The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline Old Farm Trucks...Highway Tires on Front, Mud tires on Rear?

When I bought my 1-ton it had 7.50x17 10-ply Armstrong traction tires on the rear. Some private-label 7.00x17 steer-axle tires on front. The previous owner used it for hauling firewood. My first load was fire bricks loaded to the top of the box. In 90 miles of I-5 it rode just fine, if a bit slow on the hills. I continued hauling firewood out of the woods and needed the heavy lug tires. I'd occasionally get pulled up on the road by a D8 cat working nearby. With a cord of wet alder on board it rode a bit too soft so I bumped the tire pressure up to about 90 PSI. With 8,000 lbs of rockery rocks on, the issue was having to use both feet on the brake pedal at times. A Hard ride wasn't an issue in those days but it did bounce around when empty. Now a days I have radial tires and drop the pressure to about 50 when the camper is off. Still bounces around empty with the tires at 85 PSI. Cardboard on its way to the recycle center is all I'm willing to lift anymore.