Mike--I put 255-75-R16 on my 49 and they work fine--Will put the same on my 51-3100 soon, They have Bias ply Firestones now--Bill
They might look a little "balloony", depending on the 15"/16" wheel/rim.
LT215/85R16 fit very nicely my 16" 1954 1/2 ton rims (tubeless or tube, depending on the condition of the wheel/rim).
Play around with the PSI, by increasing/decreasing around 31 psi, until you find the best ease-of-steering vs squirreliness (wandering) at high speeds.
Your 1953 wheels should be the same width as my
1954 wheels (standard 1949 and earlier wheels were narrower)?
