Hi guys. I am relatively new to this forum and want to say hello first. I've really enjoyed it so far. I just bought the classic American story with these trucks. I found a 1949 F1 which is pretty much totally original out of a barn (after it was parked in 1991) and hauled it home. It took me a whole week to get the stuck engine freed up and running. It needs tires desperately, and this is much much harder than I thought it would be. I got 3 of the original 16 inch rims (the original owner ruined one years ago). But for now, it has 4 original 15 inch Ford rims. The front tires are P215/75R15's and the rears are G78-15 winter tires (same size). Could somebody please point me toward a brand AND model of radial tires to keep that original look of the bias plys in the front and the cleats in the back with these 15 inch rims. And I promise I will definitely post pics just as soon as I figure out this whole gallery/picture posting thing. Thanks in advance.

 

here's some vintage tire companies:
http://www.lucasclassictires.com
http://www.widewhitewalltires.com
Kelsey Tire: Classic Tires - Collector Series
http://www.universaltire.com
Light Truck Bias Ply Tires
http://www.millertire.com
http://www.cokertire.com

 

Thanks for the links. I looked at all of them and saw some possibilites. I still would just like to hear from somebody who has one of these trucks and is keeping it "original" which exact tires they're using. I'm trying very hard to find a fourth 16 inch rim too if anybody has one. Thanks.

 

I just got some 215/85/16's for my truck. I haven't put them on yet but they look like they should fit okay. Might still be a bit wide but according to the cross reference chart I found they are pretty close to the 6.70/16 that were on the truck.

 

P235/75-15 Goodyear RS/T's look great, no issues with steering effort either. They give the truck the tall look that was original with the ride comfort of modern radials. Cheaper than Cokers or other old-style tires, too. They'll outlive me!

 

Excellent. Thank you. Thank you. Trying to find a basic looking tire that matches the period is much much harder than I expected. Plus I don't want to spend a whole lot on them right now because I'm still obviously working on the truck. By the way, I could honestly write a book on the various recommendations I got over the past week or so regarding how to get that flathead unstuck. I was shocked when we got it running, and the tire thing has snuck up on me quicker than expected.

 

i have 215/85 lt16 BF Goodwrench Commercial T/A's on my '54 panel with later (60's) 16x5 wheels. they're a pretty stock looking tire (square profile) as far as new NON collector/specialty tires go....but don't have the bias tread dip.


what width wheel do you need.