I want to fit a 35" spare while keeping mild performance in mind. Thoughts/Ideas?

That’s the direction I was planning on going originally but I’ve realized there’s a lot of things to consider and it’ll be a lot more work.

At least with a rack I’ll be able to remove it if I don’t like it.

What size tire are you going to run?

 

After the MTRs wear out I'm thinking these, just released by Hankook....


Look like they might be perfect my intentions.

 

What exactly are you intentions with the 3rd gen? A 34” AT doesn’t fit your usual style.

 

Going to be just a camping truck with a vagabond drifter, probably won't see anything much harder than Gold Mountain or some random fucked up road in the back country. My 2013 will get SASed in a couple years. All the crap on my 2013 will get transferred to the 2019 eventually.

I'm over MT tires (one of the many things, that over the years, I've come to the conclusion are pointless for most weekend warriors and people just get them because they are the status quo) . All the bullshit you have to deal with on pavement isn't worth the small situational traction advantages they have. I ran the Rubicon on these hybrid nittos and only had a handful of places where I didn't have good enough traction. If I could actually find a set of mild all terrains 37s with decent sidewall lugs I'd run them instead.

I'll have to go back to MT after I SAS the 2013 though, I don't think there's much larger than a 37 that isn't a MT, if any at all.

 

37s would definitely limit your tire choice to an MT. What Nittos are you running?

 

I've got ridge Grapplers, You can actually get a lot of AT and hybrids in 37s (I've looked at all the options ) limiting factor for me is, I want sidewall lugs that can actually hook, most of the mild AT I've seen , don't have any and those that do look like they are just for looks.

When I SAS I'll put on either 40s or 42s. Only options in those sizes are MTs.

 

So you find sidewall lugs to be more beneficial than the MT tread pattern? I've only ever ran one set of MTs and the traction difference is significant in those rare situations but I understand what you're saying where the costs outweigh the benefits.

When you go to a 40 or 42 with an SAS you're not going to be too concerned with on road drive ability so I assume an MT will work great.

 

Not necessarily more beneficial, just there there isn't any down side to having the sidewall lugs other than the weight of the extra rubber, they occasionally make the difference between making a line and not.

What comparison do you base your belief of MT having more traction on?

My issue with people making the claim of large traction differences is that there isn't anyway to actually say one tire is 100% objectively better in a situation. Only way to scientifically make that claim is to have 2 vehicles exactly the same and take the same exact lines, which you can't even do on slippery surfaces/lines since the first person will alter it in some way shape or form on the way up, kicking around material or moving rocks, etc. Only place I've seen where it's really possible to make fair comparison is on slickrock ledges in Moab, since they don't really change substantially from one vehicle to the next.

I look at it like this. If I run a 10mile rock crawling trail on MT tire and have a traction issue every 2. 5 miles, and on a AT I have a traction issue every 2 miles, I personally wouldn't say that's a large difference, definitely not enough to deal with all the crappy qualities of MT tires.

I'll also say this, people don't understand how critical front lockers are and how much they help, a front locker will get people way farther than a set of MT tires.

 

As you stated, I don’t have a scientific way to support the traction difference between an MT and AT. There are far too many variables to do a realistic comparison. I base my claim mainly off being on the trail and seeing what a good vs bad tire can do, obviously not specifically focused on the difference between MT and AT tires. Or I’ve just fallen victim to the status quo.

I will say that subjectively speaking, I would debate that the primary difference between any tires would be the compound and terrain. An MT may preform better in some terrain over an AT but not all and visa versa. MTs are typically a softer compound which is one of the reasons they are not good for high mileage. This is a generic statement and would vary per manufacturer but you get the idea.

I’d imagine an AT would preform better on slick rock or the similar so tire purchase should be based off usage, like everything else on a build.

I don’t have a front locker yet but the same could be said with a winch. Both pieces of equipment will net greater returns in the long run than MT tires. I steered away from a front locker because of 1) cost and 2) I didn’t want to be more prone to breaking CVs on the trail.

 

I’ve considered doing the tri-strap in the bed, being I currently carry the tire flat in the bed at the moment, but you loose so much bed space with a 33” tire in a short bed.

It wont get any better when I go to 35s.

 

Yeah, DCSB.

It’s a lot of application based too. I carry a lot of gear on camping trips that others may not.

 

Yep, if I was rolling in cash I'd try Hankook MTs, I've heard a couple guys say they grip like a champ. I later read an article saying, that at the time it was written, that those had the second softest compound of the mainstream tire manufacturer's MTs and combined with the tread pattern they flat out gripped better than every other tire. They also have a low-ish void ratio(compared to other MTs) , so theoretically they should be better on pavement than other MTs.

the only tire comparison I feel semi confident making was a treadwright MT and my Mtr's in Moab, I don't know if there are any differences other than tread and sidewall lugs but watching my truck and another on those tires go up obstacles the MTRs had a significantly easier time, several obstacles over the course of 5 or 6 trails and the treadwright had a lot of issues. Any other times and there's just too many variables to say if a tire is universally better or worth their downsides.

Don't let the clowns on here and IG scare you away from front lockers. I never broke a CV when I had 35s and locked the front any time I wanted. The people saying that don't have any significant experience rock crawling and those that have any at all, generally don't have a clue what they are doing.

I've got around maybe 25miles of crawling trail miles on these tires so far, and based on what I'm seeing so far I would never put MTs on a IFS weekend warrior vehicle ever again. MTs do get slightly more traction, but based on what I've seen so far its not as big of a difference as some people would think and doesn't make the terrible things that come with MTs worth the marginal traction boost.

 

I’d say PSI is a bigger contributor to traction Vs AT/MT.
All terrain for a daily driver is best. Mud terrains just don’t give the same tread life.

 

What is this custom cross member? Do you have a link? Can't seem to find it

 

It’s shown in his social media in a post or two but not very in depth. You’ll get an idea of he concept though.

 

There's a couple posts about it, here's one of them.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BU3AMuOlT2_/?igshid=1b8tz695jd2ti

 

That's purty

 

Thanks! Looks awesome for sure

 

Been awhile since a post in this thread, but I deviated away from my original plan and went with something more simplistic. Originally I had plans to do more permanent modifications to the truck but I realized that starting out with something that I can remove if needed was most ideal and easier.

The main goal being having a home for all my wheeling necessities that I take on every trip. the finished rack will have a spot for a single spare, tool box, floor jack, Gas/water, and cooler. Maybe a couple other items pending space but those are the primary things.

 

Hell yeah, this will be rad!