Noob Tire/Rim Question

[diablokicks]

I have a 33 x 12.5 x 15 spare tire that i need to pick up a rim for. My noob question is will any 15 inch rim fit the tire or is there something else i need to look for as well?

Thank you in advance

 

[iamsparticus]

Any 15 inch wheel will fit it but its the width you need to look for.
A 8 inch wide wheel will work but more than likley make your tire bow out and wear weird.
A 10 inch wide wheel will not only give your tire proper shape but help spread out your tread foot print on the trail when aired down
AKA better traction

 

[sixstringsteve]

I personally prefer an 8" wheel for a 12.50, but that's me. Anything from 7.5"-11" wide will work fine with that tire.

 

[Brett]

I'd stick with a 15x8 as well

 

[iamsparticus]

I can see that a 33inch tire would not be as bad with the 8 inch but if you ever go bigger then youd want the 10 inch wide wheel anyway. I dont really see a advantage of a 8 inch wide wheel

 

[sixstringsteve]

I like my 35's and 37's on an 8" wheel too. I'm not trying to convince you that it's better for you, but it's better for me.

you're a lot less likely to blow a bead on a narrower rim, so you can run lower pressure without worrying about losing your bead. In fact, I've never blown a bead with an 8" rim, even 6 psi on a 35x12.50 on a 5000 lb tacoma.

 

[iamsparticus]

I like my 35's and 37's on an 8" wheel too. I'm not trying to convince you that it's better for you, but it's better for me.

you're a lot less likely to blow a bead on a narrower rim, so you can run lower pressure without worrying about losing your bead. In fact, I've never blown a bead with an 8" rim, even with psi at 6-7 on a 5000 lb tacoma.

I see your point steve but ive been running 35's and 10 inch wide rims at 6 to 7 psi for a year now and i have never blown a bead or anything, of course i never did with my 8 inch wide wheels and 31's either. skinnier wheels would be less likley to blow a bead but more likley to pinch a side wall so i guess they both have ups and downs

 

[sixstringsteve]

I've never pinched a sidewall with any wheel. But I do use my sidewalls a lot with the way I wheel, and I like being able to get the sidewall of the tire on the rock, and the 8's help me do that better since they are a little rounder. to each his own.

 

[LT.]

Old school rule of thumb, run a wheel that is as wide as the tread face. For a 12.5" tire I would recommend a 10" wide wheel. The 12.5" refers to the section width not the tread width. I would think the tread would be around 10" or so.

LT.

 

[diablokicks]

Do i need to worry about backspacing as well?

 

[iamsparticus]

it depends on how far you need your tire out from your body. I'd reccomend 3 to 3.5 inch back spacing but thats just me. To little of back spacing and your tire might rub in the inner wheel well

 

[Bart]

I have to disagree with a lot replies here. For offroading, I'd only run an 8" wheel for a 12.50 tire. You run more of a chance of loosing a bead when aired down with a 10" wheel. I ran 8" wheels with a 37x12.50x15 back in the day.

 

[iamsparticus]

Are you talking about normal trail or competeing just curious bart

 

[Bart]

Are you talking about normal trail or competeing just curious bart

I'm running 8" wheels on my current TJ with 35" tires, and it's a daily driver. I may go to a 17' wheel and 37s, but it will also sport an 8" width. I have them on my daughter's TJ running 33s. You couldn't give me a set of 10" wheels for anything I'll air down.

Even on my comp rigs I ran a 9" (8" with the beadlock added) wheel with 40" tires.

 

[Tacoma]

In addition to what Bart said, I hate the steamroller look of wide rims. Heh

 

[TJDukit]

So a simple answer to the question posted would be. A 10" or 8" wide 15" wheel will get the job done for a spare just the same, make sure there is enough backspacing to not rub and you will be good.

If you can find a wheel that matches the measurements of the wheels you are running it would be good but not all that important on a spare.

 

[Cascadia]

I've never run anything other than an 8" wheel and I've never had a single problem. On top of not having any problems I also like the look of it. I've run multiple sets of 35's and 37's and never blown a bead or pinched a sidewall. And I, like steve like to use the sidewall.

 

[SAMI]

Must have a mullet and cut off sleeve flannel shirt to properly run a 10" wide wheel.

I ran a 17x9 with my 38" and 37" tires. I loved that, and would've loved an 8" wide wheel even more. Another benefit not mentioned is that the narrower wheel will help to pull the tire in just a bit, which means it can help keep Johnny Law from lighting you up every other day. Never lost a bead aired down to 6-8psi, and never gashed a sidewall.

 

[sixstringsteve]

an 8" wheel also typically means your valve stem is close inboard and less likely to get snagged by rocks.



Since the title has the word "noob" in it, I figure it can't hurt to add:

- steel wheels hold a bead better than aluminum at low psi.
- steel wheels are heavier
- steel wheels don't balance as well

That being said, I always run steelies.

 

[SAMI]

* Steel wheels can be pounded back into shape.