The traction shock thing was pretty common back in the 80's and you saw them on every other page in the off-road magazines. I remember one of the local guys made a custom dual traction shock setup
I'm sure it helped a little bit, but not much and hence the reason you don't seem them around anymore.
For rim width it depends on functionality versus form. I think an 8" wide rim is better for most 12.50" tires in regards to functionality, especially off-road. However I will say for pure looks I like the 10" wide rims on these trucks. On my off-road rig I run 8" wide rims on 15.50" Swampers and they work great for holding the bead and limiting the amount of dirt and gravel that gets crammed in the bead. I haven't put very many road miles on mine as it rides on a trailer for long distances, but almost every off-road ride involves some pavement time. A buddy also runs this setup and made many mult-hundred mile trips to the trail before getting a trailer with no issues.
I'm sure it helped a little bit, but not much and hence the reason you don't seem them around anymore. For rim width it depends on functionality versus form. I think an 8" wide rim is better for most 12.50" tires in regards to functionality, especially off-road. However I will say for pure looks I like the 10" wide rims on these trucks. On my off-road rig I run 8" wide rims on 15.50" Swampers and they work great for holding the bead and limiting the amount of dirt and gravel that gets crammed in the bead. I haven't put very many road miles on mine as it rides on a trailer for long distances, but almost every off-road ride involves some pavement time. A buddy also runs this setup and made many mult-hundred mile trips to the trail before getting a trailer with no issues.
