Tire pics for Pelican

[wyldman]

We were discussing the Cooper Discoverer M&S Snow,and I wanted to post some pics here.

[wyldman]

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[wyldman]

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[wyldman]

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[wyldman]

Tires are 265/75R16 E load range

[Prosno]

I put these on my f-250 and they bite incredibly well over a regular mud and snow. Great tire but I think they wear quick in summer but I'll take that tradeoff

[pro property]

Hey chris

I like those tires. Im thinking of changeing mine in the spring.The stock tires arent very agressive, and honestly look too small.
What size would I be able to go to, and can I have the speedo adjusted....thanks for the help
I was thinking of the 265,, how much taller is a 265. the stock are 245....:beatsme

[wyldman]

Mike

You should be able to put the 265's on no problem.I would get a set of used steel rims and run them in the winter only,and keep your other tires for summer use.

Cooper does rate them for all season use,but i have heard they wear quickly.Using them for snow only,you should get 4-5 seasons out of them.

[JCurtis]

Put these Bridgestone Dueler AT REVO's on my 2500. I went to the 265.75x16 E rating

Supposedly they have great snow traction

[Roger Dodger]

This year looks like that last season for my Michelins. Not that great for snow traction either I might add. They wore evenly but big deal!
I spoke to two guys at a gun range that just happened to be discussing their tires. The one had the Discoverer M/S and hated them from very quick wear out (15Kmi and wearbars are showing). The other fella had the Bridgestones and loves them so far. Neither guys plow. The Cooper user did a tremendous of highway driving/towing.

Any comments about the BF Goodrich A/T in a load range E?

Or how about these Cooper Discoverer S/T tires over the M/S? I plan to keep the tires on factory alloy wheels year round so they will see dry pavement and lots of towing too. What ya think?

[JCurtis]

Haven't had a chance to plow with them yet, but the wet traction seems to be what they say it was. which is pretty darn good

I have them in E range, pretty Sturdy looks.

If you look at Bridgestone, make sure you look at the DuelerAT REVO

They aren't too noisy, I just drove up to Portsmouth NH a week or so ago and they handled fine in rain, Can't wait to try them in snow

[wyldman]

Roger

If you have to have an all season tire,then the Cooper Discoverer AT is the way to go.It's a good all around tire.It will never match the M&S on snow and ice,but it will do fine.

[TomatoRedGMC]

I have a set of Dayton Timberline 245/75 R16 E series, 10 ply, on my rig....don't do much pushin, but i've pulled a few fords outta the mud with them :burnout pretty solid tire, wear is minimal ( maybe cause the trucks parked :eek: ) but seem like a great tire for the truck....

[John DiMartino]

Ive run the Coopers on all my trucks,thats all I use now. I have set of S/T's,and A/T s on different wheels for different seasons.I also have the M/Ss on my other truck.They are great all around tires ,IMO. The ATs have great traction on the rear of my Ram,snow traction of the AT is slightly worse than BFG all terrain KO's.,but the Ms 's are better,so are the S/T's. Tire life is at east as good as the BFG's if not better. When i had BFG 285/75/r16s I could spin them well into third gear on hot,clean dry blacktop with "only 450HP", now with 550hp on #2 I can spin these coopers into 3rd easliy,but when i had 450hp,they hooked quickly in 2nd gear after the 1-2 shift(barks tires). Pelican I'd go with the M/S you wont be dissapointed

[JCurtis]

John, the way you go through rear tires :burnout

I would think you had Cooper as a Sponsor of your truck !!!:D

[CNY Joe]

I am planning on replacing all my tires with Cooper M&S Tires.

[Big Nate's Plowing]

I am still up in the air as for what to put on the durango, I like the looks of the cooper snows but the truck sees 20k a year

I know I can get 25k out of a set of siped SSR's and have better summer offroad performance. noise is not an issue
http://www.intercotire.com/ssr_sswamper_radial-600.jpg

have also been looking at the goodyear wrangler at and the mt/r

[WoofsPlow]

Look into General tires, Grabber M/T. I will be putting them on my non-plow truck in a few weeks - 31x10.5

[JohnnyU]

I had a set of those General Grabbers, I'll never own another one. ThHe Kumho M/Ts look pretty good, they are supposed to be great in snow as well. It's a toss up between the Kumhos or a set of BFG A/T's next time.

[WoofsPlow]

What problems did you have with the Grabbers? Were they the M/T's or A/T's? I have the BFG A/T's on my plow truck now, have not used them in the snow yet but they look like they will do well. How much to the Kumhos go for?:cash

[Long0]

I'm sticking with the green diamond retreads again this year on all my trucks. They were by far the best ice traction tires I have run. I ended up getting 33K out of the first set I tried. All four mounted and balanced were right at $300.

[JohnnyU]

Woof- they were teh M/T's
They had terrible wear on the street, and didn't compensate for that at all in the mud. They were cheap, that was why I tried them. The snow traction left much to be desired, and they were rather noisy, even for a mud tire.
I spent about $40 more/tire and got a set of Bridegstone Dueler M/T's. Great wear, great dry traction, wet, snow, mud are all excellent, I can almost plow everything in 2wd. I have no complaints with them at all, except for the load ranges and sizes that they are available in. I'm far from the stock 210 hp, but not close to Johnny D's kind of power, the only times that I have broken the tires loose, were when intentionally showing off, or when stacking heavy snow-I find all four like to bark, its not good for the truck, but every once in a while, you have to stack a little higher, or farther back, or whatever.
I just wasn't impressed with them at all, I like the GY MT/R, and AT/S, they are both supposed to do pretty well in snow as well.

[BWhite]

The Cooper tires look good . I have had great results with my BFG CommT/A Traction . AAnyone else have an opinion on them?

[Pelican]

Thanks Chris. I'm curious what the advantage is though over a tire like the Grabber MT or one with a similar tread. They seem more aggressive and have bigger side lugs to dig.

I have two sets of wheels, the snows go on when the first snow is forcast, and come off the first of April, so tread wear isn't really an issue. I'm also not concerned about noise, I've got a straight pipe, can't hear tire howl anyway.

Are the Coopers still the better way to go?

[wyldman]

An aggressive tread doesn't mean it's good in the snow.Take a look at the Michelin Artic Alpin snows (for cars),they are almost smooth.

It's all about the siping,rubber compound,and somewhat tread design.

Once you've experienced the difference between an all season,AT or MT,and the Cooper M&S,you'll never go back.It's night and day.Sometimes i forget i'm driving on ice and snow.

[BWhite]

I agree, if you look at tires designed for snow they dont have that "knobby pattern " They have an aggressive pattern and each tread block is cut up ith closely spaced "sipes" They must flex and bite the snow . They down side is the tread block movement you will get on dry pavement when taking a highway ramp a bit to fast .

[Prosno]

Wyldman is absoloutly right Steve, the tractio you get from therm coopers is incredible.

[wyldman]

That's a good point Bill.I have the Artic Alpin's on my cars and minivan,and they do give you that "squishy" feel when on hot dry pavement.

That was one thing that impressed me with the Cooper M&S,is they don't feel that way at all.I've had them on for a while now,even using them as slicks for drag racing.They hook really well. :D

:burnout

[KenP]

I just put four Discoverer A/T's on, I hope a made the right choice.

[Jay ALC]

What's your guys' thoughts on Pro Comp brand tires? I'll have to look at the shop in the morning as to what exact ones I've got but I put a set on my 2002 F-350 and they seem to be holding up well. Usually a pricey tire but I got the set at the recommendation of my tire guy when he had a special on them. I haven't got to play with them in the snow yet but I'm sure they should do as well as what was stock on it, hopefully a lot better.

[Got Snow?]

siping- as it was explained to me, the small "cuts"-siping- purposes is to have the snow "pack" into the cuts so the tread becomes covered in the snow. (as one of wyldman's picture shows) the theory is that you get more friction with snow to snow contact than snow to rubber contact.

both the Bfgoodrich a/t's and commercial t/a traction models are sever snow rated (9 and 10 respectivly) a/t's very popular around here for plowing and (from the website) "Industry-first on-/off-road assistance program -- if you get stuck, we'll send a truck."
besides the obvious difference in tread patterns, the traction model is molded for studs, and the a/t's have "tri-gaurd" sidewall
traction model wasn't available, so i went with the a/t's(235/85/16)

the Cooper Discoverer M&S Snow look/sound like great quality tires as well, i wish i did more research on them before i bought!

[flatbed]

you get more life out of your tire if you sipe them ....on the big truck we would get 20% more life out of the tire's......but if you use them for ruff duty that will tear the lug's apart............ :rolleyes:

[BRL]

I'll add my .02 First off, can someone tell me what AT etc. means? I think I know M&S as Mud & Snow, but the rest I'm not sure about. Thanks.

I just had my Blazer in on Friday to get a set of tires. One of them was so worn that it was negatively affecting steering & stopping abilities. :eek: I didn't get a chance to read this thread to see the opinions before sending it in . The mechanic that used to always work on my trucks moved to Florida last spring, so the other guy at the shop gets them now. Anyway, he called & asked if I wanted something "more aggressive". I told him I was plenty happy with the ones that were on there which my old mech. had suggested as a better option the last time I needed them. I am happy to report that they are the Discoverer M&S tires. They are fantastic in plowing, rain, mud etc.! I never take them off for the summer and haven't really noticed a problem with them then, not that I am that into the truck or tires & pay attention. It sounds like maybe I should switch to something else for the summer time though? Or is it not too much of a big deal? Thanks, and it was nice to see that the tires that I like so much are recommended by some here. Lucky break on my part. :cool:

[Got Snow?]

a/t= all terrain

m/t= mud terrain

a/s= all season

[nsmilligan]

Hey LongO

I'm with you, tired Green diamonds last year, fitted them on everything this year. You can pay $$$$ more and still won't have the traction fof the Green Diamond. :zoom

Bill

[Honest Mike]

Those Cooper tires sure do sound like the way to go from all the positive posts about them. The only bad thing is, well not that its a big deal or anything, but you cant get them with white letters on them. My truck has always had raised outlined white letter tires on it, even when it was new, it would just feel weird putting plain black tires on it. I wonder if they dont make them white letter because they are load range E, or because of something else? The regular Coopers come in white letters, but not the ones you guys are referring to. Mike :headwall

[sdpsd99]

I have tried these make and models of tires on my plow trucks over the past 7 years. Goodyear Wrangler MT ( the origional directional tread patern) Goodyear Wrangler RT, Dunlop Rover RV, & RT & General Gabber MT.
Wrangler MT, & Rover RT were the best that I had used on a SRW pickup. Also had great wet road traction due to a softer rubber compound. The General MT were on my first duelie that origionaly came with the Wrangler RT's on it from the factory. It was a nite and day diffrence on the dualie by changing the tires. The Rover RV were ok not the greatest.
I the thing that all the above tire have in common is the soft rubber compound. Which inturn ment that they all lasted about 15,000 miles. I need a traction tire during the summer to get in and out of various places. I am trying an off brand tire this winter Chapperal Commercial Traction it is Cooper's off brand. It has a harder compound the the others mentioned above. So I will be a test project again. The tread pattern is similar to the Goodyear Workhorse. I theroy of big lugs and large voids has worked well in the past along with open sholder tread.

[urethane dino]

I have s/t s on the rear of my duallies and they plow awesome. Hardly needed 4wd. I had at's and hated them, they had fine traction but wore very quick about 20K front and rear. I installed the highway tread on the front of the truck, and the wore much better than the at's and wore alot better as well. I wish they still made the cdt's, but they dont.
Dino

[Joey D]

I just turned 50k miles on BFG AT's. I have had them on for almost 3 years. I am not a big fan of rotating tires so they have only been done 4 times. No complaints about them at all. Best plowing tire to date for me. I do some trail riding in the summer and the BFG's have the toughest sidwall out there when on the rocks

[W-n-K Landscaping]

Sorry to be jumping in so late on this, but I worked as a tire tech/sales person and asst manager for three years at a local ( no nationwide) company and I learned alot- especially when I made asst manager I had to go through all sorts of training- direct from the manufacturer's. They all had one common thing when it came to siping- the siping allows for more tread movement and more biting edges to allow for better traction in wet or snowy conditions. Add to that a softer rubber compound combined with more aggression and that is where you get a snow tire. Snows are made from a much softer compound that will not get stiffer in cold temps, and they are siped much more aggressively than all season tires, allowing that soft compound to really move around and flex which in turn will allow the sipes a chance to pite better. Think of it like a piece of paper rolled into a tube- like that you have a racing slick- no tread, just smooth surface, and more of it, to grip with. Works great on dry pavement and when its hot out. Now take that tube and compress it- you now have more biting edges due to the wrinkles, great for all season driving- decent traction, but a little more noise and faster wear. Now take some scissors to the "sqished" tube and make some cuts in it, voila!, even more biting edges to grip with!

I also sold Goodyear racing tires and racing fuel for several years to the local drag racers and circle track guys- If you want to talk compound- just listen to these guys talk tires! They will go as far as having tires from the same batch shipped from different parts of the country to keep yusing the same compound once they get their cars dialed in! They have found that certain hardnesses will greatly effect how their cars handle when they run them. That is why you notice a "squishy" feeling when you take that off ramp on a hot day! The snows are really soft then and really give alot more. I used to always run all seasons on my cars until I started to get the training from the manufacturers- I thought that snows were just a bunch of hype to sell more tires! I was wrong, and I have seen the difference when I sold customers two instead of four snow tires- even though the Car manufacturer recommends four- and had them come back either the same day, or a few days later due to how the car handles with mismatched tires on the two different axles. I try to keep a matched set on my vehicles whenever possible, and if I have to change them two at a time, I always put the new ones in the rear- the compound is always softer after sitting on a shelf in the wharehouse for a while, and if you put them on the front they can wear unevenly much faster.

On a different note- Heat is the one thing that will kill all tires. Tires with two steel belts will create more heat than those with either one steel and one aramid, or those with no steel at all! A perfect example of this is the Kelly Voyager- a very smooth riding, extremely quiet tire that got PHENOMINAL mileage- I owned a set that has 125,000 miles on them and they are only half worn!! Ran them all season(started on my dads Caddilac, then mine!) and they are now at his house waiting for another car that they will fit! Kelly also ran a test to see how truck tires would hold up made from aramid- they did a run and set up a firm in the mid west( I think- I heard about this a while ago now) that agreed to run them and keep documentation of any troubles and the miles they put on them. After a million miles on each set--- WITHOUT recapping them!!-- Kelly wanted the tires back- the company wouldn't give them back!! I can understand why!! So if you can find tires that have aramid belts- seriously look at them. They might cost more, but it's worth it for the wear you will get out of them! as well as the strength for truck tires.
I forgot to mention that aramid is the same stuff they use to make bullet proof vests- very similar in properties to kevlar( might be one in the same, just ones a brand name, I can't remember, sorry!). Stronger and lighter than steel, and when run in a tire they produce nowhere the heat internally that steel does!!

Hope this helps, sorry it was soo long, if anyone has any questions, feel free to PM me or post them here, I'll answer all that I can!!

Bill

[Pelican]

Well my checking account is $604 lighter, I bought a set of 4 today with all the rain we're having. What else to do on a rainy day but spend money?

I hope these things are as good as you guys say! Which one of you should I call if I get stuck?:eek:

[wyldman]

Tell you what.Since i recommended them to you,i'll offer a free tow to pull you out.You just pay the mileage. ;)

[atgreene]

I change-over to studded snows for the winter. Both my trucks now have the Chapparell studded and the instances of getting stuck have been greatly reduced. I also narrow them up for the winter, going from 245/75 to 235/85, which also helps a lot. Its amazing how many fellow plow operators call me to come pull them out when they get in trouble. I don't know if it is necessarilly the tread or the studs combined with the narrow width, but I have little to no trouble, and usually plow in 2 wd.

[nsmilligan]

I used to use stuuded tires till I found the Green Diamond tires, they provide better traction all thru the wear down of the tire. I found studs lose a lot of their traction after the tire is about 1/2 worn, plus you start losing some, I switch to a 215 85 16 same rolling diameter as a 245 but narrower still.

Bill

[snonut12]

A few days ago while I was at my local Fisher dealer, I saw a Chevy 2500HD with a new Fisher plow sitting on the parking lot so I walked up to look at it. I noticed that it has BFG A/T KO tires, very aggressive style, and it sure made the truck look meaner. I love that look. Upon closer inspection, I could tell that the tires are bigger than the stock 245. Reading the sidewall, it said 265 but I was shocked that they are load range D. I also happen to see a Dodge 2500 with the exact same tires, same specs. It just surprised me that those people would go with lower rating.

So I searched on BFG website and read the list of tire specs., and there is no load range E in 265 size. BUT they have the exact same weight rating as the 245 load range E. So the only difference is the extra 2 plys on load range E, correct? Anyway, I don't see why they don't make 265 in load range E because I think it would be a hot seller for us guys who need good aggressive tires with style for all seasons.

[sno-mover]

Which one of you should I call if I get stuck?
LOL:D

[4evergreenlawns]

Curtis,

FWIW, I went to the BFG REVO's last winter on the factory steel rims they are awesome in the snow and ice. The E rating showed a diefference when loaded compared to the factory Firestones felt like alot less side to side sway in the rear.. I am only runing them in the winter because I did think they were abit to aggressive on the front end when doing alot of turning, and backing with the trailer once it warms up. I hope to get at least 4 - 5 winters out of them.

Hope that helps,

Ron

[cardoctor]

i thought revo were made by bridgestone?

john:headwall

[4evergreenlawns]

John,

You could be right I get BFG and Bridgestone mixed up all the time. I do know for sure they are the Revo's with the E load rating.

Ron

[Joey D]

Originally posted by wxmn6
A few days ago while I was at my local Fisher dealer, I saw a Chevy 2500HD with a new Fisher plow sitting on the parking lot so I walked up to look at it. I noticed that it has BFG A/T KO tires, very aggressive style, and it sure made the truck look meaner. I love that look. Upon closer inspection, I could tell that the tires are bigger than the stock 245. Reading the sidewall, it said 265 but I was shocked that they are load range D. I also happen to see a Dodge 2500 with the exact same tires, same specs. It just surprised me that those people would go with lower rating.

So I searched on BFG website and read the list of tire specs., and there is no load range E in 265 size. BUT they have the exact same weight rating as the 245 load range E. So the only difference is the extra 2 plys on load range E, correct? Anyway, I don't see why they don't make 265 in load range E because I think it would be a hot seller for us guys who need good aggressive tires with style for all seasons.

BFG uses a tri ply sidewall, where as most others are two.

[Pelican]

Finally got my camera to work thanks to wyldman!

Here's my new tires:

[Pelican]

The tread is over 1/2" deep!

[BRL]

Yep, them's the ones I got too! Congrats!

[Honest Mike]

That is a real nice looking tire. I wish they made them in a raised outlined white letter, I would like to give them a shot when my tires wear out. Cooper makes their other tires with white letters, but not that one, not in my size anyway. LT265-75R-16. Did you balance them? I dont see any weights on the face of that one, unless they ended up on the back. Mike :burnout

[Pelican]

The shop I went to said they didn't have a wheel adapter for the Ford wheels. These tires have been on back order just about everywhere, this guy had them in stock so I grabbed them up. They're not going on a race car anyway;)

[Crimedog]

Mike, what about using that tire chalk. It costs $3, but I've never used it, so I don't know if it works. It looks like the letters are raised, just not painted white. for 3 bucks, it would be worth a shot.

[JohnnyU]

Steve, thats a clean looking Blizzard! Is that the one for your F350? Great looking shape for what, three years old!

[Pelican]

Snowy, that is a new plow! I had taken my old one to Jerre for some upgrades and someone stopped at his shop and made an offer we couldn't refuse! Result? I got a new plow with all the upgrades I had ordered and then some!

[nsmilligan]

Here's a pic of my new SKINNY green diamond traction tires on the Dodge, 215 65 16 Load range 'E', hands down the BEST snow tire out there.
Bill

[JohnnyU]

Wow Steve, sounds like a hell of a deal! I take it the old one had the dual cylinder setup, and you wanted the single cylinder, among other updates they have made?

For heavy commercial plowing, how did that other 810 hold up for you? I like the idea, but am still unsure of how durable they are. For instance, there are Meyers, Fishers and Westerns on the road today that are 20 years old. DO you think the BLizzards have that in them?

[wyldman]

Did you get the tires on yet ? Any opinions so far ?

[BWhite]

My new truck has BFG "rugged trail T/A . 265/70R17E . I dont know what there snow performance will be like . I am thinking about getting the BFG Commericial T/A traction with winter wheels if they make my size . The Coopers seem highly rated . Am I right thinking their M&S are the best for snow .?

[Pelican]

Hey teach!

Haven't you been paying attention?

Now write on the blackboard.....

Chris, I'll be putting them on in the next couple days, still have one more leaf job to do tomorrow.

[wyldman]

Chris, I'll be putting them on in the next couple days, still have one more leaf job to do tomorrow.
Chris, I'll be putting them on in the next couple days, still have one more leaf job to do tomorrow.
Chris, I'll be putting them on in the next couple days, still have one more leaf job to do tomorrow.
Chris, I'll be putting them on in the next couple days, still have one more leaf job to do tomorrow.
Chris, I'll be putting them on in the next couple days, still have one more leaf job to do tomorrow.
Chris, I'll be putting them on in the next couple days, still have one more leaf job to do tomorrow.
Chris, I'll be putting them on in the next couple days, still have one more leaf job to do tomorrow.

OK :D

[snonut12]

That was easy .... all you did was copy and paste it. Really tough. :rolleyes:



:grinz

[wyldman]

No,No,No.I typed it out,every word. :D

[Pelican]

Actually, I was directing that comment to Bill!;) That new Dodge of his has got his mind all a scatter!:wink :haha

[Arc Burn]

I'm looking at those tires now but studded,any particular reason you boys didn't go with studs(Wyldman,Pelican)?
I firmly believe studs had alot to do with keeping me from sliding off an icy embankment last winter,I have to say that has been the only time i have even ever considered jumping from a moving vehicle,things were not looking good for a minute,blade was down,brakes were on and backwards we went,couldn't steer at all or i would have stayed off the brakes,long story short i believe the studs slowed it down because it stopped on a severe incline and still a sheet of ice...Anyways,studs?

[W-n-K Landscaping]

ArcBurn- Three years in the tire industry showed me that studs do have their applications, but for the most part they are simply a money maker for tire sales companies. If you are dealing with a high packed snow or ice surface 90% of the time or more, then yes they are worth it, if however your vehicle will be hitting pavement for more than 5-10% of the time don't bother. The problem is that the studs can and will dig into the ice/snow, but cannot dig into the pavement so instead they are being pushed into the tire which eventually wears out the pocket they are installed in and causes them to fall out. The other thing is that on smaller vehicles as soon as you lock up your tires with studs your vehicle turns into an ice skate and you are along for the ride at that point. Your truck with the blade, counterwieght, sand, etc.. had enough down pressure to bite in and hold- exactly what they are desiged to do.

So to simplfy all this info- If you have mostly snow and ice that you drive on, go for the studs- they will help immensly. Just remember that as soon as you hit pavement you are causing the studs undue stress and they will wear out/fall out faster.

I hope this helps!! Oh, and Cooper/Master Craft tires are some of the best winter/snow tires on the market. I heard highly of the Green Diamond, but they are not sold in my area and would have to be a special order, so I wil stick to my agressive all seasons and mud tires.

Bill

[Arc Burn]

I got 3 seasons out of my Goodyear Workhorse studded tires and they were still good when i let them go with the truck this spring,there was very minimal stud damage/loss.
The area is very rural here,miles and miles of gravel town road and only one of my driveways is asphalt(i realize your talking about daily travel on blacktop)For what little they cost and seeing how i take them off in the spring anyways i'll take them.I see your point though,probably useless in certain applications.

[BWhite]

Studs would probably cause havoc with my customers driveways

[BWhite]

P

[Pelican]

I don't use studs for the reason Bill cites. Most of my accounts are asphalt, I'd have explaining to do in the Spring when those scratches appeared. If things get so bad that studs would be needed, I throw on a set of tire chains. Believe it or not, the damage left behind by them is less than the studs and you can tell when you are beginning to spin to avoid the damage.

[nsmilligan]

Here's the link to the Green diamond sitehttp://www.newind.is/english.htm all the advantages of studs without the disadvantages, legal, even in Upper Canada, and don't scratch the pavement, low noise but the extra traction in icy conditions.

Bill

[atgreene]

I'm firmly sold on studs, but the greendiamond tire look interesting. Any dealers in Southern Maine?

[BWhite]

It seems real tough to find 17 in snow rated tires. I knowI could use 16 but that throws off calibrations .

[Got Snow?]

bill,
you should be able to resize to a 16" rim and keep the same OD.
just a little bit more of an investment

[W-n-K Landscaping]

Bill- Gotsnow is right- you should be able to resize into a 16"rim and still keep the same OD- but it might be tough trying to find a snow- you could find an aggressive or all season tire- but that defeats the purpose since you will not be getting a softer rubber compound. Take a look at some of the tire web sites- they usually will list the OD of your current tire- then you can cross reference it to something on a 16"rim.

Bill

[wyldman]

Try bolting up a 16" rim before you do anything.They went to 17" rims to allow more room for the bigger brakes.A 16" rim may hit the caliper when installed.

[W-n-K Landscaping]

Good point wyldman- glad you're here!! I totally forgot about that issue- we ran into it a few times at the tire strore I worked at- people would bring rims in, pick out their tires and then want us to mount them up, went fine until we couldn't get them on the vehicle! Some people still wanted us to moutn them on a cash and carry basis! We refused to mount them on the vehicle, but we couldn't refuse if they wanted to just buy them and carry them off!

Bill

[Got Snow?]

Originally posted by wyldman
Try bolting up a 16" rim before you do anything.They went to 17" rims to allow more room for the bigger brakes.A 16" rim may hit the caliper when installed.

definatly a good point to consider.

some quick math says you need a little more than 1/2" clearance around your calipers on your current set up

[BWhite]

I wil call tire rack .See what they say .

[EZSnow]

In my experiences, save your wind on calling tire rack. They told me that 285/75/16s wouldn't fit on my chevy... funny- they're already on it!! I'd try somebody like Four Wheel Parts.

[Pelican]

I've got too say I was a bit skeptical on the abilities of the Cooper snow tire, I'm from the old school where a good traction tire has an extremely aggressive deep lug design. The first time out with my new tires I was extremely impressed!

I mounted the Coopers a day before our blizzard and lashed down a 1000 lb. slab of concrete over the rear axle. This truck was virtually unstoppable in 18" of snow!

It took quite a while before I ever felt the tires slip, and I only skidded when I slammed on the brakes at speed. I was plowing up hill and even back dragging up steep inclines, this has really given me a lot of confidence when plowing. I would back down a steep incline after a pass and stop half way down, then begin the second pass with no spinning!

There were some instances when I would try to stop after backing down a hill where the truck would just keep sliding with all 4 wheels locked. As soon as I applied torque to start out, the tires would grip the surface somehow and I'd be on my way!

There were two cases where drifted snow had covered a 3' deep drainage ditch and I found with the truck. Once was with the 2 passenger side tires in the ditch, I thought a tow was in order. I rocked the truck a couple times, and it walked on out of the ditch! I was stunned!!!

The second time I dropped the front axle in the ditch, the plow was resting on the bank of the other side. My rear axle was still on the snow covered pavement. I just put the truck in reverse and backed out of the ditch with very little spinning.

Cooper has what they call a "Snow Rib" on their tires, a saw toothed rib in the center of the tread. I pushed a full blade of snow up the steep incline of my driveway which had 1" of packed snow covering it. I inspected the tire tracks and the center was chewed up by the snow rib, it was gripping and ripping at the hard packed snow, yielding excellent traction.

I want too thank everyone for recommending this tire, it everything you've promised and then some! I guess once in a while you can teach an old dog new tricks!

[W-n-K Landscaping]

Glad you had such great luck with them- they were definitely a tire we could not keep in stock when I worked at the tire store. I have heard several stories about how good they are- they will serve you well and help you make lots of :cash this season!

Thanks for the update too- it will definitely help others in the future!!

Bill

[wyldman]

That's funny you mention the Snow rib in the center of the tire.I remember on the other site,one of the regulars saying they wouldn't work,or they didn't like them with a solid center rib.I wish I could remember who that was.

I'm glad the tires are performing well for you.They have far outperformed my expectations.

[Arc Burn]

I really wanted to try that tire but we got so busy that at the last minute my Cooper dealer couldn't get me in(no appointment,100% my fault)and the only store taking walk-ins the day before a storm was the Goodyear guy$$$$$$,ouch:eek: So off came my racing slicks and on went 4 Workhorse Extra Grips(studded),other than the price i can't complain,they are a good tire that i've used in the past but with all the glowing testimonials here i really wanted to give the Cooper a try.
My father is getting tires this week and i think i talked him into the Coopers so i'll see how he likes them.

[BRL]

Glad to hear you liked them Pelican. I was amazed all over again breaking in my new set in the snow. I'm not that into the details of how & why they work so well, I just enjoy the control they provide. They really are great & help my little truck move mucho snow like the big trucks LOL.

[PSDF350]

pelican was just curious how much you like the tires afte using all season thanks. also have you kept them on throughout the summer? if so how are they holding up?

[Pelican]

The Coopers served me way beyond my expectations! I had to dig myself out only once the entire season, my wheel dropped behind the curb on ice and wouldn't hop back over. I had to scrape down to bare pavement on the other 3 wheels to get going again. I think only chains would have gotten me out of there.

I've got these tires set up as dedicated winter tires on steel rims. They came off just before the trip to Jerry's, although I could have used them there!

[PSDF350]

thanks pelican! becuase you guys got me thinking. i would like to get something better than the stock tires that are on there now. looks like another expense:headwall

[cat320]

Originally posted by BWhite
P

I have these BF's on my truck and I think they grab pretty good.

[Mick]

You can add me to the Cooper M&S fan club. I put a set all around on the one ton dually. Unstoppable. Last winter I got called to plow a new steep driveway that another guy couldn't get up. They were telling me what they wanted IF I got up there. I told them let's talk about WHEN I got up there. Not only got up it, but drove half way down, stopped and backed back up it, to show them "how it's done".:cool:

I agree about the studs, though. I'm on snow/ice at least 90% of the time and some pretty steep drives. Many of these are calls for sanding after freezing rains. I know at least once the studs were all that stopped the truck when it was sliding downhill on ice.:eek:

[PSDF350]

its funny you mentioning that mick. i am going through all old post and on page 23, i am just starting thread tuff driveways i read your reply then i hear you got mail look its a reply to this thread. so i come back and this is what you where writting:D

[wyldman]

Get yourself 4 used steel rims,and mount up the Cooper M&S for winter use only.Then you can save your factory rims and tires for the summer.Not sure what your truck has on it,but most factory stuff is pretty crappy in the snow\ice.

[PSDF350]

tires are BFG rugged terrain t/a's wheels are chrome steel.
i have a pair of steel wheels from/on a 86 F250 that is sitting waiting to be fixed up;) that i can mount the new ones on. but i do like the look of the ones on there. the others are old/rusty.

[Pelican]

Your old wheels won't fit your new truck! They've changed the bolt circle to a metric dimension, I found out the hard way. I saved my custom wheels from my old truck expecting to use them on my '01, but they wouldn't fit.:fuming

[wyldman]

The 86 Ford rims won't work,they are the old 8 on 6.5" SAE bolt pattern.

The newer Super Duties are a metric pattern,and the rims will not bolt up.

You should be able to fine a set used for cheap though,the newer bolt pattern has been out for a while now.

[Pelican]

I meant to mention ebay, I got a set of alloys with mounted tires, new take offs for $500. I used my original steel wheels for winter tires.

[PSDF350]

:evil think i should buy an extra pair or just use the one's that came with it.

[PSDF350]

thanks for the heads up on ebay. allways forget to check them out:headwall

[wyldman]

It's nice having the extra rims,even if they are just steel.Saves on mounting and balancing 4 tires two times per season.They will pay for themselves in short order.Saves wear and tear on the tire beads too,from repetitive mounting\dismounting.

I prefer cheap steel for plowing,so if you hit something,or catch a curb,your not ruining your good aluminum rims.

[PSDF350]

Chris it's funny (not ha ha) but i thought i had aluminum wheels, till i looked on my stcker. i have chromed steel:rolleyes: so what i'm thinking is i might need to get a good pair of aluminum rims before i would switch back in apiril.

[wyldman]

Do you have a van\truck upfitter nearby ? Check them out,as they may have a few new takeoff rims\tires at a good price.If not,try E-Bay like Steve said.

[PSDF350]

not that i know of. but to be honest i dont know what a van/truck upfitter is:confused:

[wyldman]

They usually install truck bodies,and do van conversions.They will pull off the OEM rims in favour off aftermarket stuff.

[PSDF350]

o.k no not unless you count the dealer i bought my truck from. they sell alot of trucks without the body so people can choose, what they want on.

[PSDF350]

well i had 5 installed on rims today. they look awesome. allmost wanted to just mount to truck now, but will wait till its time for them.