fourwheeler article
good info on why real beadlocks are not good for the street and why fake beadlocks are good for the rocks!

 

I just want to add a few bits of wisdom to an otherwise very good article.

They can be good for the street, just not on your average wheeling rig. For cars that accelerate quickly on pavement, bead-locks keep the tires from spinning on the rims. This is handy for the import-tuner crowd, etc...

Regarding street legality, it's not the design of bead-locks that makes them "unsafe" on the roads. The manufacturers created them for off-road use, and to save on manufacturing cost they don't bother going through the whole DOT process. Actually, there is a brand or two that sells DOT-approved bead-locks.

In a perfect world, I would have a set of ATs on normal rims for commuting, and a set of burly Swampers/BFGs/etc. on bead-locks for the weekends.

Jim

 

When we went out to Reiter a couple weeks back, I noticed the difference between the rock crawlers and my street locks. Josh (DeathCougar) has the rock crawlers on his 87 4Runner, and after airing back up, he found that 2 of this tires were leaking air at the bead. Again, I was pleased to find that my tires were sealed at the bead as usual. The rockcrawlers bead lips are just too thin to air down very far without deforming them. The extra thick welded on ring that my wheels have on them makes them superior in strength. I think that the beadlock appearance is just the icing on the cake. And for a little more $$ a wheel than the standard rockcrawlers, they are certainly a good deal.

 

I'd be interested as to what he aired down to, and what width his rims & tires were (and tire height). All that can factor in.

Then you can add on the factor of getting crap (sticks, mud, etc.) lodged in-between the tire and rim when the air pressure is lower. Too bad for him...

Jim

 

Does anyone have information on the street legal bead locks? the real ones

 

Here's Off Road Only's new Rocklox - DOT approved beadlock wheel. Bolt patterns for Toyota...

only $495.00 EACH :pat:

They are preselling them now.

 

Yup, I was just gonna post that.

There is another brand too...but I think they are only making rims for full-size Ford/Chevy/Dogde...etc...

Jim
edit: hence my "perfect world" post...regular bead-locks for the weekend and AT's for the commute

 

Potentially being in this market some time, I read these threads with much enthusiasm.

It is curious to me that of all that I have read, none have offered a concrete reason as to what tests were failed so that real beadlocks were not DOT legal.

My humble opinion is that comparatively, they are made in such small volume, it is not practical to test them on the road by the powers that be. Not to mention that if you are wheeling hard enough to need them, you likely are not driving something at 75 everyday.

The rims of my steel Eatons are beat, but I have never lost the bead or done so much damage so as to lose pressure because of rim deformation.

I am not trying to be snide, but if anyone has a concrete "These rims failed this test" I would really like to read and understand it.

Please buy the street locks so that when I have real ones I can say the are fake and hopefully the cop will know no better.

 

Yup. I'm pretty sure they just have not even been through testing at all...
If anyone thinks the bolts are hazardous and might fly off at high speeds...take a look at the weights used to balance tires/rims...those are just squeezed on the rims.

Jim

 

How many cops do you think are going to know what beadlocks are?

 

Flygtenstein,

From the article,
"The fact is that before and after every trail outing, you’ll need to check the torque on the bead-lock ring-bolts. Further, if any of the bolts are broken, you’ll need to replace the entire set. Did we say broken bolts? Yes, we did. You see, the bolts that hold your bead-lock ring in place are handling the load of keeping the tire on the rim. This load is concentrated on the bolts rather than all around the rim edge, as on a standard wheel. After a while, these bolts reach their stress limit and break. This is why more bolts are better. This is one of the reasons that bead-lock wheels are not DOT-approved for highway use. This means that you’ll need two sets of wheels if you plan on driving your trail rig on the street. Bead-lock wheels are great for rockcrawling, but are not suitable for street use."

It would suck if a couple bolts failed while doing 70mph on the freeway.

 

I really don't know real-world statistics...but it seems about as likely as my plastic valve caps flying off while I'm cruising down the highway.

Just my $.02...

Jim

 

I believe that he was aired down to 14psi running 31x10.5x15" MT's. I was aired down to 18psi and running the same size tire ProComp MT's. I believe that my truck is also a lot heavier since it is a V6, and I carry all sorts of stuff in the back of it. We both have canopies (I have a p/u and he has a 1st gen 4Runner). I also know from experience in the snow early this year that I didn't lose a bead even aired down to 0psi which was required at the time for floatation on the snow. I have bashed my wheels hard, and the reinforced lip has held up. I am completely satisfied with the performance.

 

Champion Wheel has some good comments:

Beadlocks and DOT

Unless things have changed at DOT, there was no set of regulations specifically concerning beadlocks. I think the main issue is the weight rating of the wheel, since the wheel was built by one company then the beadlock installed by another, there is no telling how the modified wheel will perform under load. Champion lists a 1500 lb. weight rating on their wheels. The A/R wheels they start with are rated at 1580 lb/wheel, so they don't lose much in the way of strength.

Interesting comments on street vs. bead locks. I talked to a CHP officer once about beadlocks and he was planning to get a set for his truck for when he drives it out to the desert.

 

Thanks for the links Mr. Brown.

Around here, I doubt that a cop would have any idea one way or another what a beadlock was, but at the same time, I would never drive around with locks that had flaming pink rings that scream pull me over.

Out west, I bet the cops know, or at least some do. Could be a crap shoot though because the ones who know are either wheels who would not give you a hard time or ticketers who would give you static.

As for the bolts dying, the fractional load increase on a 32 bolt beadlock if two bolts were to have sudden and catastrophic failure would likely not blow the rest and lose the tire.

 

That's what I figure too. But, I bet if you go to someplace like moab, all the cops know the rules concerning off roaders.

 

Regarding Moab, my understanding is the rules are pretty strict, but when you are an out of stater at a big event, they don't crack on any body.

Last time I was out there, some of the stuff going down the street screamed pull me over, but no one seemed to have a problem. Now that I think of it, I am not sure that I actually even saw a cop out there.

Coloradans can get away with most anything.

I hear Cali is uber strict if you run into the wrong people.

Not sure about Arizona, anyone?

 

Seafaringman,

Does Josh have the "real" Tech1 rockcrawlers, or a set of clones. I've got a set of the Tech1's, have aired down to ~15 PSI, undoubtedly have a heavier vehicle, and have not had any trouble at all, so I'm tending to think that Deathcouger is an unusual circumstance. Could it possibly be the wrong tire on the rim? Anyways, great info on beadlocks, just didn't want anyone getting a bad impression of the rockcrawlers from a single incident.

 

You know I am not sure exactly which rockcrawlers he is running on his rig. They might be the American Racing wheels, or the ones that Rob is running. I can't remember whether he has the red and blue stripes on the wheel. I know that he has a different set of tires front and rear even though they are the same size (31x10.5x15"). I am not saying that there is anything wrong with the rockcrawler wheels, I am only saying that for the small difference in price I am glad that my wheels have the reinforced welded steel ring on the lip that is stronger than the standard rockcrawler wheels because it has more material to deflect impacts. I have had wood debris jammed between the tire and wheel bead from the 3 ft drop off at Tahuya the first month that I had my wheels, and there was no leakage of air around the wheel. I have wheeled with him a couple times at least, and he didn't have any problems with air leaking that I know of before.

 

seafarinman,

I was looking at these wheels for a future purchase. It sounds like you like them. Can you give me anymore insight into these wheels? I'm not sure what else you can say other than they kick butt but who knows...

I have a 4wheelsparts store down the street from me and after a lift I'm settign my sights on these wheels and some sort of tire.