Dually Tires

[mazrim]

Hey guys, hoping this is the right forum.
We bought a Ford F550 truck and are going to be converting it to an “overland” boxtruck (14ft box built out). Overland in quotations because we will not be going crazy with it as far as off-roading as it’ll be our home. Currently we have lived in our DIY CamperVan for over 2 1/2 years.

My question is are there tires that are beefier/look nicer that fit on the stock wheels? What is the biggest size that works and are spacers needed? What is the biggest size that you can get without needing a spacer, etc? We really loved how the tires transformed our current ford transits exterior look so would like to upgrade those on the F550.

Would prefer not to lift but not opposed to it. Basically looking to get some all-terrain tires that simply can just go right on the stock wheels IF that is possible. Basically keeping cost lowish while adding a bit of style.
Super Singles currently seem out of our price range so that's like a last resort/we'd have to have other plans fall in place. Plus I don't really think they add much beyond looks in the way we will use the vehicle (could be wrong).

Feel like I've perused a lot of threads on here and other forums and still a bit confused. Cars/trucks are not my specialty for sure. Any helpful advice appreciated.

 

[Joe917]

What it comes down to is how much off road do you plan? I mean off road, not bad road. If you plan off road ditch the duals and get super singles. Duals do not track well. ie follow the front tracks. They are susceptible to getting rocks wedged between the tires and do not air down well. As long as you plan to stay on tracks you will be fine. Beefier? looks? load capacity is king.

 

[mazrim]

What it comes down to is how much off road do you plan? I mean off road, not bad road. If you plan off road ditch the duals and get super singles. Duals do not track well. ie follow the front tracks. They are susceptible to getting rocks wedged between the tires and do not air down well. As long as you plan to stay on tracks you will be fine. Beefier? looks? load capacity is king.

Not a lot/potentially none. We do generally blm land and national forests but no offroading in the traditional sense. So it'd be classified as bad roads probably. Yes, we would like some tires that add exterior looks and maintain load capacity. Bigger tires that fit on the current rims if possible or will we have to step up to getting new rims anyways?

 

[LikeABoss]

I have a ram 4500. Stock width and 19.5 limit options. Many aftermarket duals push width out too much - over 102”. They are not cheap but I went with stazworks and have both a set of super singles and dual setup for when I need the weight capacity. Definitely looks a whole lot better too.

 

[Cseverns]

I recently got an 04 FF50, same 19.5 wheels. Tire options are fairly limited, I want to keep my dual for now like you. On the older F450/F550 as I understand it you can get away with pretty big wheel/tire combo by cutting a lot of fender out. I'm sure others here have written about what sort of lift it takes to get the 41's on their trucks. It's a bummer being on the 19.5's mostly because they don't look proportional on a truck with a big camper.

Founds Tires has (2) sizes that fit the stock rims according to them. A 225/70R19.5 and 245/70R19.5. These are pretty aggressive tread pattern, I think they look great and might give you what you're looking for. Finding aftermarket wheels can be challenging if you want to keep the original tire size. I dream of getting custom wheels from Stazworks, on their FB page they've got a few photos of dually setups and they look good. They end up using 37/12.5 IIRC, and have a 2-3 different choices for track width on the rear. It's cheaper than going super singles w/ custom wheels but I can't remember by how much. (6) tires at $500 each before wheels get's expensive quick. I bought my truck with practically new tires, just some Toyo's (M608 or M920A?) I can't remember, but they have a more aggressive tread. I'll be use them for awhile and see what I think before I buy anything new.

If you end up finding anything you like let me know.

https://www.foundersmtradial.com/

 

[LikeABoss]

Here’s my stazworks setup with 37 12.5 in front and 11.5 in back

 

[1stDeuce]

Our fire dept has a F550 brush truck that originally came with 225/70R19.5's. We put 245/70R19.5's on the stock wheels and it looks... stock. There is plenty of clearance between the duals for a wider tire, and it appears that a wider tire would be fine on the stock wheel as well since the 245 sidewalls are not pulled in at all.

I really wish now that we would have gone with 265/70R19.5's instead, and that's what I would recommend you start with. There is very little sidewall flex in these tires so I can't see much of a problem with having the duals fairly close. I think 265's would look better too if you can find a tread that you like. Find a tire shop that will mount a pair up for you and mount them as duals to see what the clearance is.

FYI, the 19.5" wheel does not have bead retention like a standard wheel, so running a bit wider tire would tend to hold the tire on the wheel better at slightly reduced pressures. I run 50psi all around in our brush truck and it is borderline IMO. Much lower and I think I could push a bead off in some situations. Even at 50PSI, there is very little in terms of off road traction compared to a normal 235/85R16 at the same pressure under a similar weight truck. The 19.5's are very stiff and do not clean out with a bit of wheel spin, they just turn to slicks.

Good luck!!

 

[mazrim]

I recently got an 04 FF50, same 19.5 wheels. Tire options are fairly limited, I want to keep my dual for now like you. On the older F450/F550 as I understand it you can get away with pretty big wheel/tire combo by cutting a lot of fender out. I'm sure others here have written about what sort of lift it takes to get the 41's on their trucks. It's a bummer being on the 19.5's mostly because they don't look proportional on a truck with a big camper.

Founds Tires has (2) sizes that fit the stock rims according to them. A 225/70R19.5 and 245/70R19.5. These are pretty aggressive tread pattern, I think they look great and might give you what you're looking for. Finding aftermarket wheels can be challenging if you want to keep the original tire size. I dream of getting custom wheels from Stazworks, on their FB page they've got a few photos of dually setups and they look good. They end up using 37/12.5 IIRC, and have a 2-3 different choices for track width on the rear. It's cheaper than going super singles w/ custom wheels but I can't remember by how much. (6) tires at $500 each before wheels get's expensive quick. I bought my truck with practically new tires, just some Toyo's (M608 or M920A?) I can't remember, but they have a more aggressive tread. I'll be use them for awhile and see what I think before I buy anything new.

If you end up finding anything you like let me know.

https://www.foundersmtradial.com/

I came across the founders and those seem to be the easiest solution. Actually found a set of wheels and rims on FB for $2500 (the largest super single size they have) but after a bit of research (not much info on them overall) in FB groups/online they appear to be not too liked overall and a lot of people switch back. Road noise and tire wear seem to the biggest complaints. Some people switching back within weeks of getting them. For that price I'm still tempted but it appears that I'd be locked into those tires as far as load capacity, etc. with their rim size.

 

[mazrim]

I have a ram 4500. Stock width and 19.5 limit options. Many aftermarket duals push width out too much - over 102”. They are not cheap but I went with stazworks and have both a set of super singles and dual setup for when I need the weight capacity. Definitely looks a whole lot better too.

Been pouring over the Super Singles and actually been in contact with Stazworks as they seem to be the most well regarded. Haven't discussed a dually setup with them but probably will do that (yours looks great!). I love the look of the super singles but not sure if I can justify the maintenance/cost over time after researching them. We will be fulltime in our new box truck build so having to rotate them every 5000 miles or so seems like a bit of a pain. It looks like with regular maintenance you can expect them to last 20k miles and if not they can be much lower.

 

[mazrim]

Our fire dept has a F550 brush truck that originally came with 225/70R19.5's. We put 245/70R19.5's on the stock wheels and it looks... stock. There is plenty of clearance between the duals for a wider tire, and it appears that a wider tire would be fine on the stock wheel as well since the 245 sidewalls are not pulled in at all.

I really wish now that we would have gone with 265/70R19.5's instead, and that's what I would recommend you start with. There is very little sidewall flex in these tires so I can't see much of a problem with having the duals fairly close. I think 265's would look better too if you can find a tread that you like. Find a tire shop that will mount a pair up for you and mount them as duals to see what the clearance is.

FYI, the 19.5" wheel does not have bead retention like a standard wheel, so running a bit wider tire would tend to hold the tire on the wheel better at slightly reduced pressures. I run 50psi all around in our brush truck and it is borderline IMO. Much lower and I think I could push a bead off in some situations. Even at 50PSI, there is very little in terms of off road traction compared to a normal 235/85R16 at the same pressure under a similar weight truck. The 19.5's are very stiff and do not clean out with a bit of wheel spin, they just turn to slicks.

Good luck!!

Thank you for the info. I think (as you alluded to) the most difficult part is finding a shop that will do it on stock rims and whether that would work longterm in our situation. I've read that that size should work and would be a great first option to try if we can. What tires did you guys go with in the 245's?

 

[1stDeuce]

What tires did you guys go with in the 245's?

Milestar BD733's. They do make some noise down the road, and do not clean out in our sticky clay mud. Holding up fine otherwise...

I bet most any non-chain small tire shop would mount up a couple for you to make sure they fit OK...

 

[mazrim]

I have a ram 4500. Stock width and 19.5 limit options. Many aftermarket duals push width out too much - over 102”. They are not cheap but I went with stazworks and have both a set of super singles and dual setup for when I need the weight capacity. Definitely looks a whole lot better too.

What tires are those (the dually ones)?

 

[LikeABoss]

What tires are those (the dually ones)?

Nitto ridge grapplers. 37x12.5 front. 37x11.5 rear.

 

[DirtWhiskey]

Have the same dilemma on my recently acquired 2006 F450. The road slick 225s are not going to work here in Utah snow country as it will spend a bunch of time hauling up and down from SLC to ski towns and a fair bit of snowboarding when it's not working. Seems like 245s are the only option while keeping the factory rims. Once you look at 7 (including spare) to move up to 265s tires and rims it's the same price as a super single setup. SS does require trimming at the least and possibly a level/lift and all that entails so the price goes up.

These 225/245 tires should really not go below 80psi because the steel side walls. They can become, er, explosive if run consistently flat. My truck came with a set of 6 225 mud or all terrain tires. I'm going to get them siped and mounted and run them until I find my solution. I've reach out to 1st Attack a few times with narry a peep. Most economical of the SS companies. I have SS Bucksrops on my camping rig F450 and the rims are great, but that was a unicorn deal: $3500 for a set of 5 with MPT81s mounted at 90% tread, and the kind gentleman, who is a forum member, hauled them to SLC from Washington on a road trip! My guess is that's not gonna happen again. Plus I want 35s or 37s max, thinking one of the 20 inch Mickey Thompson setups.

The MPT81s I like not so much. Big, noisy and hard to balance and you really need to consider a ram assist for those huge meats. So ram assist it is this winter.

 

[andy_b]

Have the same dilemma on my recently acquired 2006 F450. The road slick 225s are not going to work here in Utah snow country as it will spend a bunch of time hauling up and down from SLC to ski towns and a fair bit of snowboarding when it's not working. Seems like 245s are the only option while keeping the factory rims. Once you look at 7 (including spare) to move up to 265s tires and rims it's the same price as a super single setup. SS does require trimming at the least and possibly a level/lift and all that entails so the price goes up.

These 225/245 tires should really not go below 80psi because the steel side walls. They can become, er, explosive if run consistently flat. My truck came with a set of 6 225 mud or all terrain tires. I'm going to get them siped and mounted and run them until I find my solution. I've reach out to 1st Attack a few times with narry a peep. Most economical of the SS companies. I have SS Bucksrops on my camping rig F450 and the rims are great, but that was a unicorn deal: $3500 for a set of 5 with MPT81s mounted at 90% tread, and the kind gentleman, who is a forum member, hauled them to SLC from Washington on a road trip! My guess is that's not gonna happen again. Plus I want 35s or 37s max, thinking one of the 20 inch Mickey Thompson setups.

The MPT81s I like not so much. Big, noisy and hard to balance and you really need to consider a ram assist for those huge meats. So ram assist it is this winter.

Ram assist also is the best steering stabilizer, hands down.