How many pounds of sand bags needed for winter traction

[JB @ C and L Machine]

bob... lol. . I wish... its jus an old piece of steel about 30x30x6 that was left over from a steel mill that we used to do biz with. On our Isuzu NPR. . we use old forlift counter weight that comes in at 2000lbs

 

[JJW_ND]

Sipe your tires!

Skip all the weight and just have your tires siped.



Even all season highway tread siped will out do the most agressive grip tire on compacted snow or ice.



Very Icy in ND today, and my less then 3/32 tread Toyos but siped still allowed me to drive anywhere in just 2WD.



Siped Aggressive tread tires is like driving with chains..... Almost!



jjw

ND

 

[EShaw]

JJW-ND

Siped ? OK I'm gonna fall for it... . What's siped? Is it anything like snipe huntin' with a net and flashlight at night?

Eric

 

[David_VT]

My first winter I ran with 8 bags of sand. The best thing was the improved ride quality as the beast actually used the springs for a change. I did not notice any better traction.



I still have a vivid image in my head from seeing Willyslover's truck and all the damage those sandbags did to his bed and cab. I have never loaded sand bags since.



An unsecured load is one 'BOMB' you don't want.

 

[GSchlegel]

Re: #s of sand

Originally posted by Shovelhead

What's your recomendation for us non-FWD guys? ie. 4X2, 6X4

I put a little over 1,600# of sand bags in the bed of my 3500 under the tannue cover along with log chain, tool box, bed liner, etc. Probably close to 2,000# total. No problems getting around yet and like others have said, the ride improves.

Gene

 

[klenger]

Tire siping:



Here's an explanation. http://www.discounttire.com/tireSiping.html



I think that the Michelin LTX M/S tires are pre siped when they are made.



I found this on the Discount Tire web site also. Tire Math 101.



http://www.discounttire.com/tireMath.html

 

[JohnE]

Normally, I use a wood bridge deck for winter weight. It just fits between the fender wells and is full bed length. The bed mat plops back on top. I run a strap on the rear bed hooks just in case.



Properly siped tires are great. A bad sipe job will ruin a tire faster than underinlfation. I have one tire literally in self destruct mode from a bad sipe job. The idiot cut twice as many slits. this is fine of the slits are shallow. Whena they are 2/3 to 3/4 of the tread depth it will not be good. This was from Les Schwab, too. I had all four tires (new) siped at the same time. 2 are great, 2 are not. Go figure?



Got caught in a early season blizzard on Wednesday. I pulled the topper so without tht 300+ pounds I was not having an easy time in the snow. The bridge deck is 30 miles away. I called a local machine shop to loan me some scrap from the yard. The loader operator hooked me a Cummins BIG CAM block for the back. THAT I have laced down with straps. Truck sure runs good with 2 Cummins aboard to balance the load.



-John

<font size=1>I added more words to better explain the I TRIED TO BY-PASS THE CUSSING FILTER poor siping from Les Schwab. </font>

 

[illflem]

Ken, great link on siping. One thing the link failed to mention is that siped tires run cooler and hence last longer. I have had all my new tires siped for years, consider it just as necessary as balancing, never had a problem. Sort of scary watching them do it though, taking a brand new tire and cutting it up.

 

[Hammer]

Siping or Sniping,oh brother!!!!

as I now am picking my a*% off the floor from laughing to hard,siping or sniping,man you guys are killin me here,,A properly siped tire will always provide a better bite for your truck along with a cooler tire temp,,illflem,scary tire siping eh??,,Try this $180 to $280 for a right rear sprint car tire depending where you are and what supplier you deal with and their demand on the tire that you choose,THEN sipe it for more bite and to keep it cool so it does not blister so you MAY get more than one race on the tire,thats scary and hard on ones wallet,our truck tires scary I'd say not maybe a little nervous,thats all,,Certainly Willys lover is ok,BUT,I'd like to see the video of the sandbag meets head episode,never break golden rule #1 of hauling-ALWAYS secure your load,no matter what,,As far as weight in my truck NEVER,Pull the little lever back and hit the loud pedal,thats what she's been bought for,,I've been even known to use it on a heavy rainfall day at times,,BOMBed trucks and slick roads are a handfull at times. .

 

[CumminsPower98]

Fat tires??

Does anyone have snow experince with the BFG A/T's in the size I have? (33x12. 5. 16. 5) I feel like they will probably be really bad in the snow because they are so wide. I have not had a chance to test them out yet. Thanks

 

[Pit Bull]

Here is my experence comparing Michelin LTX/MS to the BFG AT/KO's in the 275/70/16 size. Now this is with a Toyota Landcruiser with lockers. I live on top of a "small mountain" in SW Missouri, very steep private road, so steep that the county won't take care of it. Kinda like a roller coaster ride when you first start up that first long climb (you get the picture). When I had the Michelins on the LC and we had 10" of snow it would take me 3 or 4 trys to get to the top with a running start off the hiway. With the BFG's it would walk right up. GREAT TRACTION! Now if the snow is to "wet" with Ice under it nothing but chains will work but I found the BFG AT/KO's to be an improvement over the Michelin LTX/MS on my Landcruiser. Sorry no experence yet with my Dodge (just got it) Hope this helps

Denny

 

[CumminsPower98]

Thanks D Latimer, that sounds really good but how wide are your LC's tires? I am still concerned about the width. Mine make about a 10" foot print. I'm sure I will find out one of these days. I'm lucky cause we don't get much snow down here in Moab, Ut.

 

[JJW_ND]

I like the sniping better!

Two tire shops here in Bismarck sipe. If you pull allot you should only have the sipe cut 50% through the tread. If you go all the way down you could tear blocks and feather the cut edges pretty back. Speaking from experiece.



What I have done to take the most advantage of a siped tire is sipe each fall just before the snow comes. Until I switched to the Toyo M55 I as adveraging a new set of rubber every 11 months (about 30 - 35K). I got 60K out of the first set of M55 and have just short of 70K on the second set. If the tires will make a second season, I have the resiped full depth the second fall. Even with less the 4/32 left the sipes kept me on the road this week.



Siping cost here is from $8 to $10 per tire. Have to remove wheel from truck but not dismount tire from wheel.



After a few miles and a little wear you can hardly slide your hand against the sipes. This really increases the braking grip and reverse traction..... never get stuck again!



jjw

ND

 

[EShaw]

Now I understand completely... ... I guess I don't need my step stool and yellow and purple hat to get my tires siped after all. But seriously folks, I read the thread and it makes sense, I'm gonna check it out here in N. J. to see if it's available.



Eric