Finally Purged the 16.5s

[cleszkie]

After much internal struggle, I finally got rid of the two sets of 16.5 rims and tires I had for my Blazer. The first set to go was my beloved 9.75x16.5 aluminum slots. I sold the 35" BFG AT KOs that were on these rims on craigslist and sold the rims to a board member up in Washington state. The second set to go was my equally beloved 9.75x16.5 white steelies. I sold the rims with a set of 33" BFG At KOs mounted to another local board member.

Replaced both sets with single a set of Wheel Vintiques 16x8, 8-lug steelies wrapped in 35" BFG AT KO2 rubber. They came powder coated black, and I debated going back to white like my original set, but stayed with black for a more aggressive look. I did keep the dog dish caps though. The main motivation for the change is a month long camping/4x4/road trip I'm planning with my wife and son for this summer. I didn't want to shred a 16.5" tire along the way and not be able to just roll into any tire shop and get a replacement. Try that with a 16.5" tire, and you will be stranded. Anyways, attached are some pics with the new shoes.

[bigdon-70blazer]

Sweet!

[Acorn]

Man, selling the slots would be a tough call. But trust me when I tell you there are NO 16.5 tires out there when your on vacation. I was in the middle of nowhere Colorado when I slung a cap off the crappy Goodyear. I put my OLD spare (also 16.5) on and then proceeded to stop at every tire shop, repair shop, salvage yard I could find. Nothing. Then after about 200 miles my spare started to leak slowly. Luckily I had a small air compressor so I could air it up every night and morning because the tire will pop off the bead real easy on a 16.5. Talk about this flat land Texas boy having some major Kung fu grip on my steering wheel as I was goin thru the mountains with a tire that could blow at any moment! When I got to the first big town I stopped at a tire store and bought some cheap 16' steel wagon wheels and told them to put some comparable tire sizes to what I had but to make sure it was a common size that I could get 'anywhere' You will defiantly breath easier knowing that you can find a tire when your out on the road with the family.
By the way, I think the black looks good on your truck! Love that camper!

[Tomo]

Truck looks great! The pop up top is awesome - I'd love to have 1 for my 70 but I'm guessing they are very rare.

[cleszkie]

Originally Posted by Acorn

Man, selling the slots would be a tough call. But trust me when I tell you there are NO 16.5 tires out there when your on vacation. I was in the middle of nowhere Colorado when I slung a cap off the crappy Goodyear. I put my OLD spare (also 16.5) on and then proceeded to stop at every tire shop, repair shop, salvage yard I could find. Nothing. Then after about 200 miles my spare started to leak slowly. Luckily I had a small air compressor so I could air it up every night and morning because the tire will pop off the bead real easy on a 16.5. Talk about this flat land Texas boy having some major Kung fu grip on my steering wheel as I was goin thru the mountains with a tire that could blow at any moment! When I got to the first big town I stopped at a tire store and bought some cheap 16' steel wagon wheels and told them to put some comparable tire sizes to what I had but to make sure it was a common size that I could get 'anywhere' You will defiantly breath easier knowing that you can find a tire when your out on the road with the family.
By the way, I think the black looks good on your truck! Love that camper!

Acorn - Your story makes me feel better about cutting my 16.5s loose. If my Blazer was just a weekend cruiser, I would have kept the rims and tires until the tires were worn out. But I use it, and take it on long trips often, so the potential of tire replacement is real. But by selling my tires while they were still very usable along with the rims, I was almost able to scrape enough together to buy the new tires.

[cleszkie]

Originally Posted by Tomo

Truck looks great! The pop up top is awesome - I'd love to have 1 for my 70 but I'm guessing they are very rare.

Thanks. The campers can be found if you look long enough. But condition if often pretty bad.

[DeadheadNM]

I think made a wise decision and the new wheels look great. Do the hub caps snap right onto the new wheels without any needed modification?

[cleszkie]

Originally Posted by DeadheadNM

I think made a wise decision and the new wheels look great. Do the hub caps snap right onto the new wheels without any needed modification?

Caps snap right on. 4 nubs just like stock.

[Dieselwrencher]

Very nice new wheels and rubber. I would not have spent the dough on my 16.5 steelies if I would have known they were going to be producing these with nubs for caps. (Long story short, this is a soar subject for me with WV)

[CG]

Looks great, but I really love your old mags, especially since they are on my truck now =)

[cleszkie]

Originally Posted by CG

Looks great, but I really love your old mags, especially since they are on my truck now =)

Damn, you had to go there! I still love those mags. Put MANY miles on them over the past decade or so. They were by far my favorite rims. Not only do they look killer, they weigh a fraction of the steelies. I am thankful though that they went to a board member that will get many more years of use out of them, and not to the scrapper.

[Lieferson]

If you ever felt like going back to a slotted mag, American racing now produces them in a 17" i bought a set the moment they came out for my 72!

[Lieferson]

They also come in black

[cleszkie]

Originally Posted by Lieferson

If you ever felt like going back to a slotted mag, American racing now produces them in a 17" i bought a set the moment they came out for my 72!

Good to know. Did you add the bead lock, or is that how they come?

[Lieferson]

Originally Posted by cleszkie

Good to know. Did you add the bead lock, or is that how they come?

Thats how the come, i believe they come without it too. It's not a true beadlock, just the look.

[Yukon Jack]

Wow, that American Racing rim is nice looking! I need a set for my 69!!