algranger

front so you can turn it will help a lot, the rear wont help you much in the corners.

seafarinman

I wonder how hard it would be to find chains for my 37's and my 38's? I destroyed a set of chains a couple years back when it was snowing a lot at Whidbey Island. I was going 35mph and then the chains came apart, and started hitting my bedsides. BTW if someone needs some chains for a 31x12.5x15 tire, I have a set new in the box that I don't need anymore as I don't have tires that small anymore.

CoedNaked

Chains Illegal in Canada?

We have signs & areas to chain up on various highways in BC last I checked.

notanymore

do they fit 31x10.50 size also?


i figure put them in the back, but i do have a locker so it makes it really easy to make the rear slide out.

funjumper

Last time I wen to Lake Tahoe duing bad weather, (it has been a while) the chain requirements were maxed out - 4WD with chains. I had two sets and put them on. They closed Hwy 80 about an hour later.

If you have one set, put them on the rear.

Take along a small tarp, a quality 30 gallon garbage bag, and a couple of 2x4 blocks, 4-5" long. Lay out the chains on the ground. Put the blocks about 3-4 sections into the chains, then drive the tires up onto the blocks so that the tires are off the ground. Then you can move the chains around and tighten them up without a hassle. Use the tarp to kneel on or lay down on. Chainup areas are usually pretty messy. Toss the tarp and the blocks into the garbage bag when you are done. That will keep things clean and dry.

Practice putting the chains on a few times before you get up to where you need them. That will ensure that they fit, and that you can put them on quick and easy. The chain up area is not the place to figure out if they fit and how to put them on.

seafarinman

I will look at the box and check. I have V6 Lockrights front and rear on my 94 truck, but I haven't had the chance to take it out in the snow since the SAS.

AxleIke

Not hard at all. This is where I got mine from:

http://www.tirechain.com/TRUCK-SUV-CHAINS.HTM

Scroll down.

ewong

dont recall the cost.
Im older and have kids etc - what ever the cost is - its better than an insurance deductable. I guess is $120 for the tire and another $15 for studs

I get them from some place in WI - Greer Enterprises?
Yes they ship tires. Funny becuase they dont take much to packaged (like dropping them is gonna hurt em?)

The 235/85R16 is like a 33x9.5

The chains I have were sized for 225/75R15 (28x9.5) so I doubt they'll fit the studded tires.. hmm I ought to check em

mt_goat

This is true, and also depends on rim backspacing and how much lift you have. I just remember running chains on a front wheel drive car once and having some rubbing in the turns. My Bushwacker fender flairs wouldn't hold up long with chains wacking on them. I finally got my tires to quit rubbing them after a 1" body lift. I'll just stick with chaining the rear just to be sure.

Its been my experence that they usually close the road before I'd need 2 sets of chains.

ewong

road closures are weird things..

I was traveling home from CO and there was an ice storm.
As weather moves W to E - I was in the storm the entire way.

I took I70 across until the split and then through to Pittsburgh to the PA TPK/

At some point the interstate was "closed". In the midwest where there are gates - the gates were down.
In the Ohio Valley, there were "contruction" type signs with flashers but nothing else.

There were a number of people still on the road tho.

Everythign was fine until the big pile up near Pittsburgh. The trucks had stopped traffic so they could yank another truck up off the off ramp where it was blocking things and they needed the room on the interstate to hook up the chains.

I stopped as did a line of cars/trucks etc. I knew about it as I had the CB on.

As soon as I stepped out I fell flat on my arse - the road was 2' of snow packed down to 6" of solid ice. Nasty stuff.

Later on in PA - the ice had broken off the road in chunks. It was like driving down the Baja because the road surface was so rutted (6" drops every few feet)..

I had the chains in back but never chained up.

So much for "road closure".

Then there was the time we made it through Monach Pass BEFORE the road closed. People in Telluride look at us like we were ghosts. Then we read the paper. several cars were swept off the pass that night - about 15min after we crested. We have cable chains on a 92 (MKII) Golf.

mt_goat

Sounds like a slide got them, chains won't help much in an avalanche Red mtn pass is bad about that too.

Bighead

Which ones did you end up going with? I have been looking at that site also after seeing the RS chain thread.

sdstud212001

Don't know about you guys but I only run the V bars. they grip even on soild ice.

metalhed

try peerless tires for chains, a good price and many sizes, thye will even let you try them on before buying.

I have always heard... go as far as you can in 4 wheel drive, when you get stuck, put on the chains and get out of there. LOL

On the 84 Toy I had, I ran 4 chains many times, when up hunting, made a huge difference.
Now with the 01 Tacoma, I can only run rear chains, have to invest in some of the slimmer cable chains for up front. Regular chains sit way to close to expensive parts for my taste.

mtnfreak

Funjumper has done all of your research / made all of your mistakes for you. We should all be thankful for people like this.

mt_goat

Yeah those are some great tips, I was wondering if he was one of those guys on the side of the road installing chains for $20.

funjumper

I once made the mistake of buying chains and not practicing before hitting the snow. They didn't fit. After 3 hours of freezing my 'nads off, getting soaked and filthy, and seriously pissing off the girlfriend, I popped for an installer and a set of chains that fit. It was only $125.00 to keep the weekend on track. (1988 dollars) Girlfriend was not impressed with my planning abilities. The weekend could have been way better. Her attitude never recovered. She became an ex-girlfriend not long after that trip.

This was a lesson from the harsh teacher called experience. You get the test first, the lesson later.

The idea for the wood blocks comes from the chain installers. Those guys can slam a set of chains on in well less than 10 minutes. At 25-40 per set (it varies depending on how bad the conditions are) they can make some pretty good cash. I never did that kind of work. I just watched and learned.

I didn't mention that having repair links and the tools to install them is highly recommended. Work out how to do what you need to do at home, when the weather is good. When a cross link breaks and is slapping the hell out of the wheelwell, you want to stop and fix it ASAP. It is pretty scary being an obstacle duing bad weather.

Going faster than 20-25mph with chains on is really stupid. The stresses go up a lot as the speed increases. If you lose a cross link at speed, you won't be able to stop before it is likely you have done damage. Not just body damage. I have seen brake lines torn up by bad chains. If you are with other vehicle(s) and someone starts driving too fast, let them go. No need to be a lemming about it. You should already know where you are going and how to get there. Plan ahead. Be proactive, not reactive.

My friend that lives up at Tahoe had a bad experience when the brakes failed after losing a cross link and damaging a brake line. He didn't notice the damage and the brake fluid leaked out. No brakes = crashed and rolled the truck down a steep ravine. He didn't get hurt, but it totalled the truck. He also got in trouble for leaving the scene. The cops seemed to think that staying with the upside down truck during a snowstorm was preferrable to walking 2 miles home and calling them from there. Fortunately, the judge agreed with my friend, not the cops. The lawyer still cost $$.

If you end up on pavement for any length of time, with chains on, stop and take them off. If you have chains on and one lane has snow/ice, and the other is clear pavement, drive on the snow/ice, not the pavement. Chains on pavement will wear very quickly. The faster you go, the faster they'll wear. SNAP goes the crosslink and you are having big fun all of a sudden. In the unlikely event you get pulled over for no chains, cops in snow country are likely to cut you slack, as long as you have them and are polite. It is NEVER a good idea to cop an attitude with LEOs.

If you have chains and have used them more than a few times, take them out sometime and give them a really close inspection. They wear pretty fast if you run them on pavement much. Repair or replacement at home, during good weather, is the way to go. Roadside repairs can be avoided completely by good planning and execution.

mt_goat

What's a source for those?

ewong

Repair links -

link as per above

http://www.tirechain.com/TireChainParts.htm

funjumper

New chains typically come with a few repair links.

A quick Google search for "tire chain repair parts" came up with

http://tirechain.com/TireChainParts.htm

as the first choice in the non-sponsored links. They have special tools and repair links about 1/2 way down the page. They also have the "self closing" repair links. I am sure that there are other vendors for this stuff. In snow country these tools are usually available, but the prices are a lot higher. It looks like the cool tool and a selection of repair links can be had for less than $30.00. Probably a good invesment if you do a lot of driving with chains on.

I never bought one of the cool repair tools. I used channel locks, vice grips, and medium size needlenose pliars to do what I needed to do.