19.5" rims

[Hobart]

Do a lot of mexico travel and considering going to single tires in the rear. Are there aftermarket flairs for the wheel wells? And would the rickson 19. 5" rims and h rated tires do the trick and handle the camper? And would going to a larger diameter tire tear up my transmisson? Hoping to get a little better mileage.

 

[SRadke]

H rated tires are rated to haul over 6k each. You can't hurt them on a pickup.

 

[TAbbott]

The tires and wheels will handle the load.



Rickson steel wheels are rated at 5,000 lbs each and the G or H rated tires are pretty much indestructible if properly inflated. Fender flares are available but may not even be needed as the backspacing on the Ricksons is the same as on the stock wheels and they're only 7. 5" wide. The largest 19. 5 tires are probably only 285 mm wide so clearance shouldn't really be a problem. I run 265/70R19. 5G's on my '06 with stock power wagon flares and don't have any clearance problems at all with no suspension lift. The tires are 34. 5" tall and rated at 5070 lbs each at 110 psi.

 

[SRadke]

265's measure ~33. 5" on the truck, 285's ~34. 5. 285's will rub slightly on the control arms at full lock when mounted on the 7. 5" steel wheel. They will clear otherwise. This is on a third gen.

 

[Hobart]

I'm thinking of Rickson rims just in the rear; removing the outrigger fenders. Won't that leave a funny looking space without some sort of aftermarket cover?

 

[SRadke]

To take the dually fenders off the box? Yea, that doesn't work well. You'll proabbaly end up looking for a standard box and rear end. I don' t know if a spindal swap to get you to a SRW is a possibility or not.

 

[Loren]

I'm thinking of Rickson rims just in the rear; removing the outrigger fenders.

Hobart,



This plan will work as long as you never engage 4WD with different wheel/tire combinations on the front and rear. It might also work in 4WD if the truck has very poor traction.



The issue is that the two driveshafts (front and rear) will turn at the same rate with 4WD engaged. If the diameter of the front tires is different from the diameter of the rear tires, one of two things MUST occur:

1. The tires must slip to allow for the additional distance that the rear (in your case) tires will travel with one revolution. OR

2. Something will break.



I recommend that if you go with 19. 5" wheels, you put them on all four corners.



Good luck,

Loren

 

[Loren]

The tires are 34. 5" tall and rated at 5070 lbs each at 110 psi.

TAbbott,



That's what the tires are rated at, and I agree that we should never see loads like that with our trucks, but I don't want anyone to overlook one point.



It may not be true for all Rickson wheels, but my steel ones have a stamped limit of 90 (or maybe it is 95 psi) on the wheel itself.



I don't know what 90 psi works out to for an allowed tire load, but I'm sure that it's still way more than we should ever see.



If you have Rickson wheels, be sure to check for a wheel pressure limit so that you don't overpressurize your wheels. Even though the tires will take it, the wheels may not.



Loren

 

[TAbbott]

Loren: What size steel Rickson's do you have? The width is the question, I think. Mine are 7. 5" wide and I don't recall them having a pressure restriction stamped on them. Just the DOT weight rating of 5,000 lbs.



According to the Goodyear data sheet, they have no 19. 5" tire rated at 5,000 lbs at less than 110 psi. Their 265 G's are 5070 at 110 psi. and 4355 at 90 psi.



Michelin's web page shows their 265G is good for 5105 lbs at 100 psi in a 265 and a 285H is 5080 lbs at 90 psi.



The Goodyear total of 8710 lbs on the rear axle at 90 psi. is at least 1000 lbs more (500 lbs. per tire) than I've ever had on my truck.

 

[Loren]

Loren: What size steel Rickson's do you have? The width is the question, I think. Mine are 7. 5" wide and I don't recall them having a pressure restriction stamped on them. Just the DOT weight rating of 5,000 lbs.

I think my wheels are also 7. 5 inches, but I'm not sure. They are currently on my wrecked 2000 model truck on a flatbed trailer behind my garage. I bought these wheels used so I don't have a receipt I can refer to. I also don't own calipers capable of measuring them. If I can figure it out, I'll let you know.



I found the pressure limit stamp one day when I was washing the wheels. I may have been rotating them, so they may have been off the truck. It's possible the stamp is on the inside of the wheel. In any case, it's not easy to see. The steel wheel was stamped, then painted (or powder coated) after stamping, so the stamp tends to blend in and disappear.



Now that the weather's improving, I'll be spending more time with the old truck removing accessories before I sell the wreck. I'll see if I can find exactly where that stamp is.



Loren