Wheel help before Busco??

[gimmegreens336]

I've went cross-eyed looking at tires for the '97 Conquest. I've found dozens of budget alternatives to the 24" Frontier tires, but many fit different width wheels!

I've searched the forums looking for the particular dimensions that are relevant for wheels on my machine but I cannot find them! I'm a novice to tires and wheels, so I'm not sure the verbiage to explain what I'm looking for.

Let's just say I'm looking at a 23x10x10 tire. Will someone tell me what dimensions my wheels need to be? Obviously, 10" wheels - but what about all the other funky numbers and such?

Thanks yall

[gimmegreens336]

I guess 5"x4.5" is what I'm looking for? As long as that's the bolt pattern the wheel will fit? No matter if it's 8" or 10" or 11"? Just trying to understand better.

Thanks!

[coosaridgerider]

The first number in a tire size is the height,the second number is the width,the third number is the rim size and 5x4.50 is the correct lug size on most machines.

[gimmegreens336]

The first number in a tire size is the height,the second number is the width,the third number is the rim size and 5x4.50 is the correct lug size on most machines.

Thanks for the response!

So: The runasucks I have right now are 22x10x8 I believe. I am looking to upgrade to a bigger tire, 23 or 24". Unfortunately, most of the tires I find are for 10"+ wheels. As long as my wheel is 5x4.5 pattern and the same width as the third number in the tire size, I'm ready to roll? Like a 23x8x11 tire, if I can find an 11" wheel with the 5x4.5 lug pattern I am good to go? Or say a 23x10x10 tire, is the second number (the width) too wide? And would any 10" atv wheel with 4.5x5 pattern work for that tire? Seems like width of the tire would be a non issue.

Thanks again for the help and clarification!

[Mike]

You are correct that you need a 5x4.5" bolt pattern. The third number in the tire represents the wheel diameter so the wheel will have to be that same diameter. The width of the wheel, however, does not have to (and really shouldn't) match the width of the tire. If you run the 22x10-8 runamucks then you will obviously need an 8" diameter wheel but the width of the wheel however can be anything within reason.

In general, a wider wheel will give the tread a flatter contact pattern with the ground while a more narrow wheel will give a more round contact pattern. A wider wheel will decrease the height of the tire while a more narrow wheel will increase the height. A wider wheel will increase the stiffness of the tire while a more narrow wheel will give a better ride. There are a lot of other impacts of the wheel width to tire performance but ultimately to answer your question, you will typically want a wheel that is more narrow than the tire, usually by 2" or so. For off-road it will give you a better ride and greater flexibility of the sidewall to conform to obstacles and provide more grip.

So, if you are looking at 10" wide tires, you would want a 7" or 8" wide wheel. If I were you I would stick to AATV wheels since they have the "beadlock" bead rolled into them. Max offers 8" and 12" diameter wheels while Argo and Mudd-Ox both offer 9" diameter wheels. Find a tire that will fit one of those three diameters and go from there. The beadlock will allow you to run 1-2 PSI in the tires without losing the bead which will make a huge difference in your ride quality. Out of the three manufacturers, Argo has the least effective beadlock. Max and Mudd-Ox beadlocks are very similar so if you can, choose between Max and Mudd-Ox.

[gimmegreens336]

You are correct that you need a 5x4.5" bolt pattern. The third number in the tire represents the wheel diameter so the wheel will have to be that same diameter. The width of the wheel, however, does not have to (and really shouldn't) match the width of the tire. If you run the 22x10-8 runamucks then you will obviously need an 8" diameter wheel but the width of the wheel however can be anything within reason.

In general, a wider wheel will give the tread a flatter contact pattern with the ground while a more narrow wheel will give a more round contact pattern. A wider wheel will decrease the height of the tire while a more narrow wheel will increase the height. A wider wheel will increase the stiffness of the tire while a more narrow wheel will give a better ride. There are a lot of other impacts of the wheel width to tire performance but ultimately to answer your question, you will typically want a wheel that is more narrow than the tire, usually by 2" or so. For off-road it will give you a better ride and greater flexibility of the sidewall to conform to obstacles and provide more grip.

So, if you are looking at 10" wide tires, you would want a 7" or 8" wide wheel. If I were you I would stick to AATV wheels since they have the "beadlock" bead rolled into them. Max offers 8" and 12" diameter wheels while Argo and Mudd-Ox both offer 9" diameter wheels. Find a tire that will fit one of those three diameters and go from there. The beadlock will allow you to run 1-2 PSI in the tires without losing the bead which will make a huge difference in your ride quality. Out of the three manufacturers, Argo has the least effective beadlock. Max and Mudd-Ox beadlocks are very similar so if you can, choose between Max and Mudd-Ox.

Thanks for all the info Mike! This clarifies a lot! I do appreciate the help!