2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Alcoa LTS 5 spoke on '02 2500

[THenningsen]

Anyone have the Alcoa LTS 5 spoke on their truck? Mine is an '02 2500 2wd, so I don't want a wheel that sticks way out. I noticed that the back spacing on these is 5. 15"... . how is that different than the stock 16" wheels? Anyone have any pictures? Also, will the Alcoa centercaps fit?

 

[THenningsen]

my mistake... backspacing on the Alcoa's is only 4. 29"

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

It's going to stick way out then. I tried some 5. 25" backspace wheels on my '01 2wd and it looked like a Mexi lowrider.



Factory Ram 16x8 wheels are

Backspace: 6. 0"

Offset: +44mm



The Weld Cheyennes available from KORE or some custom offset Budnik is about all you can get! But to the rescue. . . Centerline just released the 17x8. 5" Crossfire with 6. 0" backspace https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/showthread.php?t=122278

 

[EricBu12]

heres my Ricksons 19. 5" These have less off-set but the straighter sidewall makes them look like stock. . Called the Eliminator, they are a new model from Ricksons... Forged Aluminum, polished... Stock 8 Lug design.



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View of the side of the truck with the 19. 5's on.



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A shot of the truck with the tires..... Which are Michellins 245 70R 19. 5" "F" rated.



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The tire on the left is the stock 16" "E" michellin... . The one on the truck is the 19. 5 tire... . The diameter of the 19. 5 is 33" the stock is 31"... . the amazing thing is the tread width of the 19. 5" is maybe 1/4" wider than the 16"s



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[Cooker]

I have these wheels on my 1996 with 285/75/16 tires. I don't think they stick out too bad at all. The are only 7" wide so this does help a bit vs. a typical 8" wide wheel with the same backspacing. I will see if I can find a picture of the front of the truck with these wheels/tires.

 

[THenningsen]

Thanks for the responses. Cooker, a picture would be great. Eric, what did the rickson's set you back for the wheels and tires? They look great, but how would they look on a 2wd truck? Thanks guys.

 

[EricBu12]

I bought 5 rims and tires. The tires I bought locally and the Rims were $400/ea. + shipping... . The tires were $265 at a local shop. He included the mounting and ballancing.



The diameter of these tires is like a set of 285/75-16 but with a tread the same as a 265 tire.

 

[PatrickCampbell]

EricBu12 are you hauling for a living ? Those are some wheels!



I had the steel Rickson 19. 5's but sold them (dumb move).



Now considering Vision cast alum or Alcoa forged 16's.



16 pro's: shorter (I'm not looking for bigger tires) Skinnier tire (235 vs 245) lighter, forged (stronger)



19. 5's pros: More load range (way more than I need), much more of a tire selection



16 con's: tire selection, limited load range but 3750*2 - 3000 (stock rear axle weight) * 4 (25% weight for gooseneck) = 18,000 trailer... about as much as I'll ever be pulling



19. 5's cons: Heavy, taller



I don't need 19. 5's but the tire choice with 16's for LR G is only 1 as far as I know, the Goodyear 614 RST:



http://www.goodyear.com/rv/products/product_g614rst.html



The price of the wheels is ABOUT the same, in the $160-180 per wheel range.



Any thoughts?



It seems like to me that the biggest factor here is my tire selection for the 16's... Tire price is about the same (I'm expecting around $200/tire).

 

[EricBu12]

No I don't use my truck for a living... . I do drive a semi with doubles and triples...



The "E" s I had was about 400# margin for the weight rating on the rear axle when hooked up. The sidewalls flexed a bit to. and I had a "squishy" feeling on the truck like the tires were way low when they were aired up.....



The all steel construction of the tire means it won't flex as much as poyester sidewalls



Now your 3750# rating on the 16s is good but what is the tread width? Are they off-road tires that are bigger and wider? If so then you won't have good mileage from road resistance..... The tread on the 19. 5 is the same as a 265 16" on a skinnier rim. The section width of the tire from sidewall to sidewall is about 2" skinnier..... The rim weighs 33# the tire obv. more, about 100-120# mounted... . the 245's will last about 120-130k and have a 21/32 nd tread. So the cost of the tire per mile is the same as a 16"



I just looked at your post again and I think you have a dually right? Well If I had that I wouldn't have needed the 19. 5" I did it mainly for the rear axle loading.



When towing my trailer, There is more of a secure feeling, No squishy... . and the truck rolls alot easier because the tires are made for the load. I have about 1000# margin now on each rear tire when hooked up..... The ride when unloaded is good because the tires are aired down for the weight of the truck. When Ido that, the ride is like the "E" tires at 60#

 

[EricBu12]

Gotta play with the numbers some more... .



18,000 * 25% is 4500# add to the 3000# axle and you have 7500#...

3750 * 2 is exactly 7500# no margin Are you saying you have a 18K trailer?



I just saw the goodyear tire you linked... . IMO, I wouldn't get that... . That is one companys way to try to make a 16" tire do way more that it needs to... ... if it was a good make and style, more companys would be doing it... ... Also, look at the tread depth... 12/32nd" Half the depth of my 19. 5's ... . Doesn't say what the sidewall is... probably polyester... . Don't like that tread pattern either... looks more like a steer tire for a 2wd.



Patrick,

If I was you, I'd get the cast 19. 5 like you were looking at then get really good tires like the commercial kind I have... . You could get the 225 70R 19. 5 which is the same diameter as a 265/75-16" and a skinnier tread like a 235..... longer lasting, better mileage and cheaper in the long run.

 

[PatrickCampbell]

It's a single rear wheel truck... I actually prefer skinnier. My truck is a "pavement pounder"... I'm thinking about getting into hauling a 3 car trailer with it so I don't pull a 17K trailer now but I might.



245 is just fine - it's what I had on my Ricksons. Except I had load range H (4940# per tire!).



Overall, I think you're right. Between pushing the limits of the tire vs having a large safety margin, and the 1 choice of tire vs probably 100 choices with 19. 5's , I think that is probably the way to go.

 

[RLinkins]

Don't want to steal this post but I am looking at this conversion, but I am running 38's right now, is there anyone who makes a tire like these "semi" tires in a 38"-40" range?

 

[EricBu12]

in the 38" range, you would need to get 22. 5" rims



The michelin 285/70R 19. 5 is 35" diameter.



The michelin 9R 22. 5" is 38" and the 11R 22. 5 is 41"



heres a table on the michelin site

http://www.michelintruck.com/michelintruck/productguide/newprod/TireSpecs.jsp?tread=XDE+M/S



And here is a table in the Ricksons site,

http://www.ricksontruck.com/tires_28570R195.html



The 35" tire is 11. 1" wide so even if you loose 3" of diameter, your mileage will increase because you have a 4" skinnier tire.

Overall width even on the 22. 5" is like 11. 2"



Seems like thats that in the commercial tire area.

 

[RLinkins]

Awsome now where can I get these 22. 5" wheels?

 

[EricBu12]

Heres one place



http://www.stocktonwheel.com/military_wheels.htm



http://www.semitrailers.net/whcovers.html



http://www.phoenixusa.com/catalog/index.php?cat=20



The Phoenix USA site seems to have the Alcoa rims...



Remember on the 22. 5 Rims, you will need adapters so you will have a total of 64 lugnuts when you are done... Thats why I went with the 8 lug Ricksons Aluminum rims... Also uses the factory caps.

 

[willysrule]

EricBu12 your truck looks great with those wheels... I'm wanting to order a set myself now... :-laf