I am running 4 bfg a/t with 25,000kms on them. Did sum 4x4in this long weekend and managed to gash the sidewalls on the 2 drivers side tires.. Front went flat and rear is okay but ill need to replace it as its showing chords. I figure ill just buy 2 tires and throw them on the back and put my old ones on the front.

My question is how often do you guys gash the sidewalls of ur tires beyond repair? This is my first and I hope last time doing this heh, I was always told bfg's had really tough sidewalls is this true?? I had them aired down to about 20psi, did that contribute to their demise??

any tips would be great guys

 

Not sure, i have some little chunks out of mine.

I don't think the road hazzard would cover it, since it happened off road. You could take it to the tire shop and see if they will replace it for you.

 

I did it once, caught a sharp rock and blocked the entire trail for a good 10 mins. Airing the tires down to 12psi the last trip and i avoided any issues, i had the tires at 20psi the time before.

 

havent had any issues with mine...had a friend who had two of his slashed though...

 

the only problem ive had with my bfg a/t's is the bogus tread life. a guy i work with said he has just about 45,000 miles on his and it was time for replacing. mine have approx. 20,000 and they are just about shot. i would have been better off with super swampers or a mud terrain.

my tires were rotated and the truck had alignments and all that good stuff during their use too.

 

It happens! Dont matter what kinda tire you have.....the most puncture resistant sidewalls I have seen are swamper SXs..the sidewalls are 6 to 10 ply bias and are literally like 3/4 inch thick... this last weekend I saw a swamper IROK take a 6 inch hole in the side of it from a log and a pro crap tire went bye bye too...

 

I tore a 6" gash in my new IROK a couple months ago. Caught it on a tree branch.

That was painfull.

 

I am very unimpressed with IROKS from what I have seen....yes the compound is soft and grippy but almost too soft making them prone to chunking and tears

 

Seems they all die. The reward of hard wheeling...

 

Yep. I've gashed a bias-ply TSL, two Buckshot Mudders (one was on my truck, the next was the spare. That was a fun trip), and an Irok.

It just happens. You can prevent it from happening by airing down - I'd try to hit 15psi, and go from there. I usually run my BFG M/Ts at 12ish.

 

sounds like a plan ill try runnin 15psi next trip to start.

 

I always ran my bfgs around 10-12 pounds....experiment and see what works best....usually they dont start flexing until UNDER 15 lbs depending on how broken in they are. If you have a compressor (that can re-seat bead) or a spare tire you can go even lower. The lower you go the smoother the ride off road and better traction you will have.

 

ya my only thought was tho if its lower psi like 12psi for instance then the sidewalls would be less resistant to tears due to the lower pressure? Only the tread would be better off. But im probably wrong

 

i've never slashed my bfg mud but i've seen at least 40-50 tires that where cut/slashed in my tire shop days (only ever saw 1 bfg mud that had a sidewall cut and probably 4-5 bfg a/t's)

 

Actually, at lower PSI, the sidewalls are MORE resistant to tears. Think about a balloon - If you inflate it really large, it doesn't take much to pop it. If you just barely inflate it, you can sit there and jab it all day long and it won't pop, because the balloon just sort of yields to the pressure. By allowing the sidewalls to flex with less pressure in them, they will "bend" around sharp rocks and stumps and stuff without being cut.



See how the sidewall of the tire just bends around the rock?

 

I usually trash 1 or two tires per season.

I buy the 20 dollar road hazard on every new set of tires I buy. It always pays for itself.

I just take them in, and get new tires, and go out. No charge.

 

ditto on axle ike's comments. if you do heavy tire bashing, road hazard just makes sense. any inflatable rubber tire will puncture if you poke it just right.

hey long silver: are your bfg's the new style "ko's" which have that new rim guard dealy? i was wondering if they really made any sidewall improvement when they added that or if its just marketing dazzle.

 

yea road hazard is the way to go usally 10% of the cost of the tire

 

The rim guard's been around for several years, so it's not quite new anymore. But, it does help. My road home is fairly nastly.....shale, large jutting rocks, etc. I've managed to slash a sidewall atleast once with any brand tire I've ever had, but the rim guard has helped.

 

I don't do anything in the rocks, or try not to, so the trails I run the rim guard collects mud and forces it into the bead and causes flats. I have gone up to the tire place a few times thinking I needed a patch when it just needed to be cleaned and re-seated.