Bead lock wheels

[K20chevy]

Hi Everyone. I´m in for a new set of wheels and tires. I wanted to go with bead lock wheels. Does anyone have good/bad experiance with any of those wheels? Any recomendations??

[jumbo2]

I have had a couple sets of beadlocks and can share some info

first set was DIY weld on rings for steel wheels and they work well for a 15,16,17 inch rim but you still can loose the inner bead , but you can weld 3/8 round bar to prevent that as much as possible but not %100 no flat , not street legal in some states

Next are tires and rims using the 16.5 inch rim , many large tires 44 inch tsl bogger and pitbull rockers ext come in 16.5 rim , for a 16.5 the DIY has a very hard time holding the inside bead so the best rim is a H1 hummer rim , trail worth fab will sell you a set of rims and have extra options to make them custom , rock rings , new centers and powder coat and they are a TRUE double beadlock and you dont need a tire machine to change a tire , also they sell millitary tires mostly goodyears and you can get a package deal for $1000 and tires mostly ar 37" tall or rims for $400-$500, these rims only come in like a 8" wide , road legal and dot approved

3rd option is a inner air lock wich is like a tube inside the rim that forces the tire into the beads , this is also a Double beadlock and works with almost any rim tire , down side is there also $500 and dont change the look or add any extra protection and is dot legal i believe

Also if the 16.5 hummer wheel sounds like something your intrested in there is a guy in california called 100dollarman and he sells the h1 rim/tire combos and ships everywhere , he also sell tires up to 46 or 52 inches tall

[83GMCK2500]

There are some DOT Approved beadlock manufacturers out there now...

http://www.high-impact.net/wheels/do..._beadlocks.htm
http://www.rockmonsterwheels.com/products.php

[jumbo2]

I went to 100dollar mans web site and he has 37 inch goodyear radials for 16.5 75-95% tread $100 a piece , thats under a grand rim tire combo

http://www.100dollarman.com/tires.html

h1 rim with rock ring and pressed center

[K20chevy]

Thanks for all your info. I have to add, I need a 17" wheel min to clear my brakes. Even some 17" wheels are too small, so 18" would be the best to make sure the brakes clear the wheel or vise versa... tire would be a 37x12.50R17 or R18 BFG KM2.

[jumbo2]

Originally Posted by K20chevy

Thanks for all your info. I have to add, I need a 17" wheel min to clear my brakes. Even some 17" wheels are too small, so 18" would be the best to make sure the brakes clear the wheel or vise versa... tire would be a 37x12.50R17 or R18 BFG KM2.

must be a 17 inch cast wheel that has issues and they make a Diy FOR A STEEL 17" , the 16.5 steel h1 should clear most any break setup , some guys run 15's and kick the rim out lots to clear . If your want a real 17" inch aluminum beadlock rim get your cheque book out , if you want a real 18" aluminum beadlock get your check book out and bend over

If you just want nice rims and tires with the beadlock safety run the inner air style its in the $500-$800 dollar range and pick almost any wheel you want

If you want a real double beadlock that wont break the bank with a runflat thats good enough for a hummer in afganistan go that route, a set of 4x h1 double beadlocks cost what one 17" aluminum does

its just my 2c and what I have learned overthe years , I had a jeep yj 1 ton with 383 stroker 475hp stretched on 46" baja claws 16.5 rims with nothing and only lost a bead once at 8psi , ran some 42 inch tsl's at 2 psi all day on h1's , many of my friends ran inner air setups with no issues

[K20chevy]

Well, right now I´m running 17" Pro Comp aluminum wheels and the brakes barely fit. I can´t even run weights on the inside anymore cause there is about 1/8" clearance between the caliper and the inner rim diameter. (I´m running F550 14.54" rotors and dual piston calipers, they are huge!!)
The H1´s would have to be recentered though because of too much backspacing. They can´t stick out too far either because in Maine the tires have to be completely covered by the fender. So depending on the wheelwidth, i´d need about 4.5" to 5" backspace. (8" to 9" wheel)
I know the 17" or 18" beadlocks won´t be cheap, but the whole truck is not...
I´d like the beadlocks to be DOT approved too, but only hutchinson and centerline make DOT legal ones. Problem with those is, my brakes won´t fit insode. I haven´t heard of a 18" hutchinson or centerline DOT beadlock...

Probably the only way to go is what you described with the inner air beadlock system and just run a "normal" wheel that fits over the brakes...

I´d like aluminum because they are lighter. A aluminum beadlock is already heavy compared to a regular wheel, so the steel one will be 3 times the weight of a normal system... kind of killing the advantage of the big brake setup (too much rotating and unsprung mass).

Originally Posted by jumbo2

must be a 17 inch cast wheel that has issues and they make a Diy FOR A STEEL 17" , the 16.5 steel h1 should clear most any break setup , some guys run 15's and kick the rim out lots to clear . If your want a real 17" inch aluminum beadlock rim get your cheque book out , if you want a real 18" aluminum beadlock get your check book out and bend over

If you just want nice rims and tires with the beadlock safety run the inner air style its in the $500-$800 dollar range and pick almost any wheel you want

If you want a real double beadlock that wont break the bank with a runflat thats good enough for a hummer in afganistan go that route, a set of 4x h1 double beadlocks cost what one 17" aluminum does

its just my 2c and what I have learned overthe years , I had a jeep yj 1 ton with 383 stroker 475hp stretched on 46" baja claws 16.5 rims with nothing and only lost a bead once at 8psi , ran some 42 inch tsl's at 2 psi all day on h1's , many of my friends ran inner air setups with no issues

[jumbo2]

I had a dynatrac d60 with the f550 brakes they are huge with there dual piston aluminum callipers but I'm willing to bet a h1 would fit cause I put a factory ford 16" steel rim dummy set on once to move them . Sounds like you know what you want so besides STAUN there is another company inner air lock which cost less and is basically the same thing for inner air locks and you can't tell you even have them besides the extra valve , installing one is a whole different story
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[jumbo2]

Some one was making an aluminum weld on DIY beadlock , if your interested in that option it was on pirate I saw it I believe
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[andrewmp6]

Look around on http://www.4x4groupbuy.com/store/index.php a lot of stuff cheap on there.And the wheels can stick out past the fender but you have to run fender flares bushwacker makes a set for your truck.

[K20chevy]

Originally Posted by andrewmp6

Look around on http://www.4x4groupbuy.com/store/index.php a lot of stuff cheap on there.And the wheels can stick out past the fender but you have to run fender flares bushwacker makes a set for your truck.

Thanks for the link. I searched "in my area" and 4x4groupbuy is the closest one, plus it is cheap... works for me.

you are right with fender flares, but I don´t like the look of them. I actually set my goal to rework the fenders to fit 37" tires but keeping them looking like stock, so no hack job and no flares. I kind of want to hide all the modifications as much as I can. (sure 37" tires will be hard too hide)

Right now, with a 35" tire and 17x9 wheel and 4.625" backspacing, the tires stick out about half an inch. Still ok, but not perfectly legal. If I´d go with 5" backspace on a 9" wide wheel, or 4.75" on a 8.5" wide wheel, they would be almost flush with the fender, which makes the truck look so much cleaner and classier... and the cops couldn´t write you a ticket for it!!

(call me crazy, I know I am, but I´m picky with what I do with my truck)

[K20chevy]

Ok, so here it goes... I might have a custom set of beadlocks made in 18x8.5" with 4.75" backspacing, 0" offset and 8 on 6.5 bolt pattern. The more wheels I get made, the less expensive it´ll be. Is anyone else interested in a set of those? They´d be an 8 spoke design, so very classic looking and they´d be forged, so light and very strong....

Let me know if anyone is interested....

[andrewmp6]

I have seen people cut out the wheel arch and move it up a couple of inches for tire clearance.Its a lot of work but if done right most will never know it was done.

[K20chevy]

Originally Posted by andrewmp6

I have seen people cut out the wheel arch and move it up a couple of inches for tire clearance.Its a lot of work but if done right most will never know it was done.

if you are referring to the fenders, I have another thread going with this topic. And sure, that is what I will do. Kind of hide the modification.

[K20chevy]

Ok, some more info: The forging company won´t do forging unless there are 25 wheels built at least.
The wheel in above mentioned size would weigh in at 33.5 lbs and have a load capacity of 3200 lbs.

Please let me know if anybody is interested, as this si the only way to get them built!

We need enough people to get at least 25 wheels produced.

Thanks!

[andrewmp6]

You might have better luck on pirate4x4 getting 25 wheels sold.

[K20chevy]

Originally Posted by andrewmp6

You might have better luck on pirate4x4 getting 25 wheels sold.

Thanks for the reply! Still hoping to find enough people to make it work. I´m not trying to sell the wheels, just get enough people wanting them, so Hutchinson will build them...

[K20chevy]

I might also look into getting the wheel made in 20" diameter if people would be more interested in that size due to more tire choice.

[K20chevy]

So the 18" option is dead, too expensive and not enough tire choice. I was looking into 20", more tire choice, but the price would be even higher, so dead as well.
We now got a 17" design that could work with the current brake setup. the wheel would be 17x8.5", 4.75" BS and 8x6.5" BCD. It would have a load rating of 3200 lbs and weigh only 31.8 lbs!!!! fully assembled! It would also be a forged wheel.

Would there be any interest in a set of these maybe???

Thanks!

[K20chevy]

Just got info back from Hutchinson on the 17" double bead locks.

Specs again: 17x8.5" on 8x6.5" BCD, 4.75" backspacing, forged, weight: 31.8 lbs fully assembled..

25 min quantity -> $1200 per wheel
50 -> $1100
100 -> $1000, etc.

Powdercoating would be available in sparkle silver, argent grey and flat black.

Let me know fi anybody is interested!

Thanks!