Towing with larger tires?

[K5er4Life]

I have seen many people do it, which doesnt mean its a good idea. But heres my plan/idea... I have a 86 4x4 crew cab dually, 100 percent stock and clean. Im thinking about going single wheel so I am going to do hummer rims and possibly tires. I know about the hummer rims and tires and different load ratings and what not. But would I be ok to tow my blazer maybe around 7k with trailer? I dont plan on towing it alot, maybe once a month at the most or so. I want the 12 bolt hummer rims with the 37's because theyre radials and have a much higher load rating than the 36's. They have a load rating of something like 3850lb and are d rated tires. I dont plan on lifting it much, if at all. Reason why is because I want to keep the truck a little bit lower for towing and putting my dirt bike in the back, and on the rear when/if I pull the bulgy flares off the bed it has a larger opening in it than a reguler chevy wheel well. So I think I can leave the back stock or maybe a zero rate in the rear to make enough clearance. I dont want blocks or lift springs cause I really dont want to mess with those dump truck springs too much. For the front I was thinking some 2 or 4 inch springs ( whatever levels it out) and opening the front fenders up to allow enough room for the 37's. I dont mind if they rub a bit, this is my driver so I want to do this as clean as possible and paint the truck to match pretty. What does everyone think? I think the rims are a definite because of the ease of use and price I can get the for, its mainly towing and the tires are what I am worried about. I just love the fact that these tires and rims are so darn cheap and plentiful. I would like to hear from mtnexplorer too on this subject cause I know he tows with 35's alot.

And ARAMP1 sorry, I might be going to the dark side of single wheel. Its just sometimes too damn hard to get this truck through everything. Fast food is out of the questions unless I go inside, parking is a biotch and narrow streets suck. All what makes the truck cool but geez, when is it seriously big enough? I am still a bit 50/50 on it but Ill see how this idea goes here.

 

[trailblazr81]

If the tires have the right/same load rating then you should be ok. Also change your gearing to go with the larger tires. Since its a crew cab duallie I'll assume you already have beefy axles to handle the tires. Ive had a couple buddies tow boats or horse trailers with lifted trucks. I think you may still have to lift the truck a couple inches with the trimming to get the 37's to fit.

 

[mountainexplorer]

My "little" Crew Cab has 35's on it and I tow all the time. I originally started out with a 4" lift and 33's, but it seemed so low geared I went to a 6" and 35's. Then I towed for a few years that way and I could go faster but lost my power on hills, so I put 4.56's in it now. As far as handling it's fine. Doesn't feel to high and still is very stable.

I towed alot with my Suburban too. Also with a 6" and 35" BFG Mud Terrains.

A few times I towed with the "big" Crew Cab. It had 40's, but I put 38's on it for the few times I towed a trailer with it. And the loads weren't very heavy. With 4.10s, 38's, a 7200+lb truck, and a Comp 280 cam in a 396, it wasn't the ideal setup for heavy towing. But as far as handling, it still handled just fine and even the 38" Gumbo Mudders didn't seem to have any bad manners on the highway (and I know they weren't rated for heavy loads). And that truck had 6" tall rear blocks at the time.

Nice thing with the crew cabs is they're so long and stable feeling. I used to have rigs that would push my '80 GMC regular cab all over the place with a tow bar, and occasionally on a trailer, but nothing pushes my crew cab around. At least, not yet.

 

[K5er4Life]

I figured I would probably be ok I just didnt want to push my luck. I dont mind doing a 2 inch block in the rear and leveling the truck out if I have to to fit the 37's. Also I will have 4.56's and with a gear vendors, which I should have shortly I think that would be a pretty nice setup. How do they figure tire load ratings vs. the amount of weight you pull? Should I be worried about sidewall deflection in winds?

And has anyone pulled the dually flares thingies off to see what the bed looks like underneath, or better yet have any pictures? I can tell theyre not just bolted onto a regular chevy bed, the fenders have been opened up some by the factory for the dual rears.

 

[camiswelding]

My truck is an 89 dually stock,, the rear fenders ARE opened up... so unbolting them wont work unless you are going to do some kind of custom flare... not sure if any of the off the shelf stuff will work

I have looked at a single rear wheel conversion.... hubs... spacers... hummer wheels...
hubs are expensive
adapters may be unsafe
hummers are 16.5... real spendy in weird diameters

If I do it Ill go the hubs route... safest and cleanest

then again I have like 20 tires that are near new.. so i guess I can live with duals for awhile,,, but the thing sure is big when mall crawling... but over the road... heaven

 

[K5er4Life]

My truck is an 89 dually stock,, the rear fenders ARE opened up... so unbolting them wont work unless you are going to do some kind of custom flare... not sure if any of the off the shelf stuff will work

I have looked at a single rear wheel conversion.... hubs... spacers... hummer wheels...
hubs are expensive
adapters may be unsafe
hummers are 16.5... real spendy in weird diameters

If I do it Ill go the hubs route... safest and cleanest

then again I have like 20 tires that are near new.. so i guess I can live with duals for awhile,,, but the thing sure is big when mall crawling... but over the road... heaven

Im not too worried about the 16.5 wheel, thats why I want the hummer tires to go with, I can get the complete rim and tire package for cheeeep!

Are you saying that you have a dually with the flares removed, maybe Im wrong but it looked like I could just unbolt those flares and I would have a regular bedside with a larger than stock opening. Which isnt neccessarily a bad thing because I was thinking I wouldnt lift the rear much and stuff 37's under there with the large opening. And I would do the front to match as best as possible. Or do you think I would be better off just getting a regular fleetside bed off another truck and swapping it with my bed?

 

[camiswelding]

yes you would have a way larger than stock opening.... how are you going to finish that ??? It would need some kind of edging... or flare... as the edge isnt finished.... a clean bed would be the easiest thing to do I would imagine.. then selling yours and perhaps making a profit as dually beds are harder to come by
16.5 wheels and tires... in my opinion arent that great for towing...old tech,,, and radials are super spendy... and military tires are iffy as to safety... do you know whats happened to them.. where theyve sat....what c5 theyve been dropped out of... what crashed humvee theyve been on

they are great for off road rigs but even the ones that are "new" surplus come from unknown sources and conditions... they may have been siting in an artic/tropical warehouse for several years.... you just dont know

and then depend on them for towing.... no thanks....

a couple of hundred bucks isnt worth my safety when Im towing max gvw

 

[Pookster]

If your intent on running 16.5" hummer wheels, consider running the 33" sizing. It will give you a "larger" tire, without jumping so much further, and you wouldnt have to add a lift.

 

[K5er4Life]

I know I would like a atleast a 35. I think 33's just look too small on big arse crew cabs. I need bigger tires like I need a hole in the head, but what can you do. Gotsa have em.

Youre right about the condition of the tires, never really thought of that. I knew I would get new ones but hard to say where they have sat or have been. I dont neccessarily mind the large opening, I just dont know what it looks like and if I can trim the bed to make it look decent with the tire in the wheel well. I was thinking about doing a olive drab, or some sort of military green color. That would match the cut up fenders. And would be easy to touch up, I want my truck to be clean but realistically when I take my dirt bike to the desert I get brushes always running up and down the sides of my rig, any good paint would make me cringe when I do that. Besides do you guys think a unfinished wheel well looks bad? I think they look better chopped cleanly. It makes the tires look as though they fit the truck better. HEY, I just got an idea, dont know if it would work or not but I am going to be cutting up the back of my blazer to fit the tires. Would I be able to graft the areas that I cut from my blazer to the dually bed? Body work will be a bit of work but I would be probably be saving some bucks.

 

[K5er4Life]

Ok and how about a "how much lift question"? Would a 5 inch lift be enough with stock fenders to clear 37's? (no trimming or very very little trimming). Just driving on the street, this truck will not be flexed much if at all.

 

[trailblazr81]

The 5 inches with minimal trimming would work. Maybe a shackle flip and Zero-Rate in the back, 4" springs and new shackles in the front.