19864runnerHawaii

Hey i have 11.5" wide Swamper TSL's on 12 or 12.5" wide mickey thompson rims. I want to know..
-How safe it is to go off roading (rocks, climbing, etc.).
-How Much PSI should I keep in the tire without worrying about losing the bead?
-How "SAFE" are they overall for 4wheeling?

THANKS ALOT GUYS!
ALOHA!

RobotMoose

iTrader: (1)

I would not feel comfortable offroading on stretched tires. I'd grand that 1" or so of stretching isn't that extreme, I think that's still more stress on the sidewalls and beads than necessary. Airing down could It could be easy to slipping a bead, or even tearing a sidewall.

That's my 2 cents.

93Xtra-Cab

Also, the rim is more prone to being scraped up by rocks and whatnot.

Are those rims the only option? I'd sell and get skinnier rims. Those are for like 15" wide tires.

19864runnerHawaii

Yes I konw that the tires are only stretched like and inch or so. 1.5in at max. SO I didnt think it would be TOO bad. But im just wondering exactly "HOW" dangerous it could be to off road, or air down.

As for scraping the rim, im not worried about that haha. but you are right about the side wall....

Overall, do you guys think it would be "okay" to off road if Im really cautious about the sidewalls while doing so, and if i dont air down too low??

ps.I would reallly appreciate it if someone could let me know how low i COULD air down my tires if at all possible.. THANKS

19864runnerHawaii

also, either way, im going to run them. so its just a matter of me konwing how I can use them and what my limits are.

RUSHTOY2

a tire thats on its specified rim size may say 50psi cold, well if the wheel is wider then the specified wheel the psi needs to be higher (sayy 60-65psi) so that the bead will seat correctly, airing that tire down more than 10 or 15 psi off road will give it a very high chance of blowing a bead because the way its stretched its naturally truing to separate from the wheel much more than on its specified rim.

19864runnerHawaii

Ok. thanks alot man!! that helps alot!

Now as for the off road PSI, do you mean 10-15 psi TOTAL, or 10-15 psi lower than 65 psi (55-50psi )???

ALOHA!

RUSHTOY2

what does the COLD PSI on the side or your tires say? if it says 50 psi i would run them on the road at probably 60 or 65 psi and would only drop them to 50 to 55 offroad, but at the same time just try to use your judgement. see how the feel. how much they flex. to much flex with that tire on a overly wide wheel will make them blow a bead easily so although flex is good offroad in your case it will leave you stranded with an unseated tire very easily....

19864runnerHawaii

ok thanks alot man I will look at what the cold psi is when i get home. But Cause i seriously had NO idea about stretched tires at all. I just bought them cause i needed new tires. they were nice and got them for a good price.

i will be doing a little off roading, but what about for sand? How low do you think i could go in the sand??? Cause I do nearly ALL my 4wheeling on sand. I will look at the cold psi when i get home and let you know, but what do you think would be safe for sand (giving it says 50psi cold, and i should be running 65) ???

RUSHTOY2

you probably could run alittle lower in the sand if you wanted. maybe closer to 40-45psi as long as you not planning on jumping the truck and not putting most of the pressure of the truck on just one or two of the tires, but the same goes here use you judgement and see how the tires are moving and flexing. every tire and wheel setup is different and you have to use your judgement base off what you personally see and feel.

19864runnerHawaii

ok got it. Thanks alot man!

and MAN JUMPING IS ALL I DO!
nah hahaha im kidding, my truck is always on the floor.
Ok sounds good. Thanks so much man.

ANd just curious, Im not doubting your advice cause I have none and i will DEFINITLY follow your advice, do you have experience with stretched tires??? or are you just knowledgeable in the tire business??

RUSHTOY2

i know a good bit about tires, not to many people around here run streached tires and i havent personally either. i actually run a tire thats suppose to been on a 10 inch wide wheel on a 8 inch wide wheel so that i can run them all the way down to about 8psi without blowing a bead but i did ALOT of research before i got them and i saw alot of people talking about streached tires also and what i've told you is what they've done. also goin along with this you do know that running those tires like that (streached) is going to cause them to wear uneven and terrible fast???

RUSHTOY2

and by the way no problem at all. i'm happy to help

19864runnerHawaii

Theyre actually swamper TSL's which I already KNOW will wear extremely fast. and with what youre telling me, yeah i bet they will, but its too late now... Im hoping i can get atleast a year out of them..... maybe idk, sell them and get different tires, now that im hearing everything that everyones telling me......

What the thing is, is that I live in Hawaii, and for a bit now, the new "style" has been to use ridiculously stretched tires (especially boggers) on their trucks. I personally dont really like the look, but I really liked the rims (mickey thompsons that look like alcoas) and it was a good deal. The rims are in really good condition and have about 60% tread on the tire and got them for $550, so i took them... How does taht compare to deals on the mainland??

RobotMoose

iTrader: (1)

That's actually a killer deal, 550 local to me might net those tires, but not with the rims, but it all depends on the relative market. We have alot of bro-trucks in town, and big tires have a higher demand, so the price goes up.

I don't think your stretched tires are really a death sentence, they might form an inconvenience if they blow beads alot, but if you're going slow and keeping an eye on your PSI, you should be alright.

If you feel like spending the money, ARB sells an air-down tool that makes it easier to control the valves than trying to air your tires down by hands, and I think it comes with a pressure gauge, so you can hit your target and not air down too much.

19864runnerHawaii

I pretty much have enough common sense to know how to air down my tires lol. and i always have a gauge handy when airing down...

And yeah, IM not extremely worried about my tires, and especially cause its 11.5 tires stretched onto 12 rims, so its not a crazy amount of stretch. Ill just to keep an eye on my sidewalls and now put crazy pressure on one at a time like you said... Plus i pretty much stay on sand, cause i just use my truck to get to fishing spots.

Thanks alot for all the advice man. I really appreciate it, cause i couldnt find any information about stretched tires off road anywhere on the internet.

MAHALO!

Yodaforce

I think the one thing you should keep an eye out for is anything that will try to puncture the sidewall. The walls are not as thick and heavy as the tread (BFG is one that started using thicker sidewalls to help prevent puncture). I would just say stay out of brush piles and rock fields). Lol
As stated earlier, you won't be able to air down as much as if you had them on recommended wheels.