Split rims have to run tubes- - - -they're not air tight because of the multi-piece design. I've run radials with the correct tubes in them on split rim wheels, but the radial-type tube is a must. Bias-ply tubes will chafe and wear through in a very short time. Some tubeless 16" rims will not fit over the big brake drums on early-model 3/4 or 1-ton axles because the drop-center rims are too small to clear the drums. A 17.5" tapered-bead tubeless tire will have the same height as a 16" tube type, but those tires and wheels are scarce and expensive.
Jerry

Last edited by Hotrod Lincoln; 03/02/2010 5:10 AM.
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln
Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt!
There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway
Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!