.75". It's only a quarter of an inch but when I ran 33s on stock rims they cleared the UCA by milimeters

@BrianSD_42

I had a chance to ride around with a couple of jeep guys last summer at a local offroad park. one of them had beadlocks and it was a really nice. the difference between 15 psi and 6 psi was noticeable. I should have asked him about them when we were trail riding but... at the time I really was not considering them. but of course it got me to thinking.

I would also never consider them if I had not taken care of the taxes, house payment, water, electric, 401K, roth IRA, kids college fund, emergency fund, food... I'm not going to buy anything unless all the other necessary items are taken care of.

it's a lot like a locker. did I need a rear locker? no, but it sure is nice to have. I find I use it a lot even on some easy stuff because it causes much less damage to the trail. if I had beadlocks I would air down a bit more. I did pop a bead one time and a friend of mine used starter fluid to fix it for me. hold my beer watch this.. worked but... way to sketchy to do that again.

based on what a lot of other people seem to say on other forums they do balance with stick on weights and a lot of people run them on the road without any issues. beads are mixed bag review wise.

I have a local shop that will do them, I asked up front.

I have run so many different combinations of tire/wheels thru the calculator... sick of doing it. I had a free steel spare so I tried it with a 17x7.5 15 mm offset on a 285X70R17 MT TA KM3. that setup will rub UCA at full droop but is OK otherwise. according to the calc it's 11 mm closer than stock. this wheel is 4 mm closer than stock and when I added a 7 mm shim between the wheel mounting surface and the wheel it'self it was close but cleared at full droop. so yea it's a huge pain figuring out if everything will clear before burning the pile of cash.

Beadlocks don't have to be for the hardcore wheelers, but given the price tags usually affiliated with them, it's more common to see those that actually take advantage of what their intended for dish out the money for them. With that said, beadlocks can be balanced but it might take a bit more labor and weights to do so (which ends up being ugly). They are a pita to put on and if not done by yourself, can cost a good chunk of money. The process of seating the beadlock ring around the tire is a tedious process. Multiple passes in a specific pattern, at specific torques for 20+ bolts can take a while. Add the factor of doing it 4 times and not only have you spent half a day installing beadlocks, but your following day is wasted away recovering from back pain!!

I wouldn't necessarily categorize any of the above mentioned as a con (aside from the back pain), but they are definitely factors to keep in mind. The advantages of having beadlocks is nice, obviously, but like Black798 mentioned above, 90% of the people here would never need them.

For what it's worth, I've had true beadlocks (Walker Evans). I can't really say anything bad about them other than just being a PITA to put together. I bought them from an Ultra 4 guy that, at the time of sell, didn't know they were slightly out of round. Ultimately, I sold them cus I couldn't dd with them. Did I need them, probably not. Was just a pipe dream that came true b/c I got a really good deal on them. I don't typically find myself in situations that require such low tire PSI that have me wishing for another set. If you have good brand name, non stiff tires, you can safely run 10-15 psi without ever having an issue and still have optimal tire flex for 99% of the terrain out there.

are you sure it was a 7.5?

(wheel width is measured inside the wheel, bead seat to bead seat, whereas backspace is measured to the outside of the outermost lip.. - LOTS of confusion on the internet about this, and lots of skewed data because of it.)

EDIT: actually, there is a very good illustration of this on this very forum: Wheel backspacing and offset defined: (ignore everything after the first post on that thread; the first post is correct.)

It sounds like you are good to then and have read up on it. As was already mentioned I'd agree that 90% of folks here do not run beadlock wheels.

You also mentioned having a second set of wheels for street driving and only using the beadlocks for your hardcore wheeling days.

It is definitely possible to air down to 12-15 PSI on normal wheels and not pop a tire out. I agree though that 6 psi is definitely lower and probably has better grip.

Whatever you end up doing, post some pics of your next wheeling adventure when you do get the wheels you want.
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I went with the ATX Chamber Pro II as they had the closest backspace to my Level 8 Mk6 highway tire/wheel set. Love my beadlocks - in the deep snow I am consistently down at 1-2psi. Out of the snow I usually go to 10-12psi, sometimes lower. A lot of airing down has to do with the tires and how stiff they are.

That said - before my beadlocks I would air down to 1-2 psi in the deep snow and 10-12 psi out of the snow. I have never lost a bead, but you have to be smart and limit situations that are going to peel your tires off like sliding and winching sideways. It is nice to be a bit more aggressive in the deep snow now - and a couple times I have just puled the valve core out.

Yea a guy I know who moved from MN to CO and asked me if I wanted it. Off a 2014 trail pro. 17x7.5 stamped right on it. I looked up the wheel someplace and it has the same 15 mm offset.

The link I posted in the original post is a great tool. I understand all the measurements but it does get confusing. I can see how people get confused.

I used the OEM wheel specs to compare with that tool. 16x7 15 mm offset.

The steel spare is only 11 mm closer to the UCA but that is enough to rub. Looks like it only works to be 3 mm closer than stock wheels. Sure you could go much further out but then your going to rub fender. Seems like you want to keep as tight as possible to the UCA without rubber for best stuffing.

We can do those KMCs for $260 a pop, delivered. They are awesome looking and very high quality, often used on top race trucks in Baja and Ultra4 racing.

Do you air down below 12psi often? Are you on the trails more than once a month? Are you looking to attempt some more difficult trails or obstacles? Then beadlocks are for you.

If not, then go for the non beadlock wheel. The weight, added install labor and cost make them overkill on a mostly street rig.

I'll put something else out there.

Depending on your state, and how strict of an inspection process you have. Most beadlocks are not going to be DOT legal, and you will fail an inspection because of this. I know these are not DOT legal either.

This most likely won't be an issue, but it does happen.

my truck has bead locks, my 4runner does not. the truck is running 42"s tires, the 4runner, 37's. I can and do air the 37's down to 4 psi regularly, zero issues. they are radials, and the sidewall has lots of give.


the 42's are bias and the sidewalls do not have a lot of give. I could never get away with the low pressures I need/want without the beadlocks. I can say this with certainty, because I had tons of issues prior to the beadlocks.


Aluminum wheels will hold a bead MUCH better than a steel wheel. for higher speed stuff, you wont be able to go down as low without locks. but for general trail use, you could get away with single digits without them.


that said, I am a hug proponent/fan of bead locks. you just have to be aware of what you're getting into.
I have ran with far too many people, and dealt with way too many popped beads from people that SHOULD have bead locks. its very time consuming to deal with on the trail...




just like a winch/locker/etc its much better to have them available just in case.