Which rims to use?

[Incommando]

EDIT: Sold the Ecco's to a buddy so they are off the table. Probably going to do the Grizzlies on the street and paint the Sawblades like the great looking black ones below for the TSL'S but who knows? Maybe someone loves those 16's?

 

 

I have multiple rim sets for the MJ build. I want a set of rims for off-roading with my 32x9.5x15 TSL's and another set of rims to use with the more streetable tires...probably around 32x11.5. The 1st sets are 15" but the 3rd set is 16" so they cannot be used with the TSL's.

 

15x7 Grizzly

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15x7 Sawblade

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16x7

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...just curious about the C.C. mindset on this

[SW86]

buy a decent 15x8 for offroading but on the other hand I'm using the sawblade with mine. either of those top two would be fine for street.

[87Warrior]

I am not following you. You want a wider set of 32s just to drive on the street? If you go the street tire route, why not get a shorter, narrow, STREET tire? Maybe I am just confused.

 

I would personally only use one set of tires on the Ecco or Grizzly wheels.

[Incommando]

We get a fair amount of ice and snow around here and TSL's are really not suitable for winter street driving because of it. The large voids and solid lugs make them a challenge in those conditions. Tires like TSL's generally do not have great longevity especially as street tires. Preserving them for off-road will increase their life greatly. These things have increased in price about 25% recently and I do not see them getting cheaper in the future. Narrower tires just might put less stress on the axles than a wider tire of the same height, as well. As I will most likely be pushing the axles hardest off-road, that seems to be the time when lessening their burden would be the most profitable? There is much debate about tire width off-road with wide and narrow having benefits of their own. Rather than re-hash all of that let's just say that in my experience the type of 'wheeling that I do is well suited to a very aggressive narrow tire. ;) Swapping tires/rims is not hard at all so keeping two sets makes sense to me.

 

Yes, I wanted a wider set of tires for the street. One reason is purely aesthetic: I think they will fill the wheelwells better and as they will be on the truck the majority of the time they would look better. 11.5" or 12.5" wide tires are much more common than narrow 32" or 33" street or A/T tires unless you count 235/85/16's, which are roughly 32x9, or the harder to find 255/85/16's which are about 33x10 or so. And they eliminate the option of keeping any of the 15 inch rims I have. If I keep the 16's they would probably get 285/75/16's ( about 33x11). Also, as shown by every type of hard surface race car using as wide a tire as possible for traction, the general consensus is that wider tires provide better grip on the street in most circumstances. A shorter/narrower street tire would IMHO look silly on a SOA MJ with trimmed fender wells and would provide no advantage other than possibly a better gear ratio match. Heck, 33's or 32's of any width will probably look undersized on the truck anyway so why make it worse? Would a 28",29", or 30" tire that is 7,8, or 9" wide look good or stupid on an MJ where I could probably run 35's with no rubbing? The MJ in my sig has a 4.5" lift with stock fenderwells and 32x11.5x15 tires to give a visual about the relative lift and tire sizes. Below is the actual truck on 31x10'5 BEFORE the lift:

Yes, I realize that I could easily run 32x9'5's on it as it sits but I am still going to lift it to gain clearance under the center of the truck. I am swapping in an XJ 8.25 to get rid of the D35 so I have to weld on spring perches anyway and I already have front springs & shocks as well as adjustable LCA's and trackbar for it

 

Buying a set of 15x8's that are too wide for the 9" wide TSL's I have is not a good option. If I want a steel rim (with the added strength but at added wieght) I will use the Sawblade 15x7's for a better fit with the tire. If I was deciding for sure today I would probably put a set of 32" or 33" A/T's on the Grizzlies and put the TSL's on the Sawblades after I repainted them. But that is just today's thoughts... :D

[87Warrior]

I was never debating your wheeling tire choice nor its size. I have always figured the purpose of a street set of tires, in addition to saving the wheeler tires, was to reduce load on the drivetrain and improve daily driveabiliy. This is provided the truck is your daily driver. I always like to get the biggest bang for my buck when doing a mod, which a smaller street tire would provide, less the aesthetic difference.

 

None the less I would still use the Ecco or Grizzly wheels which ever direction you go. I've never been a big fan of Jeep's steel wheel selection.

[Blue88Comanche]

i painted my "saw-blade" rims black and polished the chrome on the caps

 

[Incommando]

Those look great!

[Blue88Comanche]

Those look great!

 

Thanks!

 

That was one coat of primer, 2 or 3 coats black, and 1 or 2 coats clear.. can't remember... but used a spray can to do all the work. I am happy with the end result.