15.5 XL vs 395 XML vs T831 vs 14.5/1100XLs

[Josh]

As much as I drive my truck, Im replacing my NDTS about every 6 months on the front of my truck. I need to get a good set of radials and the ideal set up for me would be 14.5xls in the front and dualed 11r20xls in the rear. As I'm keeping my options open and not apposed to supersingling out, I'm trying to find someone who has driven a truck with both 15.5s and 395s, both onroad and offroad. I searched for about an hour every thread on singles I could find, but I was unable to locate one that compaired the traction and wear of the two different tread patterns.

I know both are an improvement over there stock NDTS ( Im not really doing bigger tires for speed, but so I dont have to get a new set of tires for my truck every 6 months).

My truck is my daily driver and when I got the truck a year and a half ago, it had 36kish miles on it, right now she is hovering around 47k and I am on my 3rd set of front tires with aprox 40-50% tread left, and my second set of rear tires(aprox 40-60%). All front tires where tread depth messured at 95% or better, and the second set where brand new never been mounted.


I've considered a set of firestone T831s also in the 11r20 size as I know they are a good onroad/offroad tire, but I have been unable to locate a wider tires in the t831 tread that are the same hight as the 11r20s.

The reason for the wider front tires is that I take my deuce to the sand alot. I would estimate at least 500 miles have been put on my deuce just in the sand. While airing the NDTs to 15psi makes the truck go pretty good soons I hit anything that resembles a hill, the front end likes to bury itself.

I know super singles are superior to duals in the offroad world but, but I'm trying to figure out what the best comprimise for the on road longevity vs the offroad capability.

So what realworld experiances have ya guys got. I appolgize if what I wrote is confusing, I've always had issues with explaining something that makes perfect sense to me, but confuses the **** out of the other person.


Also if I went singles, I'd get them when my current tires wear out, and if I could afford it at the time I'd get recentere hemtt rims. If the rims are out of the budget, then I'd place them on stock rims until I could afford hemtts.

Thanks.

 

[Marlboro]

A well worded post i'm going to follow

 

[srodocker]

sa,e

 

[Josh]

The other thing I forgot to ask, Does anyone have experiance running the 14.5/11r20/15.5 XLs, 395 XMLs or 11r20 T831s at low pressure for extended use the sand. My landcruiser uses radials in the sand @ 5-8psi, but I'd suspect that BFG Mudterrans are a whole other beast compaired to the much stiffer xls/xmls.

 

[jollyroger]

OK. My on the subject.

I have the 395's singled. I had NDT's dualled when I got the truck. At the time I switched we owned a sandy creek that ran about 2 feet of water in it. The banks were sand mixed with clay lumps and topsoil. I have run both setups in the sandy conditions.

If I ran both setups aired up the NDT's dualled did better in the sand than the single 395's. The 395's wanted to dig aired up. I had to be careful with the throttle and gearing. They still did well but. The NDT duals on the rear would help push the fronts through stuff. Even climbing up sandy banks. The advantage to the 395's was with clearance. I could ford much deeper water and simpy holes with the 395's over the NDT's.

If I ran both setups aired down the NDT's had a very slight improvement and the 395's got a lot better. With 395's aired down to 10-15 psi they did better than the NDT's but I still had to be careful about digging them in. They just have a ton more tread lugs and want to dig. I did not run them under 10 psi. It looked like I could go to 5 psi but I had 9.00 20 tubes in the 395's and I did not want to tear a tube with sidewall flex.

When I run into hunting camp I have about 15 psi in the tires as I am loaded and we are running over rocks. It rides real nice and gets great traction in the mud. But for sand you need less psi then 15 to really get the most out of it.

Then you have to look at on road performance. The NDT's do not hold up well with pavement driving compared to the radials. We all get that. I have a few thousand miles on my 395's and they still look almost brand new. I run 65 psi on road. The truck turns easier on the road because the back is not pushing the front everywhere. I have them on the stock rims with the rear hubs flipped. I run it this way because the road to hunting camp is narrow and I wanted the narrow stance. For pavement with the wider tires and the narrow stance I find the truck riding the ruts on the road. If the road is good it is a one hander on the wheel. If it's rutted I gotta watch out for wander as it will catch a rut and you will be in the next lane real quick.

Road speed with the 395's increased to 65 mph. It gets a little better fuel mileage for me. However it does not accelerate well and if it sniffs a hill I'm downshifting to 4 th. I really need to turn the pump up or get an LDS engine for it. I am also regularly driving at 5000-7000 feet as I live at 5700 feet. It still makes plenty of power in low range so you should not have an issue there.

Best for the sand would probaly be duals in the rear and a wide single up front like you said. I don't know how that would do on road but I'm sure any radial setup would be an improvement over the NDT's.

Just as a side note. I have talked to some old guys about the CCKW's on the beach and they would run duals on the front to not have the dig in problem. In the mean time you might think about dualing the fronts up to see if that helps.

 

[jollyroger]

Another option on the beach.

Right Track Systems - Right Tracks of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada manufactures and distributes the best rubber track systems on the market today.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZg5kwqF06k

Note the fronts are dualed up and have the tracks.

 

[srodocker]

soooo was wondering when the 395's they wont rub at 15psi? heading to the dunes on aug 19th and going to bec amping on teh beach and want to make sure they dont rub hehe

 

[gimpyrobb]

395s rub what? Each other or during steering?

Josh, you know you can dual your front axle for the sand, right?

 

[srodocker]

the rears when letting a ton of air out...

 

[eldgenb]

Nope, you will be fine.

 

[Josh]

395s rub what? Each other or during steering?

Josh, you know you can dual your front axle for the sand, right?

Yes I know that, But it seems like a crap ton of work for only a few days @ the dunes.

 

[sirmrtow]

wow

 

[sirmrtow]

wow i like this post

 

[treeguy]

Gimpy, I'm confused. Dualing the front axle seems like a Frankensteinish look, and plausible, but just looking at my truck, if you're talking about what I think, the wheel studs are too short. My front axle wheel studs just barely extend beyond the nuts. What am I missing here. You do mean having four tires on the front axle right? So wierd!!!!!!

 

[nk14zp]

Gimpy, I'm confused. Dualing the front axle seems like a Frankensteinish look, and plausible, but just looking at my truck, if you're talking about what I think, the wheel studs are too short. My front axle wheel studs just barely extend beyond the nuts. What am I missing here. You do mean having four tires on the front axle right? So wierd!!!!!!

Use budd caps like on the rear.

 

[treeguy]

Nk, thanks, my truck is singled with the rears flipped, so I have no experience with the budd caps. How do they fit over the studs with a diameter that will still fit thru the rims. What I do understand is that their surface holds the inboard rim and offers threads for the outboard rim. But how is their thickness in diameter small enough to fit thru the outer rim's bolt holes, and then you put a nut on them right?

 

[goldwing2000]

If you look at the lug holes in the wheels, you'll see that they are much larger than the wheel studs. Not sure of exact dimensions but the wheels studs are 3/4" and the holes in the wheels are over 1". The front lug nuts are made extra large to compensate for the bigger hole, while a Budd cap acts like a larger wheel stud and fills the hole completely. The outer nut has a much thinner sidewall than the front nuts.

It's easier to explain with a visual aid...