OK, so I finally got time to finish off my split rims. A few weeks ago I bought some used tires off of Kijiji for $100 a piece. From the information that I found here on Mud, I went with a LT285-85/R16, which everyone said was as close to 7.5x16 that you could get.
I didn't do anything to the rims to fill in the pitting as they will not be the rims that go onto the truck permanently so I did not want to send a lot of time making them look perfect. I just took some rattle can spray paint and painted them. I used 3 cans, but probably could have used 4.
I had to buy a new tube as I destroyed 3 out of the 6 taking off the old tires. I got the tube at Kal Tire at Yellowhead and 149 st. I went there because it handles large, commercial vehicles and I thought the chances would be better at getting what I needed, and I guess I was right, because they had a tube. It was around $30. I asked if I could get liners, but was told not. They guy told me that liners came with the tires.
So anyway, I reused the old liners, but had to scrape off as much of the rust as I could. I used a very dull chisel and a wire brush to do this and they came out not too bad.
I've read the posts on how to change a tire on a split rim, but when it came down to doing it, I just found a way that worked for me. I found it necessary to place the rim on some scraps of plywood to just lift it off the ground to give some clearance for the tire since it is wider than the rim. I then placed the tube and the liner in the tire and slid the tire over the rim and worked the valve stem through the opening.
I found to the get the ring on I would start at one end and then place a piece of scrap 2x4 over that part of the ring and tire and then kneel on the 2x4 and use a hammer (I used a hammer and a pice of scrap wood, but a rubber malet would probably be the best) to pound the ring in place, moving the 2x4 as I went. I found I needed to to use the 2x4 because until the ring was firmly set, it wanted to spring back up and out of place. Keeping my weight on it kept it in place.
Because of all I had read about the "danger" in filling the tires with air, I bought a locking air chuck with a pressure guage on it and then added another hose extension so I could inflate the tire from a safe distance. In the pic above the blue part of the hose is what I added. After actually going through the exercise though I would feel confident next time just using a regular air chuck. Once those rings snap into place and the tire is seated correctly, you just know there is no where for the rings to go.
