Big tires, little lift

[Mieser]

I don't really get on the board as much as I would like but I thought you guys might want to see my new project truck.....



I am in the middle of redoing the body to allow 39s without any lift other than a leveling spring in front. The tires are 325/85r16 Michelin XMLs. They measure out to a true 38.5" tall.

So far so good. I still have to fill/sand/prime/paint, and rebuild the front inner fenders, but the concept is there.

Its kinda like driving a hot wheels truck around. It gets a lot of 2nd looks, it looks deceptively small for running such a large tire.

Enjoy.

[CE_TX]

I like it, a lot!

Where did you get your tires?

[Mieser]

I got the tires used. Once in a while you can find them from surplus shops.

[gear jammer 91"]

Looks good. what kinda tread life do you think you will get with those tires? I've heard some of them wear like iron.

[Mieser]

They seem to be wearing really well.

I am at a minimum the 3rd owner of the tires and they are still about 80-85% of original tread. They can also be recut once you get down to the wear bars.

They seem to be standing up to the weight of the truck much better than most tires I have seen. I only have to run them at 30psi in the front. The max load is about 5000lbs PER tire at 50psi. These are steel belted sidewall radial tires also....they seem to hold weight well and do not flat spot at all.

I really wish I could find another one for a spare.

[PJ 3]

There's a guy up by my place that sells those tires. I do believe he buy's them surplus from the military. My buddy is building a chev/cummins right now and he just purchased 4 tires with 80 % tread on them for 240 bucks. They are one wicked tire. I couldn't believe how thick the side walls were ! Did you cut the front fenders ?

[wjones]

38x13x16 makes me wish i had 4.10 gears

[Mieser]

There is a link in my sig that has all the build up details.

I basically lengthened the fender openings 6" in back and 8" in front by sectioning the fenders in both fore and aft. It really opened up the fenders and I clear the 39s no problem.

The truck only has a leveling spring in front.

The tires are 38.5" tall true dia. They are bigger than the size suggests.

3.55 gears are not that bad really, 4.10s would be nice, but I think I am going to go with 3.73s instead. I am swapping in a 14-bolt GM rear axle that is a little wider than the stock D70. Hopefully this will help me keep from tubbing the rear wheel wells out.

[Swaggs]

hah, nice style. thats like military humvee style, not too high and huge tires.. i wish i could fit larger tires on mine to lower my drive ratio due to it being a getrag and having to shift every 3/4s of a second. I will look at your write up, i would love to fit 35's without much lift, as my wife is about 5' and can barely get in it stock

[Mieser]

Well, long time no update on here......

I thought new paint and some tires and wheels where worth it.



38.5x13.5x17 pitbull maddog radials on 17x9" steel wheels.

[Tacoclaw]

I love that truck, man.

I bet you missed those $400 military tires when you priced those pitbulls, huh?

Can't believe you got rid of those spoke wheels though, I'd love to find a set for my truck around here.

[Mieser]

Thanks.

I was planning on keeping the aluminum wheels but pitbull didn't have any of the 16" versions and didn't know when they would. The new 9" wide wheels make the tire sit MUCH better. I think 16 and 16.5s are going away, so it was time to step up to 17".

[Tacoclaw]

No doubt. I gave up on 16.5 stuff a long time ago, but it'll be a sad day when 16" stuff is as limited as them.

How long before we're all forced to roll on dubs?