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Runflat removal and install - some good and bad

Coug

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When the tire fails it starts falling apart as you drive on it and pieces of it that are still attached start to hit the wheel well, which really limits how fast you can drive because it slams it very hard, therefore be prepared to have something handy to cut the tire belt as it separates from the side walls, otherwise you can only go a few miles an hour…it’s faster to walk lol
I have no intention of taking my truck anywhere that people will be shooting at me, so if I'm limited to 2mph and have to drive 1/4 mile before the trail levels off enough to safely change it out, I'm fine with that.

If I was expecting to be shot at and chased down as I'm trying to escape, then yeah, I'd probably use the runflat lubricant.
 

T9000

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I have no intention of taking my truck anywhere that people will be shooting at me, so if I'm limited to 2mph and have to drive 1/4 mile before the trail levels off enough to safely change it out, I'm fine with that.

If I was expecting to be shot at and chased down as I'm trying to escape, then yeah, I'd probably use the runflat lubricant.
Oh, I am not talking about anyone shooting, just from my own experience. I had a front tire fail on a main busy road at around 50-60mph on a downhill slope and didn’t know it right away (engine, road and wind noise cover a lot of body noises, it’s not like a regular car when you can tell much faster when something it’s not right) and kept driving maybe another 200 yards until I started to tell that something wasn’t right (later I found a big nail stuck in the tire which most likely caused the failure) The smooth transition was thanks to the run flats, which got me sold on having it and that’s why I go through all the pain to build the tires :)
When the tire failed, a piece of it started to fold under itself which made the truck almost undrivable because it was going up and down on one side by a few inches on every wheel rotation, between the runflat height to the huge bulged folded tire piece. I couldn’t drive it home even as I was only a few miles away.
Having something to cut the tire and keep going it would add a lot of flexibility in situations when it’s dark, on a freeway, in snow or rain, etc.
 

Coug

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Oh, I am not talking about anyone shooting, just from my own experience. I had a front tire fail on a main busy road at around 50-60mph on a downhill slope and didn’t know it right away (engine, road and wind noise cover a lot of body noises, it’s not like a regular car when you can tell much faster when something it’s not right) and kept driving maybe another 200 yards until I started to tell that something wasn’t right (later I found a big nail stuck in the tire which most likely caused the failure) The smooth transition was thanks to the run flats, which got me sold on having it and that’s why I go through all the pain to build the tires :)
When the tire failed, a piece of it started to fold under itself which made the truck almost undrivable because it was going up and down on one side by a few inches on every wheel rotation, between the runflat height to the huge bulged folded tire piece. I couldn’t drive it home even as I was only a few miles away.
Having something to cut the tire and keep going it would add a lot of flexibility in situations when it’s dark, on a freeway, in snow or rain, etc.
True, but once again, I keep a spare tire assembly with me everywhere I go, so driving home under those conditions would just be delayed by how long it takes to swap them out.

If I didn't have a spare tire, then I most certainly would worry more about that.

Oh, and I do pay for AAA RV+towing 100 miles, so push comes to shove as long as I'm near a paved road they'll take it home for me, if I'm not close enough to call a family member with a trailer for help.

Everyone's situation is different.

EDIT: I've talked to multiple people that have gotten flats in these trucks, from stripped down surplussed trucks, to full armored with turret and cupola, and every one agrees the run flat is pretty much a necessity.
 

T9000

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True, but once again, I keep a spare tire assembly with me everywhere I go, so driving home under those conditions would just be delayed by how long it takes to swap them out.

If I didn't have a spare tire, then I most certainly would worry more about that.

Oh, and I do pay for AAA RV+towing 100 miles, so push comes to shove as long as I'm near a paved road they'll take it home for me, if I'm not close enough to call a family member with a trailer for help.

Everyone's situation is different.

EDIT: I've talked to multiple people that have gotten flats in these trucks, from stripped down surplussed trucks, to full armored with turret and cupola, and every one agrees the run flat is pretty much a necessity.
Yes, when that happened I ended up changing the tire, but it was dark and I would have preferred to make it home on the runflat, only a few miles away and fix it there while having a cold one :)

That also made me realize that I would not want to be in that situation if I had the kids with me and was in a different location.

Depending on where one travels, there are many places with no cell coverage and even in Southern California where there are tow trucks all over they said it would be several hours to get one to match the GVWR.

The runflat advantage was canceled by the broken tire so for maximum flexibility I wanted to recommend having something to cut the tire with, which actually it’s mentioned in the TM, but I didn’t understand why it was needed until it happened to me. It a simple solution with a huge return, in addition to having a spare of course.
 
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Coonass77

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I had a blowout and had to drive through downtown Raleigh, NC on the runflat so I can attest to their value. Having a sturdy, sharp knife preferably with a serrated edge is a necessity to cut away the flaps as the tire shreds while you’re driving. Otherwise it makes a hell of a racket and will tear the fender well up in no time.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Coug

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Yes, when that happened I ended up changing the tire, but it was dark and I would have preferred to make it home on the runflat, only a few miles away and fix it there while having a cold one :)

That also made me realize that I would not want to be in that situation if I had the kids with me and was in a different location.

Depending on where one travels, there are many places with no cell coverage and even in Southern California where there are tow trucks all over they said it would be several hours to get one to match the GVWR.

The runflat advantage was canceled by the broken tire so for maximum flexibility I wanted to recommend having something to cut the tire with, which actually it’s mentioned in the TM, but I didn’t understand why it was needed until it happened to me. It a simple solution with a huge return, in addition to having a spare of course.
I don't understand why someone would own one of these that DOESN'T carry a knife or other cutting implement with them as part of their EDC.
 

blutow

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All kinds of details…like I don’t understand why anyone that carries doesn’t always have one in the chamber.
If you were the kind of fellow who likes to shove a glock down your pants without a holster, I'd probably recommend you keep the chamber clear (among other things). Understanding why anyone would carry like that in the first place, that's a whole other question, but I'd bet it is pretty common.
 
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T9000

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If you were the kind of fellow who likes to shove a glock down your pants without a holster, I'd probably recommend you keep the chamber clear (among other things). Understanding why anyone would carry like that in the first place, that's a whole other question, but I'd bet it is pretty common.
I am actually exactly the opposite and my comment was tangential on “understanding”, sorry for the digression.

All I was trying to say earlier is that it’s a good idea to have something substantial able to cut the tire across, quickly (not just the sidewalls, which is much easier) without getting into details about what, why or how someone may carry it or transport it, in order to take full advantage of having the runflats to drive further/ faster instead of getting bogged down by a broken tire.
 
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blutow

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I am actually exactly the opposite and my comment was tangential on “understanding”, sorry for the digression.

All I was trying to say earlier is that it’s a good idea to have something substantial able to cut the tire across, quickly (not just the sidewalls, which is much easier) without getting into details about what, why or how someone may carry it or transport it, in order to take full advantage of having the runflats to drive further/ faster instead of getting bogged down by a broken tire.
Yeah, I got what you were saying and agree completely that it's a good idea to carry something to cut back the tire. My carry comment was a digression also, but wasn't meant to be directed at you. Your comment just made me think of all those people carrying glocks in their waistbands having accidental discharges. Just really dumb stuff.

Back on topic, I plan to remount my wobbly tire tomorrow if I have time. I originally used a pretty watered down soapy mix for mounting. I'm going to get some proper tire mounting lube tomorrow, thinking maybe my soap mix didn't allow for the tire or runflat to slide all the way into place.
 

T9000

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Yeah, I got what you were saying and agree completely that it's a good idea to carry something to cut back the tire. My carry comment was a digression also, but wasn't meant to be directed at you. Your comment just made me think of all those people carrying glocks in their waistbands having accidental discharges. Just really dumb stuff.

Back on topic, I plan to remount my wobbly tire tomorrow if I have time. I originally used a pretty watered down soapy mix for mounting. I'm going to get some proper tire mounting lube tomorrow, thinking maybe my soap mix didn't allow for the tire or runflat to slide all the way into place.
Here is what I used from O’reilly, it’s a concentrated tire mounting compound for about $9:

8C234868-FB03-44B6-B5DA-DD045B9B6B89.jpeg

The bag makes a lot more than is needed for a few tires and I saved the unused liquid into a bottle.
It’s a good idea to use something specifically made for tires because some soap based liquids can attack the rubber over time from what I researched.
 

TOBASH

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What can we use as an alternative to the expensive military tire lubricant that we must use with runflats. We need something that will not penetrate the rubber but will provide adequate lubrication.
 

blutow

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Here is what I used from O’reilly, it’s a concentrated tire mounting compound for about $9:

View attachment 861007

The bag makes a lot more than is needed for a few tires and I saved the unused liquid into a bottle.
It’s a good idea to use something specifically made for tires because some soap based liquids can attack the rubber over time from what I researched.
I got this gallon jug from oreilly today, looks like maybe the same stuff, but pre-mixed. I used it to install the runflats in 2 more tires, it's definitely slick and snotty and made things easier.

1646866238450.png
 
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blutow

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The red dot has to do with the tire uniformity and the yellow with weight:



Looking back on how I built the tires, maybe on some I used more soap and the run flat was more slippery (I think?) because when I inserted the inner rim there was very little resistance to center it, therefore I would say to make sure that the runflat moves easily as the rim will try to center everything and too much friction could create an offset with the rim.

I have the bump on some and my plan is to mark where the high tire point is, then remove it from the rim and find the low point of the rim, then match them. I don't have the side to side wobble so far, maybe because I used the bucket to assemble the tires and it sat evenly (not sure if that's it but it seemed to have worked).

I am at the peanut galery, but there are others on the forum that are Masters of the HHMWV Universe when it comes to tips and workarounds and maybe they can comment more.

Lots of fun lifting those 175lbs pieces around...lol
I've got a white and red dot on my tires, no yellow. Even if the white is same as yellow, I've read that yellow should be ignored if there is a red dot anyway, so I guess I'm going with red. The red dot should be aligned with the "lowest" point on the wheel and there is supposed to be a dimple on steel wheels indicating this location. I don't see anything on my inner rims to line up with. Any guidance on how to mount in relation to this red dot? Is it worth mounting up the rims and measuring runout on the wheel to figure out the "low" spot before mounting?

1646869316359.png
 

Maxjeep1

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I thought the dot was to be lined up with the valve stem? I was getting 40’s mounted one time and I think I remember the guy saying that.
 

blutow

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I thought the dot was to be lined up with the valve stem? I was getting 40’s mounted one time and I think I remember the guy saying that.
If mounting on aluminum rims (which theoretically should have no significant variation), you line the red dot up with valve stem. For stamped steel wheels, there should be a mark indicating the low spot, but I'm guessing these wheels aren't "normal" steel wheels. At least that's what I've found based on looking at links above and a little more digging. But I'm far from a tire mounting expert, so not sure.
 
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