teach me all about rims

[BIG*RED]

I have been looking over several post and have read many different things on rims and as a result i have a few questions..

1. i have 15x10 rims on a my k5..what is the lowest air pressure i can air down to without beadlocks or breaking a bead.. i have heard everything from 6psi to no less than 15psi because of the weight of the truck..

2. What about 16.5 rims..i have heard to stay away from them? is this true? why?

3. 16 inch rims...i have heard that these should not be aired down becasue they break the bead easy..true or false?

4. 17 inch and larger...i have been seeing a lot more people going to the lager dia. rims...are they better and why?

5. Hummer two rims...seen a lot of post recently about these.. whats the deal with them? what size are they? why are people wanting them? is it for the "bling" (i beleave they are chrome) will they fit my d44 and 14bltff?...should i be looking into them?

6. backspacing..is it better to have more or less backspacing? and why?

well i hope that i can get some educated answers out of this..so that i may educate myself..thanks for the help

 

[BurbLover]

1. i have 15x10 rims on a my k5..what is the lowest air pressure i can air down to without beadlocks or breaking a bead.. i have heard everything from 6psi to no less than 15psi because of the weight of the truck..

Depends on tire width. The wider the tire, the more you can air down.

2. What about 16.5 rims..i have heard to stay away from them? is this true? why?

Don't need to necessarily stay away fro; however, due to the rim design, they are easier to break beads. This is why to not air these down as much.

3. 16 inch rims...i have heard that these should not be aired down becasue they break the bead easy..true or false?

This statement applies to the 16.5 rims, not 16.

4. 17 inch and larger...i have been seeing a lot more people going to the lager dia. rims...are they better and why?

No better than 16s or 15s IMHO.

5. Hummer two rims...seen a lot of post recently about these.. whats the deal with them? what size are they? why are people wanting them? is it for the "bling" (i beleave they are chrome) will they fit my d44 and 14bltff?...should i be looking into them?

The H2 rims are just nice looking aluminum rims and seem to be readily available due to the # of high class H2 owners. (Note sarcasm here )

6. backspacing..is it better to have more or less backspacing? and why?

Backspacing requirements may be dictated by axle & steering configuration. As a rule of thumb, you cannot run more tha 3.75" with stock configuration. Crossover steering allows for for BS. The more BS, the more the tire is under the vehicle, and thus the skinnier the rig.

 

[BIG*RED]

ok so my tires are 35x12.50x15...so at that width what would be fairly "safe" to air down to?

and so 16inch rims are ok then? hmm see i'm already learning...as for the h2 rims other than being nice and readliy available..is there other reasons to run them, and what are the size of them?

 

[BurbLover]

With a 12.50 tire on 10" rims, I wouldn't air below 12 or so. But that's just me. If they were 8" rims, I'd say 7 or so would be good.

As for the H2 rims, it all comes down to the tires you want. Seems to me 17" tires are more expensive than 15s or 16s. Then again, If you go to a 15 & have a D60, then you'll need to grind your calipers (not sure about grinding requirements with D44).

 

[k5freak44]

what lug pattern are h2 rims avalible in?

 

[BurbLover]

what lug pattern are h2 rims avalible in?

I beleive (not positive) that they are all 8 on 6.5, which is standarsd 8 lug. However, not sure if centers are large enough for Ford axles as they are larger than Chevy's (or so I've been told).

 

[k5freak44]

sweet. lol those stupid ford guys dont know what they are missing out on.

 

[jekbrown]

1. i have 15x10 rims on a my k5..what is the lowest air pressure i can air down to without beadlocks or breaking a bead.. i have heard everything from 6psi to no less than 15psi because of the weight of the truck..

depends on to many factors to answer the question. Tire type, size, vehicle weight, how they are used, terrain, etc etc etc all play factors. Get it jammed in the rocks hard enough and hydro steering can peel pretty much any tire off any rim. My 39.5" TSLs are round as can be at 15psi... its not until you get to 9psi or less that there is even much sidewall buldge. With my 35" Procomp MTs, if they are below 20psi its obvious. Terrain type is a big factor... mud boggin, or street use, you're pretty dang unlikely to loose a bead at moderate tire pressure (10psi) but in nasty rocks you definitely could. Issues like this are hard to address, there is no absolutely correct answer. If you tell us a bunch about your rig (weight etc), how its used (terrain), what size/type of tire etc we could make informed guesses but otherwise its just a plain guess and of little use.

2. What about 16.5 rims..i have heard to stay away from them? is this true? why?

most (not all!) 16.5" rims don't have the safety bead that helps keep the bead on the rim. This is why wheelers avoid them like the plague, unless the plan is for beadlocks. Personally, i think 16.5s are a dying tire size. 17s are become much more common on factory rigs these days and 16.5s will prolly slowly but surely fade away.

3. 16 inch rims...i have heard that these should not be aired down becasue they break the bead easy..true or false?

not any more so than any other rim. Diameter is not a key issue here.

4. 17 inch and larger...i have been seeing a lot more people going to the lager dia. rims...are they better and why?

they can allow the use of bigger brakes, and their size means less sidewall which means less sidewall roll. Rockcrawlers want more sidewall stability so some of them run big rims. For 'normal' 4x4 geeks, its really not that big of a deal IMO. They cost more, and weigh more and my 15" rims fit over my brakes fine so I can't justify the cost. Thats just me.

5. Hummer two rims...seen a lot of post recently about these.. whats the deal with them? what size are they? why are people wanting them? is it for the "bling" (i beleave they are chrome) will they fit my d44 and 14bltff?...should i be looking into them?

no idea, never been interested in Hummer rims, have to ask others on this one.

6. backspacing..is it better to have more or less backspacing? and why?[/QUOTE]

avg backspacing is around 4". Way low backspacing (2") can cause bearings to wear out faster than normal. Way to much backspacing and the rims may not fit depending on what axles/brakes/steering etc you have.

j

 

[Hossbaby50]

In generalization I wouldn't air down a 35x12.5x15 on a 15x8" rim to less then 12lbs. I personally have never aired down this far. I have went to 15lbs and been ok but I am always leary of blowing a bead at that low and lower. I have blown 1 bead already at 17-18lbs.

On a 10" wide rim I would be scared to run less then 15lbs.

Keep in mind that I say these pressures with reguards to a K5 rockcrawling in AZ. If I was running Moab I would go a little less. If I was in the sand I would go a little less. Also keep in mind that I run MTR's which do not have a very stiff sidewall. Some tires have stiffer sidewalls and can be aired down farther then normal radial tires (Claws, TSL/SX's, etc)

I watched FWP blow 2 beads last weekend with 15x10's and 42" TSL's at 5-6lbs. So I would be SERIOUSLY leary of running pressures like that especially with 10" wide wheels.

Harley

 

[jk5blazer]

I was planning on running 39.5/15/16.5. So by what you guys are saying I could get away with normal steel wheels at full tire pressure as long as I stay away from hard core rocks. I am planning on bead locks but not right away.

 

[Hossbaby50]

Don't air down very low with 16.5's otherwise you will be resetting alot of beads. If you are going to run 16.5's and try and air them down beadlocks are basically a requirement.

Harley

 

[jekbrown]

what hoss said. I really dont see a reason to go 16.5 personally, unless the rims are cheap-to-free. 17" rims (and bigger!) are growing in popularity and will prolly cut into the 16.5" rim/tire market substantially in the near to mid term. It won't be long before (insert whatever how/new tire you want to buy) isn't made in that size anymore.

j