So I'm in the process of putting a 14 bolt in my 75 k5 blazer. I have a nice set of 35x12.5x15 bfg km2s with 80% or better tread. I need to get some 8 lugs wheels and the selection is not very good for 15 inch. I did find some but I'm curious what your guys opinion is on wheel width. 8 inch or 10 inch.
what width wheel?
- Thread starter az_eric
- Start date
rxinhed
Dirt Guy
The reason you have difficulty finding these rims is that the 15" wheels don't clear the larger brake drums of the 14-bolt axle...which came with 16" or 16.5" diameter rims.
There was a 9.5" ring gear 14-bolt housing used in the late 80s / early 90s that was a semi-float axle with smaller drums and 6-lug. These trucks were the light duty 2500 Chevy / GMC models.
There was a 9.5" ring gear 14-bolt housing used in the late 80s / early 90s that was a semi-float axle with smaller drums and 6-lug. These trucks were the light duty 2500 Chevy / GMC models.
Larry
Bigassgas Explorer
My preference for old square bodies is 16 x 8 with 4.25 back spacing. Go no wider than 8.5”. 10’s are way too wide.
I've ran several different tires and wheels on the truck over the past 18 years. Here are some pics of how each looked to give you an idea
These are 315's on 16 x 8.5 wide on 4.25 back spacing. 4.25 is the most common back spacing for 8” to 8.5” wide 8 luggers. These wheels are inexpensive too! Desert Rat Off-Road….$115 a piece on clearance right now! The only problem with these is they are just wide enough to take bites out of the fender flares at full flex. The 8”s didn’t do that.
These are 315's on 16 x 8 with 4.25 back spacing
These are 34.5" on 16 x 7. Don’t remember the exact back spacing.
These are 33" on 15 x 8, but I don’t remember the actual back spacing. The only reason I ran these was my dad had a set of slow selling Kelly Springfield AWR’s (worthless tire!!) in stock at our shop that I got for cheap then found the wheels for $25 a piece a Western Auto on clearance back when they were still around. I needed some fresh meats because I was moving out of state where I ran these from 1996 to 2001 when I lived in Detroit, MI. Didn’t matter that they were ugly as the truck just sat under the car port pretty much the entire time I lived there anyway. When we moved back to CO in 2001 I moved to the Super Swampers on 7" wheels in the pic above. Like Dango said, the rear was no problem but the front calipers needed some massaging.
I've ran several different tires and wheels on the truck over the past 18 years. Here are some pics of how each looked to give you an idea
These are 315's on 16 x 8.5 wide on 4.25 back spacing. 4.25 is the most common back spacing for 8” to 8.5” wide 8 luggers. These wheels are inexpensive too! Desert Rat Off-Road….$115 a piece on clearance right now! The only problem with these is they are just wide enough to take bites out of the fender flares at full flex. The 8”s didn’t do that.
These are 315's on 16 x 8 with 4.25 back spacing
These are 34.5" on 16 x 7. Don’t remember the exact back spacing.
These are 33" on 15 x 8, but I don’t remember the actual back spacing. The only reason I ran these was my dad had a set of slow selling Kelly Springfield AWR’s (worthless tire!!) in stock at our shop that I got for cheap then found the wheels for $25 a piece a Western Auto on clearance back when they were still around. I needed some fresh meats because I was moving out of state where I ran these from 1996 to 2001 when I lived in Detroit, MI. Didn’t matter that they were ugly as the truck just sat under the car port pretty much the entire time I lived there anyway. When we moved back to CO in 2001 I moved to the Super Swampers on 7" wheels in the pic above. Like Dango said, the rear was no problem but the front calipers needed some massaging.
