35s vs larger tires?

SHINTON

SHINTON

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2005
Location
Triad area of NC
Ok, doing lots of research as I start my K5 build and I am thinking 35s and was looking at possibly 37s, and started price shopping!

Am I wrong or when you go over 35" the tire prices essentially double? 35x12.50x15 is $200ish net for BFG M/T but the 37x12.50.?? same tire is $350+? I was just looking at all the tires and retail prices on 4WheelParts website and every 37 on there is well over $300 and quite a few going up from there into the $400s and beyond.

Oddly enough there was a series of Swampers in the mid $200s for the 37x12 size, did not dig into them but I suspect they are soft compounds.

I know I am a cheap bean counter but when I was looking at a set of 4 tires, the price on that website was right at double so I am really thinking 35s maybe good enough? I am looking at used tires and if a deal comes along I will buy them, but $800 for a set of new BFG M/Ts vs $3-400 for a worn out set, I am leaning new at this time.

It does explain why a worn out set of 37+ tires are still $$$$ though!?

Am I way off? Are there other sources I am not seeing? (Six on 6.5 Chevy wheel pattern)
 
My read on it is that the 17, 18, 20, etc rim sizes are more expensive than the 15s. The difference between a 35x12.50 R15 and a 35x12.50 R17 (or 315) can be $50 or more. If you go to an 18, it might be $100. And there aren't many big tires made anymore for 15" wheels.
 
You don't want to run 37" tires on those 10 bolt axles. Are you planning on swapping in a set of ton axles?
 
I am looking LONG term at CUCV axles for the K5, but honestly think I will try to get away with the 10 bolts and 35s (open diffs for now) for a while. I will put a winch on there and keep my pride and accelerator in check and just winch up and over something if I cannot just go around it! I know that it will be 90% Kommuter and 10% wheeling at most.

If it makes any difference I am thinking of splurging just a little bit and buying 15x10 Mickey Thompson Classic III wheels, I have always loved that look!! I am finding them for $120 each new so... LONG term, worst case, I sell off the pretty bling blign M/T wheels and tires when I go 1 tons!
 
SHINTON said:
I am looking LONG term at CUCV axles for the K5, but honestly think I will try to get away with the 10 bolts and 35s (open diffs for now) for a while. I will put a winch on there and keep my pride and accelerator in check and just winch up and over something if I cannot just go around it! I know that it will be 90% Kommuter and 10% wheeling at most.

If it makes any difference I am thinking of splurging just a little bit and buying 15x10 Mickey Thompson Classic III wheels, I have always loved that look!! I am finding them for $120 each new so... LONG term, worst case, I sell off the pretty bling blign M/T wheels and tires when I go 1 tons!
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As long as you don't have a gov-bomb in the rear you might get by. With 33s I tore the side gears out of my gov-bomb in my '87 somewhat drifting it on wet pavement..... am I was dumb at 18
 
SHINTON said:
If it makes any difference I am thinking of splurging just a little bit and buying 15x10 Mickey Thompson Classic III wheels, I have always loved that look!! I am finding them for $120 each new so... LONG term, worst case, I sell off the pretty bling blign M/T wheels and tires when I go 1 tons!
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Get 15x8s
 
LBarr2002 said:
Get 15x8s
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I know "they" (BFG recommended) say 8.5-11" wheel for the 35x12.50 width, but that others seem to put it on the 8" width? Likely would hold a bead better too for when I air down and more rubber on the outside/bulge to protect the rim itself?
 
Don't get 15" wheels.

The $150 cost increase of 37" tires vs 35"s is the least expensive cost difference in running 37"s.

Building a car to run 31"s, 33"s, and 35"s is virtually the same.

Building a car to handle 37"s is basically the same as building it to handle 40"s. Expensive.

Unless you are street cruising, then just slap on what ev's. But also, don't get 15"s.
 
REDLYNER said:
Don't get 15" wheels.

The $150 cost increase of 37" tires vs 35"s is the least expensive cost difference in running 37"s.

Building a car to run 31"s, 33"s, and 35"s is virtually the same.

Building a car to handle 37"s is basically the same as building it to handle 40"s. Expensive.

Unless you are street cruising, then just slap on what ev's. But also, don't get 15"s.
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Car? Who said anything about a car? The man is building a Blazer.
 
rockcity said:
Look at 17" wheels. That is becoming the new norm like 15" used to be.
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I had 16s and saw the 17s on the horizon. I sold my beadlocks to a dude in Texas and went that route. This is one of the few smart decisions I've made.
 
If you are already considering 37's I'd say buy 37's cause you'll want them 2 weeks later. being a bean counter I wouldn't ever buy new tires for a vehicle like this too many people selling used ones cheaper because they bought a smaller size and upgraded right after.
 
15" steelies are what got me started 15x8 with 5psi on the rocks worked great! Mild wheeling of course! I'm upgrading to 16.5 or 16s tho maybe 17"s I like more rubber than rim!
 
so what are the advantages of a 17" wheel over a 15" besides available tires in larger sizes?
 
37's will force you to upgrade your drivetrain if you are going to be Wheelin the rig. Big difference in wear and damage from 35 to 37 it seems on joints and shafts IMO. Nice set of used 37's can be had off of here with a little patience.
 
SHINTON said:
I know "they" (BFG recommended) say 8.5-11" wheel for the 35x12.50 width, but that others seem to put it on the 8" width? Likely would hold a bead better too for when I air down and more rubber on the outside/bulge to protect the rim itself?
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Yes, less likely to lose a bead when aired down.

BigClay said:
so what are the advantages of a 17" wheel over a 15" besides available tires in larger sizes?
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Bigger brakes and tire options as already said. Also less sidewall helps handling on the street, especially if towing. Hurts a little off-road, but it's a tradeoff...
 
So if 17s are the new 15s, you would think the pricing would match? "In theory" there is actually slightly less materials in that 35x12.50x17 than the 35x12.50x15 but yet for BFG MT they are almost exactly $100 more per tire? I would assume that tells us that they are still making enough 15s that the price is still cheaper due to the fact they make so many more of them? (IOW, they probably produce 10x more of the 15s...thus their cost per tire is less?)

So again, if 17s are where "everyone" is at, why are the prices not falling to the same level? (I realize this has turned into a 15 vs 17 for the moment but I also suspect that is the same reason 37s are so much higher than 35s, sheer quantity sold per year)
 
Like I said, I'm buying 15s because they're so much cheaper. You can run 3/4 ton Chevy brakes with 15s, which is more than that K5 will need with 35" rubber.
 
SHINTON said:
So again, if 17s are where "everyone" is at, why are the prices not falling to the same level?
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Because people keep buying them so the price must not be too high. Therefore why lower it and decrease profit?
 
jeepinmatt said:
Because people keep buying them so the price must not be too high. Therefore why lower it and decrease profit?
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It seems like competition would drive the prices down. Wait, maybe it is a conspiracy among the tire manufactures!
 
drkelly said:
It seems like competition would drive the prices down. Wait, maybe it is a conspiracy among the tire manufactures!
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Demand is inexplicably high, its the JK effect :shaking:
 
mastercraft mxt is one of the few tires you won't see a big price jump between 35 and 37, think it's around $10 jump to $290 each roughly.
 
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