Let's talk about tire heights......

[rangerslim]

I am trying to determine what the tallest tire my truck can handle and I've been doing some measuring......My 35 tsl's measure out around 33" tall......my buddies 38 mudders measure out to 34 1/2" tall.......and a coworker of mine has 37's that measure out to around 35" tall.....so what gives? I know they are all on different size rims but I haven't found a tire yet that measures in height what they say they are....all are shorter..thoughts?

 

[mhughes165]

tires always measure small, its just a fact of life, my 38.5 gumbos measure about 36.......the only way to know for certain if a tire will fit is by measured height, not marked height

 

[rangerslim]

so how do I know the exact height before I order them?

 

[mhughes165]

most sites will give u a measured height on there spec sheet....

 

[rangerslim]

those measured heights are wrong.....I've looked.....that is kinda the reason for starting this thread.......measurements are just all over the board....

 

[mhughes165]

there measured heights will be uninflated sitting with no load, u have to take into account inflation and a load into account, aswell as rim width has ALOT todo for height

 

[rangerslim]

wonder where I can find out that info??
sizes on particular rims?
sizes while inflated?
loaded?

 

[mhughes165]

idk what to tell u about that, id post it up in general discussion and get a thread with the info together

 

[tanbuddy]

take the measurements the wesite gives u, divide it by 2, and that number shout be the height of the tire above the midde of the hub.. the tire measures less than the advertised height casue of the weight

 

[Sasquatch_Ryda]

My 36x12.50R15 TSL SX's measure at just over 35" inflated with the weight of the truck on them.

 

[wahlstrom1]

My 35x13.50 Krawlers are 34" tall on an 8" rim, so they should shorten down a little more when i put them on 10's.

-andrew

 

[rickcdewitt]

it messes up these kids to no end when using the gearing chart lol

 

[4x4junkie]

Yeah, the weight of the truck on the tire will shorten the measured height by almost an inch if you're measuring it from the ground (and of course a half-worn tire will be smaller too).

A better way to measure is ACROSS the tire horizontally (or jack it up and measure).

FWIW, my 35x12.50R15 BFG MTs were just a tiny hair under 35" on 15x8 rims at 30 PSI when they were brand new (34-9/10ths maybe).

 

[Loanranger]

That is another thing to consider, is that most tire diameters (rated, not actual) are based on the tire being inflated to max pressure. Some swampers are rated at 50psi max pressure, so running them at a normal 30psi (which will wear more evenly depending on the weight of your truck) will give you a shorter diameter. My 34x10.50x15 LTBs measure in at 32" @ 10psi on an 8" rim. They measure about 33 at max pressure. My 31x10.50x15 TSL bias plys measure in at 28" at 20psi on an 8" rim, but they are at the wearbars.