Just curious about what people opinions, thoughts, or facts are of a 15 inch rim vs a 17 inch rim in terms of performance offroad assuming the same tire and psi.

For the sake of argument(since I know someone will say, what type of tires,etc), lets say 37x12.5x15 and 37x12.5x17 Goodyear MTrs. Also for the sake of argument, assume that neither rim is beadlocked but are 8" wide.

Lets assume the terrain is pretty much anything but mud bogs. Snow, sand, rocks, etc.

We can leave the price difference out of the works since I will not consider it to be a factor.

I see the 17" not allowing as much tire flex because of less sidewall. But at the same time, at the same PSI, the 17" tire should make for more clearance.

17" = gay....i don't understand why......

maybe the fact that a 17" rim turns a tire much better than a 15"

The 17's are always more stable off camber and gunracer1 is correct the 17's also turn better.

i am swiching to 17 on my rig for the following reasons.

1. i am :rainbow: :flipoff2:
2. better sidwall aspect ratio
3. allows bigger brakes


so what we really need to discuss is the merits or side wall aspect ratio.

less sidewall roll equalls better handling. if your sidwall is all rolled over you do not have very good directional control of your rig. for persise tire placement in rocks you must be able to accurately steer your rig.

Originally posted by bignissan
17" = gay....i don't understand why......

Sounds like you're just mad because you can't afford them or the tires :flipoff2:

My 17s will be here next week. I guess I'm :rainbow:

I'm not :rainbow: yet, but I wanna be...

what kind of 17's are you guys running? Allied? or some other variant? How much have they set you back?

I am considering the same route... by the time I get a set to go on one ton axles I'll actually have one ton axles and Krawlers will be affordable... :flipoff2:

for now 15" rims are staying in the closet with me, but i can dream of that day of ultimate freddom can't I?

I will be doing a writeup on Allied's new affordable 17" beadlock, and 37 x 17 BFG Krawlers in the VERY near future. I will compare them to the performance of my current 15" Allied beadlocks with 38.5 SX's.

ah yes, but will I be able to buy the krawlers from you when the "experiment" is through? :flipoff2:

Damn I wish I could find somebody who would hook me up with some used krawlers...

For all the guys raving about the improved stability of 17' rims, are yall running the same size tire? Wouldn't it be better for a different size rim for each tire size? If it matters that much about the size rim then why are the new 40" BFG's and MTR's using 17" rims? If a 37" tire is better on a 17" rim (which has a 10" sidewall)than on a 15" rim (which has a 11" sidewall), then why are the new 40's on 17" rims (which has a 11.5" sidewall). I could be wrong but it seems to me that no matter how tall the tire if the width, sidewall strength, sidewall height, and air pressure are the same then they should all flex the same. According to the 17" fan logic then the new 40's should be on 20" rims. Also why not a 9" or 8.5" heck why not a 2.5" sidewall. I think it does improve stability with a shorter sidewall. I just don't see how it makes that much difference on large size tires. I personaly think it has to do with sidewall ply/thickness/stiffness more than anything else. Get what ever size you want. Get 15's if money is an issue, get 17's if you like the newest thing out there. I like 15's but went with 16.5 because I like hummer wheels. Just my .02 worth.

dont get 17 inch rims, go with 15

Originally posted by Lance
I will be doing a writeup on Allied's new affordable 17" beadlock, and 37 x 17 BFG Krawlers in the VERY near future. I will compare them to the performance of my current 15" Allied beadlocks with 38.5 SX's.

I'll definately look forward to this. A no bullshit report :p

:rolleyes: For some reason, I knew the ":rainbow:" stuff was coming :rolleyes:

Hmmmmm, alot of :rainbow: talk going on but no one has said anything about the Bling Blink factor:flipoff2:

I got 17s because I got the tires for them. I'm not complaining about the fact that I can now run a deeper backspacing and clear my brakes, bringing me in about 7" narrower.


I got a serious deal on Allied's so that's the route I took. I may sell them later and switch to Walker's wheels but for now money is tight, Walker isn't selling yet, and Allied's fit the bill.

I will be doing a writeup on Allied's new affordable 17" beadlock, and 37 x 17 BFG Krawlers in the VERY near future. I will compare them to the performance of my current 15" Allied beadlocks with 38.5 SX's.
Any way to do a true apples to apples comparo, 15s vs 17s in the same tire diameter JUST varying aspect ratio?

Randii

I want them because high school chicks dig em.. and the stability is nice cause it gives me an excuse :flipoff2:

the reason not to step up to 20" rim on the 40's and such would probably for cost reasons. Not many 20 inch rockcrawling rims are made, and very few tires as well. Why make a product that has no market? they won't make it till there is demand for it, since it is otherwise a waste of production space.

Originally posted by Blue 84
Hmmmmm, alot of :rainbow: talk going on but no one has said anything about the Bling Blink factor:flipoff2:

:rainbow: does not necesarrly mean gay as in homosexual but it sure can mean gay as in bling bling. i used :rainbow: to mean gay bling bling.

Anybody know where I can get 17x8 steel wheels? I am having a hard time findings an affordable set. (this is for my Crown Vic, so I need the 5 on small bolt pattern).

JYS

Am I missing something? I thought the 37”X17” band wagon all ready came around and everybody who was gonna jumped on and then found out the a 37”X17” tires Load Rating was either a (D) or (E) with too stiff of a tread to flex/conform to the rocks and loosing traction was about all these were good for.
Does this thread bring back any memories?
MT/R 37x12.5x17 Junk? (http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=68278&highlight=load+range+E)
I thought the Curries went back to the 37"X15" on the front of the Fire ant sacrificing better steering control for better traction also.
I guess I just don't understand why it seems like last year 37"X17" tires seemed to be all the rage and then some threads comparing traction to the 37"X15" the 17"ss got a bad rap and most people where glad to here this before they laid down the $$$ for a set of 17" rims & tires, which in my case it was to late already had them on the way and still have them now and I'll live with'em :D .
For me I would just rather have a 37"X17" with a (C) load rating to get back some of the flex/conforming to the rocks.

Originally posted by randii
[B]
Any way to do a true apples to apples comparo, 15s vs 17s in the same tire diameter JUST varying aspect ratio?

Randii

i had bfg MT 35 x 15 on my suburban i now have bff 35 x 18 on my crew cab. the rigs are similar weight and wheel base. ( ok so they are close :D )

the 18" rim has less side wall flex and it is very noticable in the amount the vechile drifts about. i actually hated the 35 on a 15 rim on my sub and switched to a 33. the 18" rim is much more stable esecially while towing large loads. maybe thats why the f550 come with 19.5 rims

Originally posted by tonto
Am I missing something? I thought the 37”X17” band wagon all ready came around and everybody who was gonna jumped on and then found out the a 37”X17” tires Load Rating was either a (D) or (E) with too stiff of a tread to flex/conform to the rocks and loosing traction was about all these were good for.
Does this thread bring back any memories?
MT/R 37x12.5x17 Junk? (http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=68278&highlight=load+range+E)

I think you missed where I said "For arguments sake, lets use the MTR's as a base tire". For some reason, a lot of people can't think without having an example in front of them:p Here, let me cross out MTR's and throw in.... hell... a BFG Krawler.

My main interest is in whether the 17s will perform better than 15s for tires of a comparible type. I'm not fixated on a particular brand, style, or size of tire. Things like the "improved" steering due to less side wall, let tire flex, and similar type information is what I'm really after.

But thanks for pointing me out that thread... interesting thing to know about the MTRs:)

Originally posted by tonto
Am I missing something? I thought the 37”X17” band wagon all ready came around and everybody who was gonna jumped on and then found out the a 37”X17” tires Load Rating was either a (D) or (E) with too stiff of a tread to flex/conform to the rocks and loosing traction was about all these were good for.
Does this thread bring back any memories?
blah blah blah....

Yes, the 37 x 17 MTR is an "E" load tire. The BFG 17's are "C" load. The new 40 x 17 MTR is a "C" load. Don't know if GY plans on a "C" load 37 or not.

Originally posted by Lance


Yes, the 37 x 17 MTR is an "E" load tire. The BFG 17's are "C" load. The new 40 x 17 MTR is a "C" load. Don't know if GY plans on a "C" load 37 or not.

Lance is the compound on these tires, I assume you are talking about the Krawlers being a (C) going to be trail only or will it be good for D.D.?
Also the last I heard the Krawlers would only ever be produced for competition or offroad only and eveything BFG is learning from them will be put into the next generation K/M, is this true or false as far as you know?
40"X17" MTR's are a (c) load rating right now but I understand DOT is very hesitant on approving a tire in that size in a (c) load rating I hope they can keep it in a (c) but I fear to make the DOT happy and get there stamp of approvall it will be released in a (d) or (e)

The biggest problem I see with 17" rims is tire selection. It's either an MTR or a Krawler....sure the Krawler might be bad ass, but I can't see dropping that much cash and then only having two tires two pic from:rolleyes: I like swampers anyways:D

37 x 17 BFG Mud terrains and all terrains are "C" load too. Krawlers will be fine on the pavement.

Originally posted by tonto
The Krawlers being a (C) going to be trail only or will it be good for D.D.?What for? The entire purpose of the Krawler is ultimate rock traction, with "road characteristics" being a non-factor.

If you wand a DD tire, get a BFG MT or an MT/R.

Originally posted by TNToy
What for? The entire purpose of the Krawler is ultimate rock traction, with "road characteristics" being a non-factor.

If you wand a DD tire, get a BFG MT or an MT/R.

That's a good point, I really just want to be able to drive to and from the trail on em, not so much a D.D. anymore.