88pioneer Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 in the very near future i will be buying new tires, i am going to buy 31 x 10.50s and my first question is, will i be able to fit a 31 on an after market rim with 4 in, of backspacing with a coil spacer and WJ control arms? I know you can run no lift an fit 31's on stock rims, but i would like to get a complete set of new shoes. Now i need some recommendations on tires. This is going to be my daily driver, but i will take off road as much as possible. Not looking for it to be a mud truck after seeing what it did to my xj :fs1:, but more trail riding and stuff along those lines. I am torn between an A/T or a M/T. I would like a M/T and have been looking at the BFG KM, and the Firestone Destination MT but am a little hesitant on the fact of neither of them being siped :ack: . I have also been looking at General Grabber AT2's mainly for there price, i have heard good things about them, but lately have been seeing bad reviews on them. Also the old stand by is the BFG A/T, but i still am not sure what i want to do yet. Looking to see what other people are running and what their opinions are these tires, or what you guys would recommend as you are the pros at this. Thanks a lot :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freakjeep93 Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 31s would fit on a stock mj especially with wj arm and definetly with spacers and backspacing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperWade2 Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 in the very near future i will be buying new tires, i am going to buy 31 x 10.50s and my first question is, will i be able to fit a 31 on an after market rim with 4 in, of backspacing with a coil spacer and WJ control arms? I know you can run no lift an fit 31's on stock rims, but i would like to get a complete set of new shoes. Now i need some recommendations on tires. This is going to be my daily driver, but i will take off road as much as possible. Not looking for it to be a mud truck after seeing what it did to my xj :fs1:, but more trail riding and stuff along those lines. I am torn between an A/T or a M/T. I would like a M/T and have been looking at the BFG KM, and the Firestone Destination MT but am a little hesitant on the fact of neither of them being siped :ack: . I have also been looking at General Grabber AT2's mainly for there price, i have heard good things about them, but lately have been seeing bad reviews on them. Also the old stand by is the BFG A/T, but i still am not sure what i want to do yet. Looking to see what other people are running and what their opinions are these tires, or what you guys would recommend as you are the pros at this. Thanks a lot :cheers: My 31x10.5 Mickey Thompson MTZ's are running on wheels with a 5.5" Backspace (OEM Jeep Gambler's). I also have the WJ Lower Control Arms and 2" Coil Spacers... No rubbing anywhere (I do have 1.25" Spacers in the back because I was rubbing on the frame. I don't drive in any snow or ice, not much wet, so I went M/T vs. A/T more for looks than anything else. I run MTZ's on my TJ as well, and it gets more use off road and has done will in all terrain it's been on (Snow/Ice/Sand/Mud/Rocks, etc) Wade Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 4" of backspacing is going to push those tires out an inch and a half more than stock on each side -- then factor in the the 31s are about 2" wider than stock and you're looking at +/- 2-1/2" on each side. You won't have to worry about changing the lower control arms. What you WILL have to worry about is that the tires will probably hit the lower rear corner of the flare in front on sharp (and maybe not-so-sharp) turns, plus on a trail the tires will crash into the flares when the suspension compresses. A 2" coil spacer will get you a little bit of help for the latter, but to save your flares you'll really need to either extend the bump stops, or remove the flares and trim the sheet metal. The tires will also be sticking out a lot in the rear, and interference with the flares when the suspension compresses may be a problem there, too. Again, you may have to extend the bump stops. You can't trim very far in the back, or you cut beyond where the inner wheel well liner meets the outer quarter panel. Once you cut that weld, there's nothing holding things together back there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pioneer Posted November 30, 2009 Author Share Posted November 30, 2009 Thanks for the tips, i'm guessing that OEM jeep wheels are around 5.5" backspacing? I was looking at running cragar soft 8's and the most backspacing i've found that they come with is 4.75". I noticed that SuperWade said he was rubbing on the frame with OEM wheels and a 31 so from what i've gathered, 4.75" should be a happy medium. They would still poke out some but not nearly as much, and i could pull the flares off if i had to, doesn't bother me too much. Does anyone know where i could find an inexpensive steel wheel, close to stock specs. Thanks again. :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRF136N Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 I'm running the 31x10.5 General Grabber AT2's, bought them new about a month ago and got about 1,500 miles on them right now and I LOVE em. UNSTAPPABLE in the snow, and GREAT off-road...very smooth riding tires on the freeway up to 80+ mph; can't comment on noise as I opted to stud them (as they are factory studdable) for this coming winter, but I am probably going to pull the studs out come spring, even then they are not noisy -yet-. Dunno about treadwear yet either, but I am about to take a 2,500 mile trip next week, so I will have slightly better idea if they are going to wear like butter or not. You can't beat the price, tirerack.com will ship right to your door, and is often the best price. All this said, and I work at a shop that sells and installes tires. I worked part time at a resort last winter which we had them on our 2wd 15 pass van, I swear that thing could have plowed through 3 feet of snow...thats what sold me on them in the first place. They are a pretty cool, aggressive looking tire too. Two thumbs up, 5/5 stars, I highly recommend! As far as clearance, I'll put it this way...I got about 4.5" lift on my truck with American racing Baja's; I trimmed about .5" off the bottoms of my front flares whether it was neccesary or not, I didn't want to risk tearing a fender off or something if I should hit a bump while turned just right :shake: They don't rub at all for me, but I realize your setup is different...so I dunno there. :cheers: -James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 i'm guessing that OEM jeep wheels are around 5.5" backspacing? I was looking at running cragar soft 8's and the most backspacing i've found that they come with is 4.75". Actually, the OEM Jeep rims are 5-1/4" backspacing. You can stop looking, because there aren't any aftermarket rims that match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87Warrior Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 For tires, take a look at the USA made Cooper stuff. Cooper and Goodyear are the only two tire manufactures left solely in the US. I have been very happy with my Cooper STT's on my TJ in a 35. The tires ride smoother than the 31s and 33s in the old style Goodyear MTR. The tires bite better, actually provide traction when wet, and are quieter on the road. They are a bit aggressive and might not suite well for a DD if you complain about noise. The STT's on my rig: My MJ will be running a Cooper ST (not STT) in a 30" size when the time comes. I have asked folks in parking lots running these tires about them and have never heard a bad comment bout them. Wheelers say the tire is a bit sidewall stiff to get a lot of bulge when wheeling. I have spent more time than I would like to admit reading various forums and the opinions on the ST's are very good for an aggressive DD tire. A TJ running wide ST's: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWLONGSHOT Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 I know there are some other good tires out there, and I hate sounding like a broken record. But every time I am in your position I keep going back to the excellent BFG line of tires. For you I would highly recommend the AT tire. its snow traction is excellent, its dirt road trail traction es equally as good. About the only place these are not good is deep mud and you say that's not a worry. They are a tad nosier then other AT tires, but its a truck, get over it!! :D I just took a set of the XJ with almost 70,000 miles and have a set for the MJ for the road in the winter. I have had at least four sets of them thru the years, they always wear past 60,000 miles. You WILL get your moneys worth!!! CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dasbulliwagen Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 I agree with CW that the BFG's are a great tire with a really good reputation, but I think when it comes time for my next set, I'm seriously looking into Yokohama's Geolanders. They are always highly rated on tire rack, and I like the way they look. There are several styles to choose from, but they all have good ratings. Ive been running nothing but Yokos on my other vehicles too and will be buying another set next year as my Hyundai Tucson is getting due for tires again, They are a really good tire for the price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperWade2 Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 i'm guessing that OEM jeep wheels are around 5.5" backspacing? I was looking at running cragar soft 8's and the most backspacing i've found that they come with is 4.75". Actually, the OEM Jeep rims are 5-1/4" backspacing. You can stop looking, because there aren't any aftermarket rims that match. OEM Gamblers are 5.5"... I measured mine when they were off Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pilotblake Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 CW you sound like a BFG rep. I have BFG A/T's in the 35x12.50 size and I am not overly impressed with them. They do ride nice down the road, but I think being wide is there downfall in my case. I am not bad mouthing at all since I expect them to perfrom like an M/T. I keep trying to convince them that they are these. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=BFGoodrich&tireModel=Mud-Terrain+T%2FA+KM2&partnum=525QR5KM2RWLV2&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWLONGSHOT Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 CW you sound like a BFG rep. I have BFG A/T's in the 35x12.50 size and I am not overly impressed with them. They do ride nice down the road, but I think being wide is there downfall in my case. I am not bad mouthing at all since I expect them to perform like an M/T. I keep trying to convince them that they are these. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=BFGoodrich&tireModel=Mud-Terrain+T%2FA+KM2&partnum=525QR5KM2RWLV2&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes As you have found out the AT's are NOT a MT!! Yea each has its pitfalls. the MT's are not so great on road with heavy snow. Lack of sipping is likely the cause. the are good in the rocks and acceptable for the mud at the same time good on the road if a bit noisy. I just picked up a set of 4 with 60-70% tread 35X12.5's from my buddie on here for my TJ!!! Yesterday I picked up a fifth BFG MT for my spare!! I'm not a factory rep, just a guy like you'll. I hope to pass along what I have found to be a good product to my brother jeepers!! CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeepdoggydogB Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 After 31 inch Cooper STT's Before My STT's are noisy, but they stick to just about any surface, and have lasted more than three years. I had to recently replace the front two because of balljoint and alignment issues now fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87Warrior Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 Did the BFG AT get a redesign recently? For some reason that is in my mind. I did run a set of the BFG AT's in the 31" size. Good tire as stated above, but I felt that the wet traction was poor. With the tread design, water is not able to escape when going down the road and did result in a 45mph hydroplane for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pioneer Posted November 30, 2009 Author Share Posted November 30, 2009 I've also been wondering that, because my buddy has the 35" BFG's on his f-250 and just replaced them but the guy at the tire place told him they were discontinued and whatever was in stock is whats left. I don't know if this is true or not but i would imagine they would be doing some sort of change since they just made the KM2's. Might have a new tire to check out soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now