Looking at a 550 4x4 for the ultimate tow rig for a 3 car hauler and to haul my toy hauler .Well I saw that it has 19.5 wheels on them curious if you air those down for sand dunes or are they like 16.5 an can debead ? Also are those trucks same bolt pattern as a f350 .Going to dealer to check one out today .Was maybe going to get some other wheels for the dunes like some 17-18 or something the rearend is huge on these trucks some clearance issuse possibly .Any help would be great thx

IIRC the 550s have a different lug pattern than your typical 8 lug. I wouldl like to say they are 10 lug but not 100%. What year is it?

Pattern is 8-on-220mm. They changed to a 10lug for '05. Rear axle is a Dana 135 - clearance is deceiving though since its a stamped steel housing rather than cast.

All the half-size wheels have the same style bead (i.e. 16.5, 17.5, 19.5, 22.5). Dunno about airing them down though... doesn't seem like a good idea on a dually.

19.5 tires are not made with flexible sidewalls so they will not work well aired down and the duals will rub together risking a blowout. You could run some super singles but it would be real expensive. (Thinking out loud) A F550 4x4 stuck in the sand,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Hmmmmmmm I am thinking you are going to need the Arny Corps Engineers to get it unstuck. LOL

Super singles are pretty sweet...until you get a flat. I don't think you can beat the look, but the price and the issues that arrise if you get a puncture make it pretty tough to justify in my mind.

The bead area on the LT style wheels is quite different that your standard passenger car wheel or even BUD dually wheel, it doesen't provide much "shelf" area for the sidewall to sit on, much more gradual curve, relies more on the higher pressures to keep it centered and supported. I wouldn't run pressure under 60 spi on those suckers. You do have some options, I'm trying to remember, but I recall seeing a lifted F-superduty that used an alcoa dump truck wheel, I think like 22.5x12 or something, and military tires. That would give you tons of floatation.

edit, found one siliar-
http://www.off-roadweb.com/features/0406or_bigblack/

DO a search on the turtle expedition f 550 take a look at those wheels and tires on his 550 it's got about a 4 inch lift it is super sweet and he has no issues airing down.

The wheels may have the same lug pattern, But the smaller diameter ones may not clear the brakes. Remember, this is almost an F 600, so it may have some major brakes on it. We haul logs with a 3/4 ton with a 6500# gooseneck trailer and usually haul 16 tons of wood each trip. Sometimes we make 6 loads a day and the mill is over 30 miles away. Don't get me wrong, you know there is a load behind you. If I had a 550 I would haul that much on the truck itself and would pull a trailer with some more on it. I think people buy too much truck. I had an 00 cab/chassis 350 4x4 that hauled a 30 000# Cat D-5 just fine. But, you can sometimes get a lot more truck for the same or very little more money. Good Luck

anyone try an older 10 lug wheel on a newr truck ? talked to stockton wheel about some custom 17 " wheels at 205 each

88-97 = 10 on 7.25"
05-up = 10 on 225mm

EDIT: Those older F-Superduty wheels are only 16". The GM 10-luggers 19.5" (P-series and 3500HD) Are the same pattern... I don't know about the center-hole size though.