15” or 17” wheels for 37’s

[CBNFPRT]

When the time comes, I’m thinking of bumping up to 37” tires. Currently I’m 35’s on 15” wheels. Would also be looking into beadlocks. I do like the look of 15” wheels on our EB’s and prefer to keep it that way, but wasn’t sure if there are any advantages performance wise going to 17” wheels. i.e. Weight of tires, chances of rolling off rim, etc etc.. I know more tire options with 17’s, but not a deal maker for me.

Side note, I believe 12Pack is running 37’s with 2.5” lift/2“ body without much clearance issues. I will also be running the same setup so Jeff if you’re on here, can you chime in with any extra cutting, pounding and/or stretching you had to do?

Chanks!

 

[Dusty]

37's with a 15" hole are getting harder to find. Unless you're trying to keep your old wheels I'd suggest going to a 17" wheel. I've long thought that 10" is the perfect sidewall height. That means 35's on 15" wheels, 37's on 17" wheels, and if you run 20" wheels it better be at least a 40" tire. Less than 10" sidewall looks like a donk truck. More than 10" looks like an east coast rock-bouncer. That said, if you're set on keeping the 15's and don't mind dealing with a diminishing selection of available tires, go for it.

 

[CBNFPRT]

I’m looking to go beadlocks when the time comes to retire the 35’s so I’ll be shopping for a new/good used set.. I suppose by the time that happens, there will be no 37’s with a 15” hole option..

 

[Dusty]

I’m looking to go beadlocks when the time comes to retire the 35’s so I’ll be shopping for a new/good used set.. I suppose by the time that happens, there will be no 37’s with a 15” hole option..

You might consider the ICON Rebound Pro, as it uses a patented DOT-compliant bead retention system called InnerLock (disclaimer: I work for ICON). I run them on my 6G. They aren't available yet in 5 on 5.5 but should be within a few months, thanks to some internal lobbying by yours truly. I intend to put Coco, our '71, on them when that happens. I like that they don't look too gaudy the way some modern alloy wheels do. They're almost reminiscent of the old steel spoke "wagon wheel" rims, which I think will make them look just right on an EB.

 

[CBNFPRT]

Bronze looks good.

 

[KD6TAV]

Same boat. Thinking 1” extra clearance would be nice but like my current look with 35s on 15s. Another think to think about is regearing as well. My truck gearing is good balance right now and if i go 37s i would need to regear and that is not cheap.

 

[KD6TAV]

With the statement above these look neat. The method wheel has some bead lock rim….

 

[CBNFPRT]

Same boat. Thinking 1” extra clearance would be nice but like my current look with 35s on 15s. Another think to think about is regearing as well. My truck gearing is good balance right now and if i go 37s i would need to regear and that is not cheap.

I’m currently 4.88’s with a NV3550 so I‘m thinking I‘ll still be kosher at 1 Lo trail/5 Hi freeway

 

[CBNFPRT]

Another thought to ponder... Currently running General Grabber X3’s that are 72-74lbs a tire. They handle pretty good with my setup of 28 spline, small bearing and vacuum powered front disc brakes. I see a handful of 37’s that are around the same weight per tire or even lighter. Think I’d expect similar feel because weight is similar or would the circumference difference be more difficult to stop/more wear on the axles etc etc?

 

[KD6TAV]

With 37s lots of people have ram assist, seems like it is needed.

 

[CBNFPRT]

Do have one of them.

 

[Dusty]

With 37s lots of people have ram assist, seems like it is needed.

Larger tires put more stress on the steering box and make the pump work a little harder. But good components in those locations can handle 37's well, for most off-road use. I've been running the 4X4X2 box for years with 37's, with no problems. Now, if the rig is a dedicated hard core rock crawler, where you're using the tires to push big rocks around all the time, ram assist would be a big plus. Or if you're trying to get by with one of the weaker aftermarket boxes, transferring some of that stress to the ram would be a good idea, as I've seen steering boxes literally break in half, or the mounting bolts shear off, on the trail from such use (never a 4X4X2 box though).