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**CT99XJ** · 09-02-2010, 11:22 AM

My 8" wide rims are bent to hell after Rausch. I wanted to know if it was possible to swap my 12.5" wide tires over to a 7" rim from an 8" rim since I have a set of Eccos lying around. Has anyone heard anything bad about it and/or done it or seen it done?

**mcatald** · 09-02-2010, 11:52 AM

I know when I bought my wheels I told the guy that there was a possibility that I might go to 33's and he said it would not be a problem. I went with 7 inch wide.

People call them poor man bead locks. It does cause sidewall bulge with a 12.5 wide tire.

**CT99XJ** · 09-02-2010, 04:24 PM

The sidewall bulges a little with 8" wide rims anyway- shouldn't be a huge difference. Thanks, dude

**muddeprived** · 09-03-2010, 08:06 AM

12.5's on 7's was my preference when I had the TJ. I love the FATNESS look and wheel protection it offers.

JRW7072009 · 09-05-2010, 08:04 PM

12.50's work fine on a 7 wide are fine. It may make the center wear a little bit faster.

I like 12.50s on a 8 or 9 wide wheel my self, my old tires where a 12.50 on a 10 wide and I did not care for it much, it worked but I did not like it.

mvk · 09-20-2010, 09:37 PM

Anyone have RC 4.5 lift need to know wheel width and back space wheel work and not scrap with 32's

**Lyon** · 01-02-2011, 11:27 PM

12.5's on 7 inch wide? I need to see a pic of this. I was worried about 32 11.5's on 7's bulging too much. Pictures please!!!!!

**muddeprived** · 01-03-2011, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lyon

12.5's on 7 inch wide? I need to see a pic of this. I was worried about 32 11.5's on 7's bulging too much. Pictures please!!!!!

It's not bad, really. I love the setup.

Didn't have any issues and tread wore nice and flat. My wheels never got damaged because the fat sidewalls protected em.

**Lyon** · 01-03-2011, 08:26 AM

I thought those rims only came in 8 inch width. You're right, not bad at all. I guess a 11.5 on a 7 wide would look almost the same as a 12.5 on 8 wide? Right? Or does the height screw with it?

**muddeprived** · 01-03-2011, 11:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lyon

I thought those rims only came in 8 inch width. You're right, not bad at all. I guess a 11.5 on a 7 wide would look almost the same as a 12.5 on 8 wide? Right? Or does the height screw with it?

Crager makes D-window wheels in 7" width. I believe that's what I have on mine. I got em from summit if I remember correctly. I do, in fact, remember measuring them 15x7 when I took em off to sell.

It would look similar but the 12.5 is just a little bit chubbier. Those are 33's in the pix by the way.

**Lyon** · 01-03-2011, 06:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by muddeprived

Crager makes D-window wheels in 7" width. I believe that's what I have on mine. I got em from summit if I remember correctly. I do, in fact, remember measuring them 15x7 when I took em off to sell.

It would look similar but the 12.5 is just a little bit chubbier. Those are 33's in the pix by the way.

Yeah, I noticed they were 33's as well. That's why I was asking about the comparison with the 32's as well.

Ok Mudd, set me straight here. I put up my Eagle Alloys for sale. I'm considering not selling them now and putting on the Stt's in 32's on those now. I don't have the $$ for new rims right now and would sell my other set to help pay for the new tires. I really don't want to do 31's so here are my questions if I do the 32 Coopers with 15 X 7's

1. How will it handle on the highway and how bad will it effect the ride? I plan on taking trips to Rausch Creek with it as much as possible (about 4 hour ride)

2. Since running them on a more narrow wheel, will I lose much height since I'll have to air them down a few pounds for full tread contact to ground? The reason I ask is because they are barely taller than the Firestone MT's in 31's as it is.

3. How do they take the turns when driving normally? Does the front end get all squirley?

4. Do you know of having any problems with state inspection?

Thank you!

**muddeprived** · 01-03-2011, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lyon

Yeah, I noticed they were 33's as well. That's why I was asking about the comparison with the 32's as well.

Ok Mudd, set me straight here. I put up my Eagle Alloys for sale. I'm considering not selling them now and putting on the Stt's in 32's on those now. I don't have the $$ for new rims right now and would sell my other set to help pay for the new tires. I really don't want to do 31's so here are my questions if I do the 32 Coopers with 15 X 7's

1. How will it handle on the highway and how bad will it effect the ride? I plan on taking trips to Rausch Creek with it as much as possible (about 4 hour ride)

They handle just like any other tire. I didn't notice any difference from the 33x12.5's on those 15x7's and the 32x10.5's on 16x7's I have now. They rode and handled fine. It was a bit plushier though which is a plus. You WILL notice some decrease in power and different shifting but you adapt to it, unless you regear. It's not terrible though. Very do-able for a street rig.

2. Since running them on a more narrow wheel, will I lose much height since I'll have to air them down a few pounds for full tread contact to ground? The reason I ask is because they are barely taller than the Firestone MT's in 31's as it is.

You won't lose height. Most of the time you don't really have to air down to get a full contact patch. If you look at the pix, you will see the tread is pretty flat and that's at 25 psi, which I normally run on most tires. I'm running the same psi in all my 31 or taller tires and they get even wear. (except swampers: 20-22 psi) In fact, I never had an uneven worn tire on any of my jeeps. Just keep em aired up 23-28 psi and balance/rotate frequently. Note: some tires are designed differently. Some being flat treaded and some rounded (swampers).

3. How do they take the turns when driving normally? Does the front end get all squirley?

Nope. They turn like any other tire I've had. I don't take turns like it's a sports car.

4. Do you know of having any problems with state inspection?

My tires stuck out about 1-2 inches on the wrangler but never had any issues with the state inspection. Every wrangler around here has increased width so it's pretty normal for wranglers but I didn't take chances with the XJ. I keep em tucked and under the fenders. That's why I'm still running stock wheels.

The only minor problem you might run into is clearance. I can't recall what backspacing those wheels are so you might run into issues with them rubbing on the arms or sway bar links unless they have a good 4.5" or less backspacing. Not something that would prevent you from running them though.

Thank you!

Answered in bold.

**Lyon** · 01-03-2011, 07:08 PM

Wow dude. You don't waste any time!

Thanks for all that great information. I think you should start charging for your services. Especially for me!

Plushier meaning it won't hit so hard? hmmmmm nice. The new lift is much stiffer so that would def be a plus! I expected the power loss with the larger tires. I know eventually I'll need to regear but I need to save lots of $$ because when that happens it'll get locked as well. That's why I kinda stopped at 32's.
I don't take turns fast with it either. When I changed to different offset wheels I noticed the steering felt alot different and didn't know with all the extra bulge if it would effect the turning.
How bad do you think the tires will rub the LCA's on that rim?

**muddeprived** · 01-04-2011, 12:20 AM

What backspacing are the wheels you plan to use?

The more sidewall you have, the plusher the ride, meaning the softer it will be. The tire can absorb the road noises better. This is why I've always hated high profile tires that have 3" sidewalls. They ride so friggin rough.

I stuck with 32's because I still want to retain as much of the stock power as I can but still have a big enough tire to do most of the trails around here without having to regear. I can keep my jeep at 55 mph pretty much without any issues with the 32's I have now. Doing 65 requires more shifting than usual but I'm normally driving at 55.

I am typing all this while severely under the influrence of alcohol so if you do not understand what I am saying, please ask and I will retype tomorrow with a straight head. LOL.

**Lyon** · 01-04-2011, 01:23 PM

Well, I must say you are quite devoted to your fellow jeepers if you come here and help people while you are enjoying your off time with coctails. Lol!

I believe the bs on those 15x7's are somewhere around 4. I'm not positive. Might even be 4.25. Id have to check the website again.

Well, the 30's can do 80 on the parkway now. I hope the 32's can match them. Hahaha!

I'm still undecided which rims to go with. So I'm gonna try to find 2 used 32's somewhere(whooped but free) just mount them 1 on each rim unbalance and flex it to see how everything looks and sits. I finally found some cherokees with DC's with 32's (see pic) flexed and it looks pretty awesome. Hopefully just need to relocate front flairs. IDK who's XJ this is but I love the look.