The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline TIRE AND WHEEL QUESTION

Clueless new guy again . 55.1 3100 with a CPP disc brake kit. What are my options for "affordable" wheels/tires ? I'm talking craigslist, scrapyard etc. It has the stock 16s on it now. Thought about 215-85-16s @ $110 ea. on stock wheels but I've seen the K10 blazer wheels referenced a few places and marketplace is full of cheap later model 6 lug takeoffs but usually with 255 or larger tires mounted. That sounds like a lot of tire to cram under a basicaly stock old truck. What's a poor boy to do ?

The new car and truck manufactures seem to want tall rims (for gas mileage) and skinny sidewall tires that ride stiff and horrible (my generation is showing up).
What this means to me is that my 1994 truck tires are no longer "in the trend" and manufacturers follow the money, obviously, with the model of tires they produce.
My selection of available new tires for my 1994 truck have dwindled especially the ones I like.
So if you own an old truck or car (90's and older), we all will be in the same obsolescence boat eventually, at the present trend.
Future and current prices will be much higher for the decent tire. We "poor boys" will just simply have to squeal or modify our trucks to fit these hideous wheels of today.

As a general rule old (30's, 40's early 50's) stock rims that require inner tubes need to stay with inner tubes and need to be rated for the highway speeds of today.
Most Stovebolters prefer radials for the everyday ride and handling (unless originality is primary then $$$ for the new good versions of the bias ply) so you need rims made for tubeless radial tires.
In 1955 it became standard for cars to have tubeless.
In ~1965 it became standard for cars to have radials (the rims made to bead a radial).
I prefer nothing wider than 235 for my manual steering box and that works out to a 8" rim (for example).
Then it depends on if you have upgraded (or plan to upgrade) you rear axle and whether it has or will have 5 or 6 lugs (1/2 ton).
If you find a 60's, 70's and later scrapyard rims and new tires that meets you needs, the original 1955 hubcaps may not fit so you may have to add (rivet) clips to the rim.

There will be others who will come along and give you ideas on what they have and correct the errors in my above statements.

My 55 1st 1/2 ton Chevrolet (Redhead) has a Camaro rear axle with straight axle CPP front discs. 5-lug, Camaro Rallye rims with 235 R75-15 tires.


https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/1423064
https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/1427396/1.html
https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/1426489

Lots of good info there, thanks. What about the C10 15" wheels or later chevy or toyota 6 lug wheels ?

Can I put modern radial tires on 1960 C10 rims or do I need a different type of tire? I have been reading a lot of forum posts (here and elsewhere) and it seems lots of people do not use the stock rims. I was going to try but it limits the size of tire I can run. I did not realize it may also affect the type of tire I can run.

What is the size of the tire that you now have on your 1960 C10 rims?

Right now there are old 235/75/15 on the rear and 225/75/15 on the front. All the tires need to be replaced and I thought I could buy whatever modern tires I wanted as long as the size was compatible but now I’m not so sure.

Yes, Henry, you can install modern radial tires on your rims without any problems as long as they are the proper size for the rims.

Thanks that’s good to hear. I have been reading endless tires and wheel threads but most have to do with lowering, backspacing, and wider larger diameter rims. Not a whole lot of info on stock wheels.