Newbie recommendation on doing tires, rims, & suspension - limited budget so cannot do all three at the same time (1 Viewer)

[bburton]

Figured there were alot of folks here that have done this several times...what would you recommend in terms of sequence of doing these 3 things on my '96 LC?

1-tires - need tires first. the tires on the LC now are very old (have cracks in rubber) and sat flat for years...I want to buy the correct tires for the 2.5 OME lift I'd eventually get. I'm not sure if the tires I'd buy to run with the OME 2.5" lift would work with my stock suspension setup until I can afford the OME lift? This is not my daily driver so dont need to get around.

2-rims - wanted to powder coat all 4 rims in low gloss black and repaint center caps...not sure if powder coating the rims and then putting old tires back on makes sense. I dont have a spare set of wheels to use while the rims get painted - I dont need the truck as a daily driver so could leave it at the paint shop I guess. I'm eventually getting the truck painted...should I wait for repaint to do the wheels?

3-OME 2.5" lift kit

Trying to spend my money the most efficient way...welcome to suggestions.

Thanks!

 

[bhsdriller]

tires then lift because of safety

powder coating last or not at all. Put money elsewhere

 

[wizmariefa]

Tires then lift. Powdercoating at some point after both, but I'd get a lot of other things (sliders, bumper, etc) before I'd consider powdercoating the wheels.

 

[FloridaCruiser22]

If your wheels need help it's not that big of a job just to use some rattle can wheel paint.

 

[bburton]

I’ve seen several threads on tires...but What would be a nice set of tires that would work now with my stock ‘96 setup and then would work optimally with the OME 2.5” lift?

 

[sxp]

I’ve seen several threads on tires...but What would be a nice set of tires that would work now with my stock ‘96 setup and then would work optimally with the OME 2.5” lift?

What size tires do you want, and how do you use your vehicle?

 

[leonard_nemoy]

Check out Iron man lifts, I think they are at least equal to OME and maybe a little cheaper

 

[bburton]

What size tires do you want, and how do you use your vehicle?

Largest that will fit stock rims and suspension plus work best with eventual lift. Would use for 50/50 on/off road but dont
Mind road noise.

 

[sogafarm]

Buy the larger tires. Use spring spacers to gain clearance until you can afford lift kit.

 

[FJBen]

Buy the larger tires. Use spring spacers to gain clearance until you can afford lift kit.

exactly, you can get cheap 1" spacers and roll with it until you can afford a lift.

 

[Box Rocket]

I'd go bigger tires first, use some spacers as a cheap lift to fit the tires until you can replace the suspension.

If you're on a budget, just paint the wheels yourself. It's not difficult and good results are possible IMO. I have rattle canned several sets of rims using VHT paint. I like the finish and results of the VHT paint better than others I've tried. Don't even have to remove the tires. Put index cards around the edge of the wheel to mask the tires and paint away. Here's a few examples of some of my painted wheels just for an example of how they can turn out. Whether or not the quality is to your standards is up to you.
StainlessSCS by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_6774 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_6768 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_0083 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

_MG_1122 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

 

[iwashmycar]

Tires!

Powdercoating by a good shop CAN cost $300, $350, $400 or more to do a nice job. If that happens to be the case you could even search around and see if you can find a set of wheels in good shape for less. Like if you found a nice set of used wheels for $200....grab them and get new tires put on them. Done and looking good for cheaper.

Or do what everyone is saying...have new tires mounted and if you just have to paint them, put index cards all around the bead and then spray paint the wheels if you are any decent at spray painting.

Edit: is it on this one? 1996 Black FZJ80 with lockers 190k mi - barn find

They dont appear too bad?

 

[half k cruiser]

You can fit 315's under it, it will look pretty goofy until you get the lift. You can also fit 285's under it which have some benefits.

- lighter weight, less impact on your acceleration, braking
- cheaper
- more than enough tire for all but extreme wheeling

 

[LandLocked93]

The OME "2.5" lift will give you more than 2.5". And it may not be level front to back after the lift. I only mention because if you're wanting to (go for looks) proportion the tire size with the wheel well space after the lift, the only way to get that to your liking is to do the lift first then choose a tire size to fill in the gap. Otherwise, either yourself or a shop will be in and out of the suspension area trying to get it right, and it isn't near as quick or easy as playing around with just tires on wheels.

Also consider what you intend to weigh the vehicle down with as OME (and others) has several stiffness flavors that will either sag under extra weight or be so stiff on road that it will not be comfortable. This is where taking it to a shop to do the work and explaining to them what you're after and what your plans are pays dividends in satisfaction and efficiency, IMO.

 

[Pippylongsausage]

I’d say do the powder coat while the tires are off so you don’t have to pay to take them off again. Then save up for the lift. I did 285s on my old cruiser with no lift and they looked great and did great off road. If you’re dead set on a lift, then do 315s. Smaller than that starts to look like a skate board imo.

 

[Pascoscout]

I'd skip the powder coat and just paint the wheels. If you wheel your rig at all the powder coat will get chipped or scratched. At least with paint that's an easy touch up.

I'd recommend 33" tires (285's in metric) as they fit well at stock height, don't bog down your truck as much as a larger size and won't look too small with a 3" or less lift.

 

[White Stripe]

Skip the lift, buy some tires, spend the rest base lining the mechanicals

 

[ColoradoBoy]

Tires, new suspension rubber bushings, then lift/rims. The difference the new bushings made in the enjoyment of the rig for me on and off road was AMAZING.
Get it base lined- the 80 is quite capable and enjoyable in stock form.
Have fun!

 

[camelflage]

I actually just did all three but with aftermarket wheels and an ome stock height kit. Might be half helpful but here’s what it cost otd...

Enkei RPT1 16x8 (5 wheels)
- $1562.79

General Grabber 285/75/16 (5 mounted and balanced)
- $1253.17

OME stock height kit (parts from Amazon, local shop install)
- $1605.13

and this is how my truck sits now.

 

[greentruck]

In Atlanta, where they don't salt the roads, investing a little in those rims makes sense if they're the original alloys. Here in the Midwest, salt eats at things bad enough that from the porosity it caused so I had two leakers out of five on the truck when we bought it. That's been over 10 years ago. Personally, the guys telling you you can do a good enough job by painting yourself and save hundreds of bucks are telling the truth. Good advice when you're on a budget. You spend several hundred getting paint on them and subsequently find out one or more won't hold tire pressure -- well that would be frustrating.

I'll also put in a good word on 33s. They fit fine on a stock suspension even if it's sagging. And I'm not sure you've really articulated a personal need for a lift, you just want one. But given that and your emphasis on keeping to a limited lift may mean you just don't realize how capable the 80 is in stock form. Here we have to fit in the garage. YMMV