bias ply hummer tires

[1984CUCV]

with all the negative things I have heard about the 36" bias ply hummer tires (unbalanceable etc) I wanted to know if anyone out there is running them with no problems.

 

[tsmall07]

I haven't run mine yet, but I plan to balance with lead shot inside the tires. Some friends have had good luck with 8oz in each tire.

 

[84cucv1ton]

never knew you could do that

 

[tsmall07]

Just pull the valve cores and pour them in that way. It is a lot easier to do than trying to mount them with the shot in there.

 

[bryab123]

i have heard about putting tennis balls in road tractor tires but i thought it was just some story.

 

[hummer4x4guy]

I would think tennis balls in a tractor tire would be a story since I don't believe a tractor would get enough speed to cause an issue, besides the tread on some of those tires are so bad you going to have vibrations no matter how slow you go. Also a tennis ball doesnt really weight much to help off set any imperfections

My .02 is to get centramatics they will cost ya more then shot but they are built and designed to do the job right and they do it well.

BTW 1984cucv why not get the 37" humvee tires instead they are much nicer and are radials.
I havent driven on bias tires in anything myself but I do belive they get flat spots and suck really bad in the winter when the tires are cold not as bad tho in the Summer they round out quicker I would imagine

 

[tsmall07]

You can also use airsoft bbs if you are concerned with the environmental impact if you blow out or roll a bead off with lead shot in there. Also, lead shot and bbs will chip powder coat and paint from the inside of the wheel barrel. One friend uses 16oz of airsoft in each tire and another uses 8oz of shot. Both have 36" bias Super Swamper XS tires. If I were to do it, I'd probably use the airsoft. They make special valve stems that will keep the balls away for when you check pressures, but they aren't necessary.

Edit: I should point out that I agree with the above. You'll never get a smooth quite ride with those tires but it does work. Also it doesn't generally work above 65mph or so, but that should be a problem with a CUCV

 

[84cucv1ton]

i dont know where to find the 37" tires. i ended up with 2 trucks loads of the 36" tire. the are not the best, sure are cheap tho. price is right why not. in the morning the do flat spot.

 

[1984CUCV]

the resaon i am curious about the 36" bias plys is that i just got a great deal on 4 brand new ones that have never been mounted and wanted to know if they are worth putting on my truck. i want to keep the driveability of my truck as much as possible. thanks again for ayour input guys!!

 

[hobie237]

I suspect the reason that they're difficult and/or impossible to balance in many cases has more to do with out of round tires than actual balancing.

If you can find a good, inexpensive set of 16.5" wheels, then yeah, the HMMWV tires can be a heck of a bargain. Worrying about tire noise and vibrations in these trucks is pretty pointless.

The problem is finding a cheap set of 16.5" wheels with the correct backspacing and whatnot. When I was considering this route- because the tires were so cheap- I figured out the prices for spacers to make the HMMWV wheels work, prices for new 16.5" wheels that would be the correct specs, and shopped around for MONTHS for a good price on 16.5" wheels. Any way I cut it, I was looking at $400-$500 by the time the tires were actually on the truck. That's when I decided to just shop around and pay a bit more for a set of used 16" tires that actually fit on the stock wheels.

Anyway, there's a number of good reasons that the HMMWV bias plies are cheap. It's like Harbor Freight China junk tools. Yeah, they're cheap, but they're not really a bargain, because you're getting exactly what you paid for.

 

[BKubu]

I had the bias ply tires on a HMMWV that I used to have. Man, it drove like crap. They were on it when I first bought it and I thought I had serious front end problems. I could not keep it in the lane. I changed to radials...and the problem disappeared.

 

[papercu]

The bias ply tires work well on the front of the farm 4x4 backhoe. Wayne

 

[IRWFO]

with all the negative things I have heard about the 36" bias ply hummer tires (unbalanceable etc) I wanted to know if anyone out there is running them with no problems.

In this picture you can see just a little weight on the front tire and a whole line on the rear. I have no vibration from zero to 80mph. I drive this truck near every day and take some long trips with it. The only things that I could complain about is the road noise they make at speed and they are always flat spotted for the first mile after it sits over night. That's the nature of a big lugged bias ply tire so you learn to live with it. I do love the way they look and that's why I keep them.

 

[jdcucv]

36 military Oz

On my 86 m1009 I have run 36 12.5 hmmvv tires since i bought the truck in 05. Put on a new set in 07 for $525 brand new. I live in central wisconsin and have driven the truck to Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, wore the used first set out on that trip, put the new ones on went to North Carolina, Few months later Colorado. there alittle loud on the road but that don't matter to me. I have never even put a radio in my truck. Still running them and they don't look half bad, don't forget to rotate them offen, even have them flipped on rims once it helps them ware better. I put a plow on this year, so the next tire will be different ones, there not much of a snow tire. I would say over all there not a bad tire, just don't t last as long or run as smooth as a radial. I can't complain about them though, got me back to some pretty good camping spots.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Don't use led shot as a balancing agent. It will corrode if moisture gets in not to mention it can get deformed and not roll so well. Ends up acting like a shot blasting agent against the rim and the tire.

I've got airsoft BB's in my Michelins. 11-12 oz or so per tire. I'd use A LOT MORE on the HMMWV bias plies.

Innovative Balancing sells purpose made ceramic beads but they're expensive in the quantities the big tires require.

 

[tsmall07]

I've got airsoft BB's in my Michelins. 11-12 oz or so per tire. I'd use A LOT MORE on the HMMWV bias plies.

More doesn't equal better. I'd just start with 12 and go up some if you're not satisfied.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Heh...better hope you end up with a round set then.

 

[tsmall07]

Heh...better hope you end up with a round set then.

I'm just sayin that you don't necessarily need to load your tires down. A friend and I put 20oz in his tires just because we figured it wouldn't hurt. The truck ran like **** because (I guess) the beads all lumped together. We took all out but 12 and it was fine after.

 

[86M10086.2L]

I have a set of 36 HMMWV tires that I also picked up new. I mounted them on a set of old Kidney Bean 16.5x10.5 aluminum wheels. They were balanced and actually rode pretty well. They do get flat spots and it can be anoying. They do make more noise on the road. But overall they're not bad for the price. I got mine for less than half of what it would have cost to put stock size tires on the truck. They were a cheap overdrive, got me 60 mph out of the truck. Rubbed alittle on the trail and I have a 4 inch lift in my truck. They love the mud though. Needless to say I like my 285/75/16's better.

 

[nk14zp]

I have run them with no problems.