I always struggle with my wants and needs as I guess we all do. I wanted to upgrade my exhaust system with the turbo snail and 3" down pipe.... That was going to happen next pay check, but........

I really need tires. After Tropical Storm Barry, I realized my needs out weigh my wants. So here it is.

The tires on my truck are LT235/85R16. I have to buy new ones. Since I have to get new tires, I would like to get the biggest and bestest as we all would. I am asking for recommendations.

What is the biggest tire I can use??? I need a little more traction, but this truck will never leave the hard pack. I learned when I first got it that the front is tooo heavy to get off the road.

Thanks

 

I have 285/75r16's on my stock height 1990 F-250 4x4. Looks good, no rubbing.

 

I am also running 285/75-16 tires with no rubbing.

But both of us have 4x4 trucks.
As you can see in my avitar, mine does get off the hard pack.
Way off.

 

I also run 285/75-16 and think it's the perfect size... the three bears "Just Right!" No lift needed, though by my measurements, you have to stick with about 4.5 inches of backspace to avoid rubbing the tire on the spring up front. Can't run 'em on stock rims, though, which in my era were only 6 inches wide. The later trucks (from '90, I think) use a 7-inch rim, which is the minimum width to mount the 285s. You can tell from the numbers stamped on the rim. If it says "6J" they are 6-inches wide. If they say "7J", well, you get the idea.

 

I've been using the 285 75 16's for years for several reasons. They're bigger and they look good. They usually have a somewhat beefy tread which is still easy to use on the highway. They come in "D" and "E" weight class ratings so that makes them really good work truck tires. Every tire company makes a tire this size so they are available in a pretty competitive pricing market. Every tractor, truck, and agricultural tire store has one or two or 15 laying around in the back because they are just plain all-around good tires and it's hard to throw the two sorta good ones out when a customer comes in and just wants 4 new tires put on his truck. I oftentimes just stop in at tire stores and ask to look at their used tires and find one on the pile which they will usually let me carry away for $20-$25 or have mounted/balanced for $30. Over the course of a month to six weeks you can cruise and check tire stores and get 5-6 of them in a pile at home and then get them all mounted one day and be on decent sneakers for less than $200 total with a good, full-sized spare. Then in the future everytime you see a good one you pick it up and take it home. You can go to a junkyard and get a spare wheel for $20 and carry it with you until you find a good used tire. Another nice thing about them is that they don't send the shock of every little bump through the whole truck the way that the 235's do. They may be a little bit more noisy but they are way smoother to ride on.

 

ok now , what about a 92 dually? I have 235/85/16's...Whats the biggest i can go before the duals start to rub each other?

 

Without spending big money on spacers you have the biggest tire you can run.

245/75-16 tires are shorter than 235/85-16 tires are.
265/75-16 tires are closer, but still shorter.

255/85-16 tires might work, but they will be just under 1" closer together.
If they touch under load, you are looking at a blow out waiting to happen.