On friday im going to take my truck out, into what I think are some pretty hairy trails. But im sure they are mild to others. Anyways, I am looking for optimum traction, so should I air my tires down a little bit? Im running 305/70/R-16's on stock ford 16inch XLT 8 Hole Chrome rims. The tires themself are Goodyear MT/R's. The terrain is mostly rocky. Some of the hills are steep with loose rocks ranging from the size of baseballs to the size of a junior football. Rock ledges are around in the trails as well, they shouldnt be a problem for my truck though, the tallest one I saw today on my little 3 hour hike-through was maybe 16-20 inches high. Theres also some mud, nothing extreme though. So what PSI should I run in my tires?

Also, what would everyone reccommend bringing out onto the trail? I figured a few shovels, plenty of water, gas, and maybe a couple of ramps.

 

jack all, straps, cable, pulleys, chains, come along, pri-bar,ribbon, TOOLS haha and for tires my M/T's say 65psi on the side so thats what i run, to low and you'll blow the bead out. and of course don't forget your camera

 

Alright, yeah my tires say 55psi on the side so thats what I have been running on the street. And I definitely wont forget the camera. Come friday night ill have a post littered with pictures on here.

 

You have 16 inch wheels so you should be good at around 15-20psi in front, 12-15 in the rear. Make sure you got an air compressor to air back up, and a spare tire incase you dont have the means to re-seat the bead on the trail. You also have to drive a certain way to keep the side load to a minimum especially when dealing with steep inclines. Take it slow around big rocks, you dont want to pinch the sidewall between the rim, or bend the rim itself.

 

I'm guessing that 12-15 (couple psi less in rear) will work good.
Stop by harbor freight and get one of the HIGH volume tire pumps. I have one and it work really good for airing tires up, last flyer I saw it was one sale too. This pump will also set a bead too. Just leave the pump in the truck, they come in handy all the time.

You will be amazed at how much traction and easier the trail will be with aired down tires.

Don't forget to use the buddy system, take another rig with you while wheelin'.

 

ill be lookin forward to those pics!

 

I would not be afriad of taking the tires down to 10 psi. The difference between 20 psi and 10 psi (yeah 10 psi I know, lol) on the trail is night and day.

Not long ago, my group happened upon a Jeep that was stuck on a trail full of snow. He was stranded and had little recovery equipment. Unfortunately, the other vehicles he was traveling with were also scattered about and blocking the trail.
When we approached we looked at the tires and asked how low they aired down. Every one of them looked at us as though we were from mars. We offered to help them and immediately aired them down from highway pressures to about 10 psi.
Each of the previously stuck vehicles drove right out of their own ruts. These vehicles were stuck before, and now were able to crawl right out with the same poor driving techniques, and drivers that lacked experience.

A wheel with a saftey bead is not easilly removed from the bead. I have taken 15" tires down to 5 and 6 psi wihout incident, and often take 16.5's down to less than 12 psi.
Been in the 8 psi range with 16.5's on may occassions, when I dont run my beadlocks.

The tires ability to conform to the rocks makes them less likely to puncture and keeps a good amount of tire on surfaces that will provide traction.

 

i would also say 10-15 psi is ok. right now i am running 8 psi front 7 in the back(but i have beadlocks) it makes a huge difference in traction. But i have yet to use my tires much yet and wil let more out as time goes on.

 

Dont be afraid, lol. Let the air out.
I take my 44's with beadlocks down to the 3-4 psi range, (front) and zero for the rear. I remove the valve stem core, and when it stops making noise, I put it back in.
Sidewall buldges a bit at rest, but gets nice and flexy over rocks and such.
You do have to watch the wheel speed in the mud like this, they tend to grow, and get crazy without air.

 

0! i don't know about going that low.... i'm sure i'll get down to the 3-4 rang though.

 

Okay, so im really not looking to get a flat. Or anything along those lines. With around 15-20psi I should be fine for the day, with no fears of flats for the most part?

 

Ha! Man up. Just jokin. In my case, 0 is when I am running in the sand, and shooting the hills. Small hills and even large dunes become much easier for my heavy **** truck when the tire pressures are as low as I can get.
I would imagine that your tires would have an advantage over my boggers in the sand. I have to move a ton of sand and stay motivated to keep from digging giant holes.

 

15-20Psi without any problems.


75F350, how heavy is your truck? mine was 6400 pounds before i put on the 44s.

 

Hate to run off with this thread, and to reply to the OP you should be very safe with 15 psi. I have driven on the road with these pressures. Your tires will be fine, but if you plan on airing down, be prepared to have some sort of device that will fill you back up. This should be a part of your recovery equipment. Also have some sort of tire repair kit that can get you rolling again, should you puncture a tire.
Tire plugs are not ideal for a real tire repair, but can be a real life saver when a tire gets a hole. I keep a little kit that has extra valve stem cores (funny how these little things get lost, and they never fall where you can see or find them) valve stems, tire soap, patches, saftey wire (yes I have sewn tires together) and other misc stuff.
I also never travel without my carb cleaner, and lighter. Setting beads is not uncommon, and without a great deal of air volume on hand, this methind is the difference between rolling again, and walking.

Hope you plan on taking another truck, and a phone that works where you are at.



My orange truck weighs in at 6600 lbs. without my fat butt in the seat, and with only a couple gallons of fuel. I hold 30 gals of race fuel (about 8 lbs per gallon) and add 200 lbs for me. I generally have a co-pilot, but she is a little bitty thing, she only weighs about 100 lbs. My black lab weighs more than my girl, lol.
This is when the truck is not filled with mud. I swear this thing feels like it weighs 8 or 9 thousand lbs after a few runs in the mud. No tools or anything in this truck. The red truck carries everything.

 

So I took my truck out. I aired down to about 25psi. I was too scared to go down to 15, considering this was one of the first times I have really taken my truck into the woods. Also, I ended up having to get both gas tanks replaced during the day so i couldnt get out until around 8 at night. So the darkness added a little twist. As for pictures, I only was able to get a couple pictures at the gas station afterwards. Sorry guys, but I will be going back sometime within the next 4 days. So, I will get pictures soon. Also, my two side steps got ripped off, but I think the truck looks much better anyway. So it worked out for the best.