2.5 OME heavies and 255's on and cruising.

[kybishop]

I have the 2.5 OME heavies on with the wonderful help of forum member lukefj. Thanks, you were great to work with and I appreciate all you hard work.

I then went with 255/85 16 Cooper Discoverer ST's, made in the USA.

The spring and shock combo with the Doetsch shocks ride very nice, not harsh at all in my opinion. When I went from the P275/75 16 Michelin LTX tires to the D load rated Coopers, it did hit the chug holes a bit harder. But, they are aired up a lot more than the Michelins. Running 50 lbs in them right now, just have not aired them down any since I got it home from the shop.

I have not done anything for caster correction yet but it drives great. Very little wandering at all. I do notice it from time to time and I plan to do this not too far down the road.

Brakes feel fine too, did not change the LSVP or LSPV (can't recall) location yet.

Pictures.

 

[tpham32]

I am also running the 2.5" OME heavies without castor correction and with stock shocks. The ride is fine for me as well with a tad bit of wandering here and there. Glad I'm not the only one riding without castor correction. I plan on waiting til my shocks blow to get new ones. May I ask why you went down in tire size? Your rig looks good!

 

[kybishop]

The Cooper 255's are a bit over 33" in diameter, 33.2 I think. They are over an inch taller than the 275's I had on here but not as wide. They are a tad taller than the 285/75 Coopers, just barely but taller. I think the 285's are 32.9" in diameter.

I like the old school looks of the tall narrow tires and I think there are some benefits. There are a few folks that run them on this board and really like them so I thought I would give them a shot. The cons are few with the narrow tire, I like them so far. I also read this which just pushed me over the narrow tire edge I was already leaning so closely to; Expeditions West: Tire Selection for Expedition Travel

I was planning to put the caster correction on when I put the springs on but decided to wait a bit and see. Everything feels good but the caster would help for the occasional wander.

Did you go with the 2.5 heavies too? You are running the KM2's in 33's or the 285's? I am a bit higher in the back but plan on a heavy bumper and swing outs. I also will tow some and have weight in the back and I like it a bit higher so it levels out with loads.



Thanks.

KB

 

[greentruck]

KB,
She's looking good.

I'm a fellow skinnie lover, in KM2 flavor. If they run anything like the BFGs, you'll probably find that the ride and performance can be adjusted by varying tire pressure. If they're too harsh on the road loaded, air down a little. For extra capacity loaded, air 'em up. Unlike the Michelins, since they're Load Range D, you've got plenty of capacity when lower than 50 psi, within reason of course.

 

[Land Shark]

Looks great! I kinda wish that I had gone skinny when I put new shoes on

 

[41magsnub]

Hard to tell from the picture angle, is the tire entirely within the wheel well or does it poke out the side a bit? My 285's are very slightly outside the wheel well with no flares.

 

[tpham32]

The Cooper 255's are a bit over 33" in diameter, 33.2 I think. They are over an inch taller than the 275's I had on here but not as wide. They are a tad taller than the 285/75 Coopers, just barely but taller. I think the 285's are 32.9" in diameter.

I like the old school looks of the tall narrow tires and I think there are some benefits. There are a few folks that run them on this board and really like them so I thought I would give them a shot. The cons are few with the narrow tire, I like them so far. I also read this which just pushed me over the narrow tire edge I was already leaning so closely to; Expeditions West: Tire Selection for Expedition Travel

I was planning to put the caster correction on when I put the springs on but decided to wait a bit and see. Everything feels good but the caster would help for the occasional wander.

Did you go with the 2.5 heavies too? You are running the KM2's in 33's or the 285's? I am a bit higher in the back but plan on a heavy bumper and swing outs. I also will tow some and have weight in the back and I like it a bit higher so it levels out with loads.



Thanks.

KB

Yes I am running the 2.5 OME heavies all around with the 33's.

 

[1morebike]

im running the same tire but still have my flares on, im going to buy some wheel spacers because the wheels are just to tucked in.

 

[kybishop]

Yeah...

KB,
She's looking good.

I'm a fellow skinnie lover, in KM2 flavor. If they run anything like the BFGs, you'll probably find that the ride and performance can be adjusted by varying tire pressure. If they're too harsh on the road loaded, air down a little. For extra capacity loaded, air 'em up. Unlike the Michelins, since they're Load Range D, you've got plenty of capacity when lower than 50 psi, within reason of course.

Thanks and I think you may be part to blame greentruck. I have enjoyed reading your posts and you are one of the influences on my decision to skinny.

Kevin

 

[kybishop]

Thanks.

Looks great! I kinda wish that I had gone skinny when I put new shoes on

Thanks. I came real close to going 285's, there is a lot of love on here for those.

Since my flare hardware was rusty and I like the classic look without them, that was another push to go narrow.

I plan to weld the holes from the flare and smooth it all out. Then I will probably two tone or triple color with a classic cruiser color down the side to the upper body line. Maybe a bed liner along the lowest body line. I have some old emblems and vents as well to go on sometime down the road.

 

[kybishop]

About flush.

Hard to tell from the picture angle, is the tire entirely within the wheel well or does it poke out the side a bit? My 285's are very slightly outside the wheel well with no flares.

The wheel itself I think comes slightly out past the body but the tread on the tire is very close to flush/even with the outer wheel well. I can get some pictures from down the side.

 

[kybishop]

Take care...

im running the same tire but still have my flares on, im going to buy some wheel spacers because the wheels are just to tucked in.

You may have already read some of the posts referring to spacers and know more about them than I do (which is not much). Just take care and read through those posts. It seems I have read some instances where those folks running spacers have had wheel studs sheered off and people have lost wheels while running down the highway.

 

[swampfoxSC]

I Love It Man!! Classic

You got it perfect! The stance. The look. The tires. A slightly refined 60
I agree with you on the skinnies. Not only is it a timeless look. They are also the best all rounder. Unless you spend most of your time aired down and crawling. I remember reading something a while back. They were talking about the advantage of skinnies in rallying(Dakar??) They were saying that they cut thru mud/sand to get to the traction below(hopefully). Instead of loading up and spinning on top. With the heft of the LC I bet they will cut thru the mud. They also said there is less frontal area/torque/leverage. Which means the less to worry about hitting rocks at speed.
This guy was just polishing the surface.
Marks 80 Series , Brunswick Hill Climb 15th AUGUST 2009 - YouTube

 

[ERG80]

The Cruiser is looking great, Kevin!

 

[Black Rhino 13]

I just sprayed all my suspension bushings with a soy lube and then with WD40. It makes a very noticeable difference in ride quality. Much smoother now. Wish I'd known about this before.

Otherwise, I love the 2.5" / 255 combo too. My spare rubbed the rear panhard rod (?) so I removed all that stuff and put it in the rear.

 

[kybishop]

You got it perfect! The stance. The look. The tires. A slightly refined 60
I agree with you on the skinnies. Not only is it a timeless look. They are also the best all rounder. Unless you spend most of your time aired down and crawling. I remember reading something a while back. They were talking about the advantage of skinnies in rallying(Dakar??) They were saying that they cut thru mud/sand to get to the traction below(hopefully). Instead of loading up and spinning on top. With the heft of the LC I bet they will cut thru the mud. They also said there is less frontal area/torque/leverage. Which means the less to worry about hitting rocks at speed.
This guy was just polishing the surface.
Marks 80 Series , Brunswick Hill Climb 15th AUGUST 2009 - YouTube

The Cruiser is looking great, Kevin!

Thanks!

 

[kybishop]

I just sprayed all my suspension bushings with a soy lube and then with WD40. It makes a very noticeable difference in ride quality. Much smoother now. Wish I'd known about this before.

Otherwise, I love the 2.5" / 255 combo too. My spare rubbed the rear panhard rod (?) so I removed all that stuff and put it in the rear.

I have not tried mounting the spare in the original location, wondered about it though. Mine is riding around in the cargo area.

 

[glockster]

Those Cooper tires are on my short list for new tires. I'm probably going to go with the 285s though. What's the road noise level like? Any comparisons? Thanks

 

[kybishop]

Most aggressive I have had...

Those Cooper tires are on my short list for new tires. I'm probably going to go with the 285s though. What's the road noise level like? Any comparisons? Thanks

I have not had too many tires to compare this too. There is a bit of a hum but it is enjoyable. Not loud or annoying in my opinion. The other tires I have had were all a less aggressive A/T.

I have read different reviews on tread life, we'll just have to see how that goes. Some were not pleased with how quick they wear.

Buying local and USA as much as I can is important to me so that was part of it. Plus I like the fact that Cooper is one of the few tire companies that is aftermarket only. They will not make OEM tires or tires that come on cars at the factory. The way I understand it is because they don't want to have to comply to price demands and reduce quality or specs.

I have read they have the deepest treads available, a lot deeper than other manufacturers that cut some corners to meet price demands by the car companies. You can check them out here; http://us.coopertire.com/Tires/Light-Truck.aspx

The 255's run about $216 each and I got 5 mounted and balanced for around $1250. I went through a local guy, yep, the local support again so I spent a bit more. He only had four, got the fifth from Discount Tires Direct for $216 shipped to my door. It came in 2 days. Pretty crazy, don't know how they do it.

 

[greentruck]

I have not tried mounting the spare in the original location, wondered about it though. Mine is riding around in the cargo area.

It should fit -- barely. My KM2 squeezes in, but you do get a considerable reduction in departure angle. Careful when hitting the trail with it back there. Eventually, I wanna get a new bumper with swingout...

There is a mod to tuck the spare tire lift assembly up some. Several threads should come up with search. It's not a panacea, but a lot cheaper than that new rear bumper.