BajaNomad - BF-Goodrich AT K)2 - tread wear

BF-Goodrich AT K)2 - tread wear

aguachico - 3-14-2017 at 04:49 PM

I have had the BFG AT's for on two different trucks for over 15 years. I do not off-road a lot, but when I have been offroad, they have been great. I do however drive the streets of Tijuana which is an offroad experience all at 60mph.

Last year I bough my first set of BFG KO2 - 298/75/r16's. They are a mean cool looking tread. They have been in the rear all this time and the tread has excessive wear. The pressure is always good and I do a bit of towing, not much.

Has anyone experienced the same issue? This will be my last set of BFG's if costco comes back with some BS stories about towing and heavy trucks.

saludos

BigBearRider - 3-14-2017 at 05:10 PM

No issues on my KO2s, so far.

willardguy - 3-14-2017 at 05:13 PM

I was shocked at how fast the KO2's were wearing on my son's diesel chevy truck. they seemed half gone at 10K

stiladam - 3-14-2017 at 05:34 PM

Following this. I'm due to replace my current BFG's sometime this year, but if they're not lasting as long these days I might research some other alternatives.

rts551 - 3-14-2017 at 07:37 PM

Have 30K on the KO2s on my RAM1500 4x4. half worn. I am happy.

This way better than the KOs that wore out in 30K on my Ford.

same questions

John M - 3-14-2017 at 08:31 PM

Two sets of KOs on my Tacoma - around 30,000 when I needed to replace them both.

Then, I went with Toyo AT 2 - load range E 265x75 -16" I'm now at 45,000 and there is maybe 5,000 more on them but I'm getting new tires in a week or two due to some 4x4 stuff we'll be doing very soon. I'm sticking with the Toyo which have been equally good off road as BFGs in my view. I do rotate and balance them regularly and have alignment checked each year. I did the same with the BFGs.

I buy my tires at Discount (is that America's Tire?) anyway I did ask about the expected mileage of KO2s and got non-answers, just goobledeegook double talk with the number 50,000 thrown around a time or two.

John M

BigWooo - 3-15-2017 at 05:00 AM

I was only getting 12,000 to 14,000 out of a set of BFG's. I think the guys that are getting more mileage out of their tires are driving in the U.S. My driving is 95% in Mexico. I switched to Michelin LTX AT2. I'm at about 8000 miles now and no sign of wear. They don't compare to BFG's off road, but they're good enough to get me through bad roads and storm damage when necessary.

BooJumMan - 3-15-2017 at 06:29 AM

There are sooo many variables...but,

I think generally you get what you pay for. BFG is a good tire manufacturer and the KO2's from what I have heard meet or exceed the expectations from the original KO's.

I had a set of KO2's on my 1991 4Runner last year. I only had it for about 6 months before selling it, but they were on par with the KO's I've had on previous trucks.

If you enjoyed your KO's, I would recommend you get the KO2's. Another worthy mention is the Toyo AT2's.

bkbend - 3-15-2017 at 09:07 AM

BooJum has it, too many variables. I got only 30,000 +/- miles from my last set of Toyo AT2 and was disappointed so I switched to the new BFG KO2 but it'll be a couple more years before I can comment on which lasts longer on the same truck.

blackwolfmt - 3-15-2017 at 10:04 AM

Runnin my 2nd set of AT Ko's on a ram 2500 diesel at 30K it's always time for a new set I luv BFG great traction in snow even in 2WD I have always been a Loyal BFG guy and will prob still cough up the big $$ for a set of KO'2s at least once
BTW great topic

AKgringo - 3-15-2017 at 10:47 AM

In a trade off between performance or durability, I will take performance. The guys running the Indy 500 would love to finish a race on one set of tires, but probably would never be in the winner's circle!

Year round, I spend more time in snow, ice, mud and backroads than most of the readers of this forum. I need all the performance I can get, so I change my tires when they get to about 50% tread.

If your tires are worn pretty evenly, you can sell them and recover much of the cost of buying new ones on sale, but if you run them too long, they are worthless. New tread is cheap insurance to help keep you on the road and rolling!

Edit; If I had to do a lot of commuting, my preference would be toward longevity. Off road tires are not designed for that!

Edited again, Willardguy had a better word choice!

[Edited on 3-15-2017 by AKgringo]

[Edited on 3-16-2017 by AKgringo]

rts551 - 3-15-2017 at 04:57 PM

Quote: Originally posted by BigWooo

I was only getting 12,000 to 14,000 out of a set of BFG's. I think the guys that are getting more mileage out of their tires are driving in the U.S. My driving is 95% in Mexico. I switched to Michelin LTX AT2. I'm at about 8000 miles now and no sign of wear. They don't compare to BFG's off road, but they're good enough to get me through bad roads and storm damage when necessary.

BS. I live in Punta ABreojos, BCS.

blackwolfmt - 3-15-2017 at 05:07 PM

I would think since Michelin owns BFG the tires would be made of the same rubber compound???

Ken Cooke - 3-15-2017 at 06:25 PM

I'm tough on my tires - after torturing a set of KO's on my Jeep, I switched to KM²'s due to excessive tread chipping and marginal rock traction (Palomar Canyon). I just missed the KO² release, but with this same concern aired on the Jeep forums, I am glad that I opted for the Mud-terrain tires instead.

DeMinimis - 3-16-2017 at 10:53 AM

I almost went with Mts on this stupid Jeep project due to past experience with MTs. Instead, thought I'd give the KO2s a go. We shall see. One thing I can say, the center mold mark is awesome for setting your toe correctly.

monoloco - 3-16-2017 at 02:01 PM

I live in Baja and have a set of KO2's on my F-350, they have about, 12k on them including 2 round trips from Pescadero to Portland. I haven't noticed any abnormal wear on them, they still have a lot of tread left. When I am home in Pescadero, I keep the pressure at 45psi for a smoother ride on the crappy dirt roads

Hook - 3-17-2017 at 01:29 PM

Personally I wouldnt expect a tread design like that to get very good mileage on a heavy vehicle like a full sized truck, on pavement.

There is a reason high mileage tires have much more tightly packed tread. These are a compromise.

BFG probably also knows the buyers of these tires want traction foremost and durability after that.

I own a set of KO2s on a Jeep. They seem like I will get at least 40k, and I run them almost entirely at 25psi, since I live off a rough dirt road. But that's a pretty light vehicle.

Tucsonduner - 3-19-2017 at 08:05 AM

I ran one set of BFG's on my F250 and after poor wear and having two of them throw all of their tread, I switched to Michelin LTX.

My truck is used almost exclusively for towing a 30 foot 5th wheel and ATV's. I went with the BFG's for their looks and for a perceived increase in off road performance.

After the second BFG tire failed while towing on the highway which tore out my right front fender, I returned to my dealer with the fully inflated carcass. They reported the failure to Michelin and a couple weeks later I received at check for $2800 to cover the damage.

The tires had less than 17000 miles on them and were ran fully inflated. I switched to the Michelin LTX and noticed a drastic improvement in handling with reduced road noise.

Off road they work just as well as the BFG's in places where you would normally take a heavily loaded truck. I bag the Michelins to 18PSI and I can travel on most beaches to get my trailer into position.

I have used BFG's on lighter 4X4's with no issues. My Jeeps loved them. I would not recommend them if you plan on a lot of heavy towing.

aguachico - 4-1-2017 at 03:52 PM

I found that my airbags were not holding and one side deflated immediately. Not sure if this is root cause. Just going to run them all until they are done. Starting to question my need for top of the line AT tires. It's always nice to have them when I use 4x4. A full set is $1000.

chippy - 4-2-2017 at 06:55 PM

Great tires and cheap down here.

David K - 4-2-2017 at 07:27 PM

How much... 265/75-16 or similar?

chippy - 4-2-2017 at 07:38 PM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

How much... 265/75-16 or similar?

Bought in 2016 265/75/16 under 170 usd a corner. I think it was 168 a tire :?:

Sunman - 4-3-2017 at 12:24 PM

On my second set now, got 35Kish on first set, could have pushed them to 40+K. Lots of harsh off-road miles on them.

DeMinimis - 4-10-2017 at 08:40 AM

Not exactly the question the OP asked, but I can tell you this, for gravel roads in the U.S. (and 3/4 minus driveways, etc), these tires are horrible. The lugs have the perfect spacing for grabbing gravel and throwing it up. While driving the gravel road near our house, the inside of my Jeep sounds like the inside of Bonnie and Clyde's car in that final scene. Now for Baja, obviously not as big a deal as those are generally dirt roads and not gravel roads, but just thought I'd mention it in case your rig pulls double duty.

[Edited on 4-10-2017 by DeMinimis]

[Edited on 4-10-2017 by DeMinimis]

TMW - 4-10-2017 at 08:54 AM

What you describe is what a good off road tire should do, get rid of anything it picks up. Mud tires are especially made to do that. A KO2 is not for everyone. I have Pro-Comp Xtreme on my Tacoma. They are an excellent off road tire but make a lot of noise on the hwy. I also never got the balance right so I'm going to the BFG KO2 and see how they work for me.

DeMinimis - 4-10-2017 at 09:11 AM

I disagree. There's a difference between picking up gravel and self-clearing mud. Although it has a M/S rating, it's not a mud tire, just an AT. I have muds as well (different rig) and they don't pick up gravel (bigger block spacing between blocks). Anyway, be warned, or just ignore it, but if on a lot of gravel, the OP might want to check out something else.

DeMinimis - 4-10-2017 at 09:55 AM

Oh, you are the OP. Anyway, and again, not your question, but perhaps take a look at Duratracs. Also verify the correct load rating as they have different load ratings in some of the same sizes. Absolutely the best tire I have used. I believe only metric sizes (but I could be wrong), so not sure if that's an issue for you or not. Outstanding mud and snow performance and quiet on the road. Not serious gravel P-nchers either. Good cleaning performance and I got a ton of life out of my last pair on on an overweighted D-max dually with camper. Still looked great when I sold the pickup (second dumbest thing I ever did). Wish I would have sprung for them for this Jeep project.

[Edited on 4-10-2017 by DeMinimis]

cliffh - 4-10-2017 at 10:21 AM

Quote: Originally posted by aguachico

I have had the BFG AT's for on two different trucks for over 15 years. I do not off-road a lot, but when I have been offroad, they have been great. I do however drive the streets of Tijuana which is an offroad experience all at 60mph.

Last year I bough my first set of BFG KO2 - 298/75/r16's. They are a mean cool looking tread. They have been in the rear all this time and the tread has excessive wear. The pressure is always good and I do a bit of towing, not much.

Has anyone experienced the same issue? This will be my last

set of BFG's if costco comes back with some BS stories about towing and heavy trucks.
If you do a lot of towing you can increase your tire mileage by rotating every 5 thousand miles. Keeping the best tires on the rear.
saludos

bajatrailrider - 4-12-2017 at 08:13 AM

Will Have add this have had the old type Bfgs on my 96 4x4 Turbo Diesel 3 sets.They lasted super long time.After moving to Baja half the life tough roads take its toll.

NoBu22 - 5-31-2017 at 07:18 PM

I currently own BF Goodrich AT. Been hearing good reviews on the Toyo tires Open Country AT. Planning to change the tires I'm using. Any other insights about the Toyo?

BajaGlenn - 5-31-2017 at 07:44 PM

I got 40k with mine 3 trips to Baja included mostly overloaded most of the time-- :coolup:

Franco - 6-28-2017 at 06:25 AM

Running Hankook MT LT265/70R17 - 10 ply - 52 psi - 2008 4Runner @ 5000 lbs. Tires are rotated every 10,000 Km. Keeps the wear even. 30, 000 KM on the tires. May get another 10k. Used in very sticky mud(GUMBO), high way towing two quads on trailer @2800 lbs and snow.
Road surfaces where I live much like the Baja from reports I've read and pictures.

Was running the tire @ 44 PSI but too much noise and tread on exterior showed wear. Quieter at 52 and even wear.

chuckie - 6-28-2017 at 07:28 AM

Hankooks rule..

David K - 6-28-2017 at 08:06 AM

Quote: Originally posted by chuckie

Hankooks rule..

I do like mine, but they are the P-rated, not LT-rated. I like them for how well they work in all the conditions I drive: Quiet on the highway; Great in sand for floatation; No problems in rocks; worked great the few times in snow and also great in mud. Never gotten stuck with Hankook tires.
The dislike is wear life, I have never gotten up to 40,000 miles with them (by choice, I don't like going to Baja on over-worn tires). I have gotten flats (nail and sharp rocks and somthing I ran over on Hwy. 1).

Hankook Dynapro ATM 265/75-16:

chuckie - 6-28-2017 at 10:33 AM

Cheaper too

David K - 6-28-2017 at 11:18 AM

I think Nissan uses the Dynapros on some of their 4x4s?

rts551 - 6-28-2017 at 11:34 AM

Quote: Originally posted by chuckie

Cheaper too

Yes "p" rated tires are cheaper than "lt" rated tires. Not as strong either.

chuckie - 6-28-2017 at 12:11 PM

Not as strong by a long shot...I have the LT's on my work truck and tuthers on the play truck...About 75bucks per tire price difference...I sure miss OK Rubber Welders...

TMW - 6-28-2017 at 04:39 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Franco

Running Hankook MT LT265/70R17 - 10 ply - 52 psi - 2008 4Runner @ 5000 lbs. Tires are rotated every 10,000 Km. Keeps the wear even. 30, 000 KM on the tires. May get another 10k. Used in very sticky mud(GUMBO), high way towing two quads on trailer @2800 lbs and snow.
Road surfaces where I live much like the Baja from reports I've read and pictures.

Was running the tire @ 44 PSI but too much noise and tread on exterior showed wear. Quieter at 52 and even wear.

If the outside or exterior side of the tread is wearing the camber is off. Camber should be close to zero, a little positive is OK but very little (top of tire out), Negative camber will wear the inside tread and make the tires squeal on curves.

Franco - 7-2-2017 at 09:07 AM

Quote: Originally posted by TMW

Quote: Originally posted by Franco

Failed to be specific about the tire wear. Running too low air pressure caused the wear on both outside areas of the tire. Thought process was that a 10 ply tire with a max rating of 80 psi would not require air pressure at 70% of maximum. When compared to a P rated tire with a max pressure of 42 and the air psi is set at 32, recommended by vehicle manufacturer, the approximate value of the psi is close to 80%.

David K - 7-2-2017 at 09:57 AM

Thanks, Franco...
Have you heard of the "Chalk Test" to determine optimum air pressure in tires?

My Hankook Dynapros are 44 psi max tires (that's 9 psi higher than the BFG max, that came on the Tacoma). So, I guessed how much more than the recommended 29/32 psi and first ran them at 38-37 psi. I was getting too much center wear... did the chalk test... dropped the pressure to 35-34 psi, and the wear is now even.
I did a post with photos of the chalk test (from 2012 on my first set of Hankooks) over on Tacoma World: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/chalk-test-dynapro-atm-a...

TMW - 7-2-2017 at 10:01 AM

The normal tire pressure for any vehicle is what allows the tread to wear even. One way to find the correct tire pressure is to draw a chalk line across the tread of the tire then drive it on pavement for a while and see if there is an even amount of chalk rubbed off across the tread. Three chalk line on the tire would make it easier see. For vehicles that carry a heavy load in the rear you need to do this twice. Once when loaded and once when unloaded. The PSI can/will be different for different tire brands, especially those with stiffer sidewalls.

TMW - 7-2-2017 at 10:03 AM

I see DK beat me to it.

Franco - 7-4-2017 at 07:40 PM

Chalk test is news.
Thanks for the tips gents!

mtgoat666 - 7-4-2017 at 09:05 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Franco

Chalk test is news.
Thanks for the tips gents!

Chalkology!
Chalk is the wonder mineral, so many things you can do with chalk!
Tastes like super dry turkey!

P.s. I just fill my tires per the spec on the door plate. When I put LT tires on my P spec car, I just get the air pres value from the tire load book that most every tire shop has.

Franco - 7-6-2017 at 07:38 AM

OK Gents. You have provided a very doable test. Being a technocrat and believing in engineering principles following is technical info and my best estimate for tire pressure at the moment. Should have researched this earlier but the discussion created a true interest.

Original tires: 265/60R18 110T - Max Load - 2337lbs. @44 PSI

Current Tires: TIRE SIZE LT265/70R17

Light Truck Load Inflation Table for LT265/70R17

@ 35 PSI @ 40 PSI @ 45 PSI @ 50 PSI @ 55 PSI @ 60 PSI @ 65 PSI @ 70 PSI @ 75 PSI @ 80 PSI

1890 2075 2255 2470 2595 2760 2910 3005 3100 3195

Using the Light Truck Load Inflation table 2337 Lbs is between 45 and 50 PSI.

I will try 48 PSI until I purchase chalk for the Chalk Test.

Running on Mud, snow and pavement does not evaluate the wear as when only running on hard pack.

Franco - 7-6-2017 at 07:48 AM

Viewed a jeep forum and one individual calculated required air pressure in the following manner.

Max load of tire: 3195 X 4 = 12,780

Divided total into vehicle weight: In my case: 4500 / 12780 = .352
.352 X max psi 80 = 28 PSI

LT tires MUST be at a higher inflation than the standard rating being 32 PSI for the 4Runner.

Got to watch that free advice on forums. :bounce:

Ken Cooke - 7-20-2017 at 10:55 PM

I ran my 35" BFG AT/KO's at 25# and about 12 psi off road. They were great on the street, but I chunked them badly after one Baja trip so I sold/replaceded for a set of KM²'s.

billklaser - 7-21-2017 at 07:58 AM

Drawing from my past years in "Road Racing", you could take a temperature gun and stop after driving a while then take a temp of outside, middle, and inside. Ideally there would be even temps all across the treads. Higher middle temp indicates overinflated, and lower middle is under inflated. Any discrepancy from outside to inside would be an alignment issue. This will vary depending on driving a lot of curves or just straight driving. I have used KO's on a F-350 for years. Lots of Baja 1 driving, very little off road use. Usually get around 45K miles. I don't run the tread down bare though, probably about 10% tread when replace. Next set will be KO2's. I use 65psi rear, and 55 psi front on 285's.

Ken Cooke - 7-21-2017 at 11:16 AM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

The dislike is wear life, I have never gotten up to 40,000 miles with them (by choice, I don't like going to Baja on over-worn tires).

David,

I am running BFG KM²s and I am currently at 39000 miles with probably another 16000 to go! I think that you would do better with a good mud-terrain tire such as this one. I run these tires at 22 p.s.i. on the street, highways, and sometimes as low as 11 p.s.i. on the street when I am going back and forth between off-road and onroad travel - before leaving town, of course. I only got around 35,000 miles with the Intercos I have run in the past. Our vehicles weigh about the same, so I think you need to kick those street tires to the curb.

David K - 7-21-2017 at 12:27 PM

I had run mud terrain style tires on my previous Tacoma (Cooper Discoverer STT). They looked awesome and people admired them when they saw them where I stopped. They also lasted the longest and never got a puncture.

That being said, I will never get an aggressive, 3-ply sidewall, mud terrain style tire again. Here's why:
1) Noise. There's times I don't play AC/DC or Van Halen so loud and the highway noise was just too much.
2) Terrible in sand. I do most of my four wheeling in deep sand and these type tires quickly earn the name 'grave diggers'. They require more air removed than any other tire to achieve floation.
3) Too expensive. Over $200 per tire is hard for me on limited income, even if they give more mileage life. However, fuel mileage is lower with aggressive treads.

An all-terrain tire (not BFG however) serves my needs best as they are quieter, work well every place I go, and are far less than $200. That they float on sand with ease is the final gold star.

I have run these tires and they worked well:
Toyo Open Country AT
Cooper Discoverer ATR
Pep Boys Dakota AT (but they wore quickly)
Hankook Dynapro ATM. Ran these two different times, have them on now and I think they are my favorite, overall.

[Edited on 7-21-2017 by David K]

PaulW - 7-22-2017 at 08:19 AM

Many years back the BFG all terrain tire with 3 polyester sidewall cords was deemed to be to hash for the average guy. The result was they kept the 3 cords and made the sidewall much more flexible. The soft/flexy design continues to this day. The sidewall for the new design is much more prone to sidewall damage than the older design.
The newer tires for off road have a much stiffer sidewall
I am running KM2s on the Jeep and AT on the truck and the tires are appropriate.
Tire wear for my rigs is excellent probably due to the tires being many sizes bigger than stock. They say size matters.

aguachico - 11-19-2017 at 07:47 PM

I went back the Costco today. The suspect tire has no tread after two years 20k. The froint tires are one year older and have 35K. The front tires are in better shape. Costco pro rated the tread of the best tire and gave 25% off another set.

I plan to be more diligent with my maintenance as tire costs are huge.

mtgoat666 - 11-19-2017 at 08:32 PM

Quote: Originally posted by aguachico

I went back the Costco today. The suspect tire has no tread after two years 20k. The froint tires are one year older and have 35K. The front tires are in better shape. Costco pro rated the tread of the best tire and gave 25% off another set.

I plan to be more diligent with my maintenance as tire costs are huge.

Sounds like you did not rotate, and perhaps did not balance when out of balance, eh?

Don’t blame the tire

freediverbrian - 11-19-2017 at 09:22 PM

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666

Quote: Originally posted by aguachico

Sounds like you did not rotate, and perhaps did not balance when out of balance, eh?

Don’t blame the tire

Goat another opinion not asked for

aguachico - 11-19-2017 at 09:29 PM

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666

Sounds like you did not rotate, and perhaps did not balance when out of balance, eh?

Don’t blame the tire

Goat;

yeah they were balanced and pressured correctly. I can only swap sides and not rotate front/back. Hence since they were on the rear, they should have no worn out so fast. The front tires which are older are in better shape.

As for blaming the tire, I am no stranger to this tire on this truck. I have owned this truck for 10 years and 200,000 miles. I have only used this type of tire 295/75r16's .

So if you happen to know any reason why this one tire out of many prematurely lost the middle of the tread, I'm all ears. If you are just trying to bust my chops, pues tu sabes.

AKgringo - 11-19-2017 at 10:01 PM

Any chance that the rear axle is no longer running true? If it has been bent or worn strangely, the tire may be subjected to sort of a scrubbing motion with every revolution.

That is just a thought, from one who has very little professional insight.

aguachico - 11-20-2017 at 05:28 AM

Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo

Any chance that the rear axle is no longer running true? If it has been bent or worn strangely, the tire may be subjected to sort of a scrubbing motion with every revolution.

That is just a thought, from one who has very little professional insight.

That's a good question. Thanks for the feedback. I'm on a big push to dial her in for the next 250K, knock on wood, so I will add that to the list.

rts551 - 11-20-2017 at 08:16 AM

just hit 42,000 on my KO2's. Mostly Baja driving. Probably will get new ones about 50K.

bajatrailrider - 11-20-2017 at 08:59 AM

On my 3 off road trucks that see 95% dirt. Toyota pre runner with 35s 18 psi. Mustang powered Bronco 33s 15psi. Heavy Dodge diesel with 315x 16 BFGs street towing 50 psi/ dirt 25 psi. True on reports new BFGs short life. Nissan diesel 32s street 35psi dirt 18psi. All dirt bikes 6psi front and back. ATV KFX 700 2 psi.

rts551 - 11-20-2017 at 09:20 AM

After seeig a couple of reports here that people were not getting good mileage (unlike me) from their KO2's I did a google search. seems most (there are a few that don't) people are getting between 40-50K. Correct alignment and tire pressure seem to be more important than type and weight of the vehicle. Here is one long term review... http://www.off-road.com/trucks-4x4/review/bfgoodrich-allterr...

aguachico - 11-20-2017 at 01:16 PM

I'll have the fresh set on today, plus going to get a tread gauge.
This is good info. y front tires are seeing the wear described in the article as well as the one tire of the K2 set.
My US mechanic is an off road junkie, so I'll talk to him ina few weeks.

I have pulled a few stuck vehicles and the AT's have never let me down. I hope this was a one time thing.

aguachico - 12-6-2017 at 06:08 AM

Been doing a bit of research and talked to some expert off road/ big truck guys.

Turns out that 50# front 70# rear tire pressure is screwed. The tire pressure needs to be set according to the axle weight and how the tire sets on the ground.

Since Costco bumped me up to 70#'s in the rear, the tire was most likely over inflated hence the premature wearing in the middle. I remember only running 50# front and back in the past.

I trip to Santo Tomas cost me a front tire. So it's time to get a new set up front and create a better spare.

I will make a trip to truck scale and start there.

billklaser - 12-6-2017 at 07:29 AM

Just got a new set of KO2's on my F-350. Have been using the the AT's for over 15 years now. Usually get over 40K on a set. I tend to replace them sooner than most. Aquachico I agree with you that we all tend to over inflate. I have been using 55#'s front and 70#'s rear for a long time. My rears tend to wear slightly too much in the middle. I think I should adjust to 60# rear, unless towing heavy, or loaded heavy. Leaving for Loreto soon, I am planning to take some heat readings on the tires on the trip down. See if I can put some sense to that analysis? Will report back on prognosis as I can......

aguachico - 12-6-2017 at 12:53 PM

Picked up this chart online for BFG 285's. The 50/70 just doesn't make sense to me as the weight of the truck is mostly in the front.

35. 2,130 pounds per tire
40. 2,340
45. 2,540
50. 2,755
55. 2,925
60. 3,110
65. 3,305 (max for tire load index 122 or the old load range D)
70.
75.
80. 3,750 (max for tire load index 126 or the old load range E).aret

@Billlklaser; good luck on your trip down. My mechanic adjusted the air for a road test and went 60 the way around, because of the shell and ladder rack. What year is your f350?

mtgoat666 - 12-6-2017 at 01:00 PM

TRA Load inflation tables provide best starting point for determining pressure when non-std tires on vehicle. Good Tire shops have book of tables.

AKgringo - 12-6-2017 at 02:18 PM

The chalk test mentioned on page three of this thread will tell you what you need about PSI/load ratio. It works!

aguachico - 12-6-2017 at 04:57 PM

@mtgoat Thanks for the info.
@Ak - I watched a youtube on that today.

Amazing this is not known at Costco or Discount, but I understand they stick with the door numbers and don't open themselves up to any liabilities.

The road to Santo Tomas is a spike field, need more rubber for it.

TMW - 12-6-2017 at 06:07 PM

Every tire shop I bought tires from has over inflated my tires. Unless you had a load in the bed or a camper on the truck you should never have the same PSI in the rear as the front. Anytime the center wears more than the sides it's over inflated. You don't need a chart to air up a tire and it's not rocket science. Using chalk will get the results you need. Chalk it with the bed empty and with it full.

If you want high mileage on tires slow down, inflate correctly and make sure your alignment is correct. I'm especially picky about the camber.

mtgoat666 - 12-6-2017 at 06:48 PM

When I have put LT tires on a suv or pu badged for P metric, I use the load tables to select pressure to run tires, and get fine results.
The tables are standard across all tire makes, and have some good engineering and testing behind them.

billklaser - 12-6-2017 at 06:54 PM

Aquachico, My f-350 is a 99' crew cab, long bed, 4x4, with a short camper shell and rack. I think in my case I need slightly more in the rear. I have always re-adjusted the air pressure the tire shops use. I am close on mine, but should adjust slightly less in rear. By the way, just turned 330K mi. Just getting broken in.

[Edited on 12-7-2017 by billklaser]

aguachico - 12-7-2017 at 05:22 AM

@Billklaser; That 7.3 will ride forever. My 2004 6.0, @255k, replaced the block with an '06 - 3years ago. I keep my fingers crossed.

Found this chart online for my tire size. I will be visiting the scales next week. I will also hitup the scales with my boat so I'm 100% informed.

LT295/75R16Psi / Application

Single Tire Dual Tire
35 psi 2240 lbs 2040 lbs
40 psi 2460 lbs 2240 lbs
45 psi 2670 lbs 2430 lbs
50 psi 2910 lbs 2680 lbs
55 psi 3070 lbs 2795 lbs
60 psi 3265 lbs 2970 lbs
65 psi 3415 lbs 3085 lbs
70 psi 3635 lbs 3310 lbs
75 psi 3815 lbs 3470 lbs
80 psi 3970 lbs 3640 lbs