My Winter Rims...HaHa

[WhiteLimited]

So this is for all of you that bug me about my "rims" It is the winter months here in Anchorage Alaska. So that means I have my studded tires and winter rims on. The Rims and Tires were all given to me for free. Along with the hub caps.

Here is my truck:

Here is what its hiding:

I don't mind the Chevy hub caps this thread is just to sum it all up for you But yes my Limited rims will be on as soon as the roads clear up

 

[AAnnddrreeww]

I thought a thread about this before. Or maybe it was just in another thread.


That doesnt look that weird to me for some reason. The chevy hubs on an X. Better than messing up your limited rims

 

[JMan689]

Ok NO OFFENSE at all WhiteLimited and if you take this the wrong way i apologize ahead of time and ask that you just ignore this.

But, isn't it winter in Alaska for like 9 months? What be the point of having summer rims if they are only on for such a short time? Just seems silly to me.

 

[storlied]

It's just a way of not having to put so much hassle in changing tires on the rims. (swapping tires on different rims so much isn't too good for them, the durability goes down the toilet after awhile)

 

[Charlie]

I think he means, summer tires.

 

[JMan689]

No Charlie i mean rims. I don't see a need for changing tires once winter hits unless you're driving something that NEEDS it like a Camaro or Mustang.

 

[Charlie]

Mhmm. Yep, we have a misunderstanding. I was referring to how storlied seemed to think you were saying the same rims should be kept year round and just change the tires. I know that you were saying there isn't much need with an explorer to have different rims/tires for the winter.

 

[JMan689]

Ahhh We Mid-Westerners think alike then.

EDIT: Woah when did i hit 1k posts? Cool

 

[storlied]

About 95 posts ago. =P
Either way, some people do it.. some people don't.. it's just personal preference. I just keep my normal rims I run all year long, with good All Terrains or All Seasons that should be good in almost any condition.

 

[WhiteLimited]

Ok NO OFFENSE at all WhiteLimited and if you take this the wrong way i apologize ahead of time and ask that you just ignore this.

But, isn't it winter in Alaska for like 9 months? What be the point of having summer rims if they are only on for such a short time? Just seems silly to me.

Winter here in Anchorage is about 5-6 months...Running winter tires with studs all year destroys the studs. I know I don't have the money to re-stud my tires every winter. On top of that its agents the law...To run studs from May-August...

I think he means, summer tires.

No I need rims and tires, I have studded winter tires on there own set of rims.

No Charlie i mean rims. I don't see a need for changing tires once winter hits unless you're driving something that NEEDS it like a Camaro or Mustang.

I know how on the East coast they salt EVERYTHING but here in Anchorage, Alaska they do not salt at all. And hardly sand, meaning you need some sort of snow tire. The roads are gale ice and snow covered from roughly October to April...

About 95 posts ago. =P
Either way, some people do it.. some people don't.. it's just personal preference. I just keep my normal rims I run all year long, with good All Terrains or All Seasons that should be good in almost any condition.

I'm sorry Fairbanks but "all seasons" tires don't do ANYTHING...I thought that last winter, then I was in a coma for almost 2 months...Then this year I got studs and I have not slipped or have a problem. I can't even get going in my Moms truck, she has no studs...

But yes is a personal presence and my preference is studs or Blizzak's...

 

[storlied]

Imo, All terrains are very good in our weather, and our road conditions get a lot worse than yours. You just have to know how to handle yourself in it. Depends on a lot of other factors too. Needing Blizzaks or Studs in winter is... Oh I don't know, I don't feel I need to have studs during our winters.. My BFG All Terrains handle perfectly on this ice/snow crap. I have to actually Try to break them loose when I want to.

 

[WhiteLimited]

See where I like on hill side, where the richer people live...Most have to have a winter truck with winter tires both haha...Or a plane to get off hill side...There are signs every where that say "4x4 & Chains Needed" HaHa

 

[Donner]

JMan is correct, it's not necessary to do this.

If I'm reading this correctly, you run studded tires for 1/2 the year and regular tires for the other 1/2. So you just leave the rims and tires together and change the whole set at once? What about balancing and alignments?

I've heard that people in the midwest and east coast keep winter tires - but usually that's on vehicles that don't run all terrains - passenger cars and things like that.

All Season and All Terrain are not the same tire. It would seem easier and less expensive to just change the tires out and leave on your rims.

What is it about the summer rims that you are trying to protect? Rust? You can protect the rims from rust and the tires from damage.

Changing the tires every 6 months won't make a difference over the life of the tire.

 

[JDraper]

... So you just leave the rims and tires together and change the whole set at once? What about balancing and alignments? ....

Swapping out rim and tire sets have nothing to do with balancing and alignment. That is purely wheel dependent. For those of us that live in areas with a significant winter, it's quite common to have a second set of wheels and tires for winter use. Usually you would have something like a cheap set of steel wheels with Bridgestone Blizzaks on them for the winter months, and your normal wheels and tires for the rest of the year. This is a much more cost effective and safer way than swapping tires onto the same set of rims each winter. Mounting and dismounting tires repeatedly can damage both the rims and tires, and the cost along with balancing can quickly exceed the price of a cheap set of steel rims.

 

[Donner]

This is an suv, not a bmw

Usually you would have something like a cheap set of steel wheels with Bridgestone Blizzaks on them for the winter months, and your normal wheels and tires for the rest of the year.

This is what you recommend? JMan lives in the midwest also, and considering the vehicle, what's the purpose for the change? I can understand a sedan or sports car, but trucks and suvs with ATs need to have winter and summer tires also?

And when you pop on these winter tires, you don't have the alignment checked? I was under the impression that any time you change out rims/tires, you would have the alignment checked and balancing done as well.

 

[JDraper]

Usually you would have something like a cheap set of steel wheels with Bridgestone Blizzaks on them for the winter months, and your normal wheels and tires for the rest of the year.

This is what you recommend? JMan lives in the midwest also, and considering the vehicle, what's the purpose for the change? I can understand a sedan or sports car, but trucks and suvs with ATs need to have winter and summer tires also?

And when you pop on these winter tires, you don't have the alignment checked? I was under the impression that any time you change out rims/tires, you would have the alignment checked and balancing done as well.

It depends upon your driving habits and the conditions you drive in. If you're driving in an area that is prone to icy roads, A/T and M/T tires, even on a 4x4, may not work well enough. Tires like Blizzaks and studded snow tires are designed for driving on icy roads. Also, if you run studded tires for icy conditions, you definitely don't want to run them on dry roads. First, it would damage the tires and road surface quickly, and second, it's illegal to run studded tires year round in most states. Another point is that the true winter tires will wear very quickly on dry pavement.

Personally, I run the same tires year round on all my vehicles. The conditions where I live combined with what vehicles I drive in the winter don't warrant separate tires. However, if I had to run my Mustang's in the snow, I'd have a second set of wheels for them. The tires I run on them are not all season and perform poorly on any slippery surface.


Alignment is a function of the suspension geometry, not the wheels and tires (unless the wheel is bent). You do not need to have it done just because you are swapping wheels.

Balancing is a function of the wheels and rims. The vehicle contributes such a small component compared to the wheels that it's ignored. When you get tires balanced, they don't (in 99% of the cases) balance them with the wheels mounted on the car, they take the wheels off the car and balance them on a separate machine.

 

[Donner]

I follow... So then considering that you, JMan, Charlie, Sorlied and WL all live in similar Winter conditions, JMan is correct - there's no need for the change, it's what WL chooses to do.

The original ATs on my Ex didn't do anything in the snow, so I got another set of ATs from a different maker, and that was a 180 degree difference... Maybe WL just needs the right tire... (I'll see if I can find his Summer tires here somewhere).

 

[WhiteLimited]

Yes it is personal choice...I just choose to change mine out ever 6 months. On top of that, running studded tires in the summer is against the law here. JDraper I can't that you enough for explaining it all. All I know is I can not wait to get my summer tires and rims on...

I know my Dad can't wait either since he has 20's on his F-150 in the summer. And I'm pushing my Grandma and pa to get 20's-22's for there cars and trucks

 

[storlied]

What's the real issue here? It definitely comes down to personal preference, which could also mean what the driver has to deal with on a daily basis. WhiteLimited, for example.. lives up in the hills, if you've been up there... you know those hills can get pretty steep.. warrenting the use of studs or an alternative.. like blizzaks.

Me for example, I'm comfortable with A/T's all year round. I'm not required to drive up into the hills during the winter, if I do.. it's my own choice.. and I personally have no problems. I know how to get myself out of certain situations.. I'm used to poor road conditions without the best equipment. (tires) It saves a lot more money for me to just run one set of rims, and one set of tires. Even on ice, studs aren't perfect.. but if he wants to have that level of safety as far as traction goes in his area.. leave it at that.. this isn't really a big deal.

It's personal preference. End of story. (prolly not, knowin this forum =P ) That's just my .02 cents.

 

[Donner]

It started with rims and ended with tires... what happened? We're mixing the personal preference with the need for tire studs. It's clear that it's WL's choice to use those rims, however, it seem like the right tires on the one set of rims would do well since everyone else here (excluding me) lives in rough winter zones and doesn't have this issue. So, I have to agree that JMan is correct...

And a frozen hill with or w/o studded tires will not let a driver pass.

The reason for this thread goes back to the Chevy hub cabs, which lead to the tire question, then the rim question. No one really mentioned the rims, it was the hub caps that everyone wanted to know about.