Wide vs. Narrow tire size for Truck Campers

[Bayou Boy]

That salesman is an idiot. 2500# is not nearly enough for an HD truck. You want 3500# minimum.

 

[sertguy]

I called another store and asked the same question and told him about my experience with the last salesman. He told me the wheels are rated for 3650# and the last guy most likely look at a 1/2 ton wheel which most are rated at 2500#.


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[Regcabguy]

As stated an 18" tire will deliver a safer more stable ride.
The only 129 rated 17 is the Dura Grappler.
Look at Thuren's site for guidance on rim backspacing.
https://www.thurenfabrication.com/tech/tire-and-wheel-fitment.html

 

[Lake City John]

Wide tires look good but stay as close to stock recommendations as possible...

 

[Kmrtnsn]

I have a 2005 Ram 3500 SRW Quad cab 5.9 diesel with a Bigfoot 1500 ( about 3000 pounds) going on it in the next few weeks. Stock wheel size is 265/70R17. I bought the truck with 295/70R17. There are no rubbing or clearance issues but, they are getting worn and LOUD M/T tires. Although, I do like how the size looks on the truck.

I drive about 75% on road and 25% on forest roads (White rim trail, Death Valley etc.), with occasional snow, rain and mud, mostly on pavement.

On is pavement stability is most important, followed closely by the ability of the tire size(with) to tame those nasty wash board roads (airing down). Road noise drives me crazy as well.

I'm 90% sure I'm going with the Cooper Discoverer AT3, load range E, but open to suggestions. I also need new wheels as 2 of mine are cracked, so open to suggestions there as well.

My question is should I go with a narrower, close to stock size tire, or go with a wider tire?

Is there any benefit of changing my wheel size from a 17?

Or am I over thinking this whole thing?



Thx,
Sean

View attachment 492146

Damn good looking set up! We have the 1/2 ton 1500 on LT285/70R17E Open Country A/T II . Great quiet tire on the highway. We run the same size tire on our Jeep JKU but in Falken A/TW3s. Unfortunately they are not available in 295/70s although the Open Country A/T II are. I run the same roads as you do in our Jeep, I think you might pick up a little mileage going narrower with the 285/75s. I'd recommend going with either the AT IIs or the A/TW3s in that skinny size for where you go.

 

[::Squish::]

We had those same as the OP tires on our 2000 F350 with a Bigfoot 1500.
We noticed a slight bulging on the sidewall and less than 10,000 miles later we had sudden tread separation on one tire and the signs of it on another.

While they were on the rig we didn't love or hate the tire, but the didn't give traction in much of anything.

We opted for a M&S tire just to give us a little more traction. Since the Ford is a 7.3 and it's a 2000 road noise is a way of life even with the stock exhaust so we didn't focus on that or tread life since we don't get to put that many miles on the tires each year, for us the truck has the camper on about 90% of the time.

As for skinny vs wide. From my former life of living in the NorthWet I lean toward more narrow tires if I can, better to cut through muck and rain with vs a wide higher flotation tire.

 

[Kmrtnsn]

We had those same as the OP tires on our 2000 F350 with a Bigfoot 1500.
We noticed a slight bulging on the sidewall and less than 10,000 miles later we had sudden tread separation on one tire and the signs of it on another.

While they were on the rig we didn't love or hate the tire, but the didn't give traction in much of anything.

We opted for a M&S tire just to give us a little more traction. Since the Ford is a 7.3 and it's a 2000 road noise is a way of life even with the stock exhaust so we didn't focus on that or tread life since we don't get to put that many miles on the tires each year, for us the truck has the camper on about 90% of the time.

As for skinny vs wide. From my former life of living in the NorthWet I lean toward more narrow tires if I can, better to cut through muck and rain with vs a wide higher flotation tire.

I'm reasonably certain that the Big O Big Foot 1500 is manufactured by Cooper Tires.

 

[LeftCoastKiteboarding]

I’m reasonably certain that they carry a Bigfoot 1500 series camper with their truck.


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[tmacc]

We went with Method NV HD wheels, 4500# rating and Toyo At2 4080# rating. I'm not thrilled with the wet snow performance of the Toyos. Looking at Yokohama Geolander, Nitto, and maybe the Toyo RT. I see Cooper Stmaxx makes a 4080# tire. I'll make a decision in the next few months. ATs aren't worn out yet.

 

[texasnielsen]

Highly recommend reading this link (no affiliation, just a good explanation)

https://www.discounttire.com/learn/load-range-load-index

E range is only one half the evaluation you’ll need to ensure proper capacity. Also, if you are changing wheels, ensure they have the capacity rating to match the tire’s rating.

Good luck, sound like you’ll have a sweet setup when all is done.

 

[jadmt]

We went with Method NV HD wheels, 4500# rating and Toyo At2 4080# rating. I'm not thrilled with the wet snow performance of the Toyos. Looking at Yokohama Geolander, Nitto, and maybe the Toyo RT. I see Cooper Stmaxx makes a 4080# tire. I'll make a decision in the next few months. ATs aren't worn out yet.

I have had the Toyo AT2 and R/T and the Cooper ST Maxx's in the last couple of years and all are pretty equal in the snow.

 

[kris]

We went with Method NV HD wheels, 4500# rating and Toyo At2 4080# rating. I'm not thrilled with the wet snow performance of the Toyos. Looking at Yokohama Geolander, Nitto, and maybe the Toyo RT. I see Cooper Stmaxx makes a 4080# tire. I'll make a decision in the next few months. ATs aren't worn out yet.

Ive been running the Toyo AT2 in 285/75-18 for almost 5 years. Had one of the tires with about 30k on it start to delaminate a few months back. I was a little surprised, but Im not nice to them. I replaced two of them with the same a few weeks ago, Ill do the other two in the next few months. Theyre a great all around tire, theyre not a mud tire, not a snow tire, but theyre strong, reliable, and wear well. The Nitto's are made in the same factory. Toyo is their parent.
Goodyear has the DuraTrac in 285/75-18 and Falken recently released the AT3W in 285/75-18. Both have the 4080lb rating and both are mountain snowflake rated if you dont mind a more aggressive AT and require better snow manners.

k.

 

[tmacc]

Truthfully, we're sort of planning to NOT require tires with better snow manner. After 14 years, this is our last winter in Park City. It's been fun, but time for something different. I do see a lot of the Goodyear Dura Trac tires on vehicles lately. They definitely look more aggressive than the Toyos. Our plumbing sub has the RTs on his '18 CTD 3500 and he's kind of luke warm about them. But then he's hauling 26' sled trailer through snow up hill half the time when he goes out to play. There seem to be more 4080# options these days, that for sure. Thanks for the info, Kris. I'll check out the Dura Trac and Falkens.

 

[Buliwyf]

I have Duratracs on 11 000# truck. They seem a bit soft at max inflation in the rear. Might be perfect for a DRW. I get them because they are the most aggressive I can get the company card to pay for.

I liked Cooper STT's better, even in the snow. But $$$.

 

[Conifer]

If what you have has been working, I see no real reason to change it out.

Going wider has both benefits and drawbacks, and the only reason Id push to a different size wheel is for tire selection.
Going wider will net you a higher load capacity though.

Personally, I went to an 18" wheel to get the tires I wanted, in the size/load-rating/load capacity I wanted.

Toyo AT2 285/75R18 (34.8 x 11.2) a Load E tire rated at 4080lb per tire.

Going with these tires with such a high load capacity I'm able to run at a considerably lower PSI that the stock tires.
Softens the ride, increases grip, and the tires are less prone to punctures/damage.

I'm running this same tire right now on my Ram 3500 with a camper. What PSI are you running yours at, out of curiosity?