Best Tire for Rock Crawling
- Thread starter Chuckles89
- Start date
Chuckles89
New member
Would they fit?
4Running Daily
New member
Absolutely not! hahaha
Chuckles89
New member
I didn't think so
It's amazing how a 1st gen can stuff them with stock bump stops and alcan springs with minimal trimming
I balanced them with BBs. You know, like the ones you use to shoot your cousin in the rear end with at the family reunion. Bought 10,000 of them (two 5,000 packs) at wal-mart. Dumped ~2,500 BBs in each tire and went. They balanced fairly well. All of my friends used airsoft pellets. Didn't seem to really work for them.
Without Beadlocks, they would actually balance out quite nicely with this setup. With beadlocks...eh...I guess.
As for rounding out, I leave my tires stacked in a corner for months at a time. So when I bolt them on, they are all kinds of janky shapes. I typically do about 5 miles around the hood at lower speeds before I hit the highway. Seems to be mostly rounded out by then. Keeping it below 40 mph helps for the rounding out portion. In the winter it takes forever for them to round out.
Overall, for a 2nd set of tires just to thrash off road, and don't spend more than 2 hours each way to the trail, seems more than fine. I bet on a newer vehicle (aka, something made in the last 20 years) its even less invasive.
mountain mike
New member
I used to run BFG KO's on my FJ when I had it. I was not impressed with the KO's in really any terrain. Be it, rocks, mud, rain, snow, whatever. In my opinion they suck. I put MT/R's on my 3rd Gen and love them. They do amazing off-road and my sidewalls still look good. My KO's had lots of slices in the sidewall, and although they never leaked it still worried me.
The MT/R's hook up so well off-road, it's amazing. I plan on running them for a long time.
The MT/R's hook up so well off-road, it's amazing. I plan on running them for a long time.
MattJakobs
New member
4Running Daily
New member
Not on stock IFS. I would be willing to run them if I built a long travel kit. I could make it work. But I have a feeling my future is a SAS.
Is that why every serious rock crawler runs tires that are at least 12.5" wide?
Skinny tires are great for general trail use but when it comes to strictly rock crawling at very low tire pressures, the wider footprint of a wide tire is unquestionably better.
I have rock sliders as well. Im talking more the fenders and rear quarter panels. Rock sliders only protect so much. With a wider tire and a wheel that pushes the tire out farther from the body, you'll find you have a lot more room between the body and rocks. This is just my personal experience. It's made a way bigger difference than I thought it would. Not to say its going to make a truck perform better, but it allows me to drive a bit less carefully.
88Cleve4runner
New member
I don't know if you've bought anything or not, but my recommendation is Maxxis Bighorns in the 255/85/16 flavor. I've used that tire on my last two rigs and loved it. IMO it's the best combination of road manners, mud, rocks, and price.
I ran 255s on my 97 w/o any lift and beat the crap out of the pinch welds to reduce rubbing.
I ran 255s on my 97 w/o any lift and beat the crap out of the pinch welds to reduce rubbing.
Roc Doc
New member
X2
I got well over 100 trail trips out of mine in the 6 years I had them. I NEVER worried about a puncture even down at 3-4psi.
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Inv4drZm
Senior Member
They run tires that are at least 12.5" wide because they have to when they need a tire that is 35" or taller. I assume you're talking about dedicated trail rigs not "weekend warriors". If they made skinnier 35's many people would run them not just the occasional crawler. Skinnier tires actually do have many benefits over wider tires in the rocks at least according to these guys:
Expeditions West: Tire Selection for Expedition Travel
SnowLizard
New member
the arguments made do make sense (almost common sense)
Sadly I'm going to dis-regard them with 285/70r16 nitto's... (32/11.5r16)
I haven't ran them, but hear really great reviews.
IBallEngineer
New member
Great article, although I don't think it was talking about strictly rock crawling. As with most things the empirical(article's choice of words) evidence is lacking a little bit of rock crawler view. The main argument for skinny tires is that the increased vertical pressure will allow greater distortion of the sidewall and therefore more contact surface area. Additionally said surface are would have higher pressure at the ground. All true, but conditionally.
The graphic in the article is ridiculously over stating the ability of the tread surface to conform to the jagged rock surface. Which for the record is not a low traction surface anyway. The difference between a 10" tire and a 12.5" treadwidth on said surface would never be apparent on a trail vehicle to the driver. The tread could never conform to the surface, as pictured in the graphic, even though there WOULD be some advantage to the higher contact patch pressure.
As with wheelbase, the optimum track width is dependent on the trail, therefore subjective. The most capable vehicle in my group(a 1st gen runner) always struggles with one obstacle because his wheelbase works against him, while the shorter Jeeps don't even slow down. Many times the width of my FJ62 makes me work through some things, while other times I straddle obstacles that make others work. In the case of the wider tire, negative offset and wider tires are an easy way to gain track width. All lifted vehicles "need" a wider track and above 33", all vehicles need lifting. Yes some vehicle can run a tall tire without a lift, but not with a wider negative offset wheel. So if you go up, going wider is better both on road and off. Simply physics there no empirical evidence can dispute.
The other benefit of a wide tire is the lower deflection tends to keep the tread down on severe side inclines, because the side load doesn't push the wheel out as it would on a narrow tire. Short of building 14 ply narrow tires(like the old military tires), the wide tire has a clear advantage here.
Overall the article is dead on, most people off roading will get more benefits from the narrow tire, especially if they drive on road as well. If I could use a slightly wider axle, I would consider a 10" tire up to 35". And I'd stay out of the mud!
:snacker:
Chuckles89
New member
I forgot to update this thread...
I got the 34x10.50-16 swampers in the end. I'm so glad I got the 10.50 wides instead of the 9's! I haven't been in the rocks with them, but I'm sure they will do great! I have just been on some dirt roads and shallow mud holes so far, and they did excellent! Hopefully, I'll be hitting some rocks next Monday...
I got the 34x10.50-16 swampers in the end. I'm so glad I got the 10.50 wides instead of the 9's! I haven't been in the rocks with them, but I'm sure they will do great! I have just been on some dirt roads and shallow mud holes so far, and they did excellent! Hopefully, I'll be hitting some rocks next Monday...
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JayRolla
New member
Careful on the rocks. Tear them lugs right off.
Chuckles89
New member
Well, I've decided to turn it down a notch since I have been tearing up stuff... like a 15,500 mile OEM lower ball joint :rant:
GetZPayd
New member
Sounds like its time to update that sig pic ,eh?
