Time to replace the duratracs

[Low_Sky]

Anybody notice it is the guys west of the Mississippi with all the flats with the DuraTracs? My drive is grave and I get tons of stone stuck in the DuraTracs (not crazy about them getting chunked out a 65 mph). The rocks out west must be crazy sharp.

They are sharp. The average PW owner out west probably has greater access to off-road trails and miles upon miles of gravel as well versus an eastern PW owner.

We have gravel highways in Alaska that I drive at 65 mph, I don’t even notice rocks getting thrown any more.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Meister]

In Colorado we have lots of sharp jagged rocks and granite, they puncture the tires pretty easily out here.

 

[Grand Mesa]

They are sharp. The average PW owner out west probably has greater access to off-road trails and miles upon miles of gravel as well versus an eastern PW owner.

We have gravel highways in Alaska that I drive at 65 mph, I don’t even notice rocks getting thrown any more.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Driven only off-road in every state outside of Alaska that is north, south, and west of the Picketwire. A lot of rugged remote areas to test if your tires will hold up against sharp rocks. Also drive 55 to 65 mph while towing across these desolate western gravel roads in order to out run any visible road hazard like a herd of Pronghorn (Antelope) and/or the rare Jackalope. They are standing within the sage ready to launch in the direction of any passing vehicle. My primary reason though for driving fast is that anything under 45 mph and the mile upon mile of washboards will jar the gizzards out of you at slower speeds. Besides that Pronghorn can run up to 55 mph and they always seem to be on a suicide mission.

My travel trailer is equipped with both LT (Light Truck) All Terrain tires and a very large front gravel shield. It normally takes a beating with all the flying gravel, but that's what it's designed for.

https://elkodaily.com/lifestyles/pr...9a16b05f-31c2-5fd1-b389-0cb2b3af7460.amp.html

 

[Udy2554]

The 35” DuraTracs I had mounted ARE load range E! Hope they hold up for winter roads AND wheeling!

 

[Grand Mesa]

The 35” DuraTracs I had mounted ARE load range E! Hope they hold up for winter roads AND wheeling!

Have fun wheeling. Based on my son-in-law who moved from Vermont to Colorado with his seriously modified off road Jeep, it's different terrain here. Our roads can consist of nothing, but sharp broken granite rocks on a majority of the higher elevation trails within the Colorado Rocky Mountains. I don't believe that you will have any regrets in your tires not holding up to your terrain.

http://www.fourwheeler.com/events/1206-4wd-return-to-dirt-tour-part-2/

 

[scoutpappa]

Installed the 35 x 12.50 KM3's Friday afternoon. They are load range E and stand 34" exactly at the outside hip mounted on the stock wheels. Truck is a 2017. I run the KM2's on my Scout in 33 x 10.50 x 15 (love pizza cutters too bad no real options in 17") so impressions so far are better than the Duratracks (taken off @ 20K and credited $75/ea. at Discount 13/32nds remaining) and inline with my expectations. They are not a "true" to height tire and knew that going in. At 34" there is no rubbing and at least to me, they look like the appropriate size for a stock PW. Road noise is very close, but the wallow in the turns is much improved. You can feel they are slightly heavier but not majorly. Shifting is in line with the stock tires and no noticeable power loss or braking loss. I did have the tranny recall and a factory re-learn a few months ago so I can honestly say I have not been impressed with the shift points ever. I drive this daily, tow a heavy TT somewhat regularly, trail somewhat regularly (which is why I went with the PW, Scout not so good for towing) and spend a considerable amount of time daily driving industrial construction sites (so dirt, gravel, rocks, mud). I didn't like how the Duratracks wore, towed or felt but I can say that I never experienced a flat with about 100 miles of two tracks through Big Bend (so all the good trails). They were "Ehh" and I might have thought differently if they had come in E with the truck.

 

[Grand Mesa]

Installed the 35 x 12.50 KM3's Friday afternoon. They are load range E and stand 34" exactly at the outside hip mounted on the stock wheels. Truck is a 2017. I run the KM2's on my Scout in 33 x 10.50 x 15 (love pizza cutters too bad no real options in 17") so impressions so far are better than the Duratracks (taken off @ 20K and credited $75/ea. at Discount 13/32nds remaining) and inline with my expectations. They are not a "true" to height tire and knew that going in. At 34" there is no rubbing and at least to me, they look like the appropriate size for a stock PW. Road noise is very close, but the wallow in the turns is much improved. You can feel they are slightly heavier but not majorly. Shifting is in line with the stock tires and no noticeable power loss or braking loss. I did have the tranny recall and a factory re-learn a few months ago so I can honestly say I have not been impressed with the shift points ever. I drive this daily, tow a heavy TT somewhat regularly, trail somewhat regularly (which is why I went with the PW, Scout not so good for towing) and spend a considerable amount of time daily driving industrial construction sites (so dirt, gravel, rocks, mud). I didn't like how the Duratracks wore, towed or felt but I can say that I never experienced a flat with about 100 miles of two tracks through Big Bend (so all the good trails). They were "Ehh" and I might have thought differently if they had come in E with the truck.

Sorry, for this news, but if you really had a love for pizza cutters...then the narrowest, tallest Mud Terrain tire choice would have been the 35 10.50R17 Interco Super Swamper SSR. 10.5" wide versus the Power Wagon's stock width of 285 (11.5"). It's 35.3" tall versus the 34.5" of the 35 12.50R17 KM3 and 2" narrower than it. Can't find any other pizza cutters other than a 34 10.50R17 BFG KO2 and some other brands in that size. Personally, I wouldn't go narrower than a 11.5" width due it may effect the handling of the Power Wagon.

Oh, the 35.3" Super Swamper SSR tire height is 0.5" taller than even the 34.8" tall Toyo 35 12.50R17 Open Country. It looks like there is nothing taller until the 37 12.50R17 tire sizes.

My 285 75R17 (34.1") tires really look somewhat like pizza cutters though to me. Living at 6,000 feet elevation I have to deal with driving through snow for some 6 months of the year. Prefer a tall and narrower Mud Terrain tire with some siping for better ice/snow performance.

 

[Mazer]

My Duratracs have less than 1000 miles on them, and I have hunting trips planned for November in West Virginia Mountains, the logging roads are brutal if they haven't been used in a while and I don't need these tires going flat! Will 37" 12.5 work without rubbing with say a 2" lift front and rear? Trying to decide on 35's or 37's. Oh, and will any 37's fit in the spare tire well if I move the exhaust? Just figuring if I go 35's are "big enough" I like the look of bigger tires in the pics I'm seeing, but wish I could see the difference in person.
And while we are talking tires, if you air down, and then head back out to the highway, are there any good pumps that can plug into the PW and get the tires back up to the 60psi range?
thanks!

 

[Low_Sky]

37s will fit with some rubbing on stock wheels. 35s fit just fine. Lift doesn’t have any impact unless you have dropped your bump stops to limit suspension compression. Lots of good tire fit info on Thuren Fabrication’s website in the tech info section. Google it up.

A 37 will not fit under the bed, no way no how. A 35 will fit, but most new (no wear) tires have to be deflated. The limitation is between the hitch receiver and rear track bar.

Any compressor that will hit the pressure you need will work if you have the time. Go cheap and spend a half hour or more per tire, or spend more and get back on the road quicker. ARB compressors are good to go, Viair makes some good portable units as well. Get something that connects straight to the battery via alligator clips, or wire in a Power Pole connector somewhere. You can’t pull enough amps through the in-cab 12V outlet to air up in any reasonable amount of time. I use a homemade/eBay knockoff CO2 Power Tank. Airing up takes me about two minutes per tire.

Max pressure on E rated 35s is usually 65 psi. You’ll never need to air up that much unless you tow heavy. 37s run even lower. I put 38/34 front/rear in my 35x12.50r17. Just something to think about.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Grand Mesa]

These are some of the heavier tires I found while searching for my slightly more aggressive new off road tires. My requirements were a three (3) ply carcass, load range E rating, some siping for snow performance, high void, and at least a 18/32" tread depth. They also needed to fit underneath fully inflated on my Power Wagon stock wheels.

The Toyo Open Country MT and the Cooper Discoverer ST Maxx in the 285 75R17 (34.1") size. In addition, the wider Maxxis Razr MT-772 in the 305 70R17 (34") size. All three met the above requirements. The majority of the other tires in these sizes are either with a 2 ply carcass and/or are Load Range D, and have tread depth of 16/32" and less.

When you go up to the larger 315 70R17 and 35 12.50R17 sized tires with a three (3) ply carcass and in Load Range E that's where it becomes heuristic as to being able to fit the spare underneath while fully inflated.

 

[scoutpappa]

Sorry, for this news, but if you really had a love for pizza cutters...then the narrowest, tallest Mud Terrain tire choice would have been the 35 10.50R17 Interco Super Swamper SSR. 10.5" wide versus the Power Wagon's stock width of 285 (11.5"). It's 35.3" tall versus the 34.5" of the 35 12.50R17 KM3 and 2" narrower than it. Can't find any other pizza cutters other than a 34 10.50R17 BFG KO2 and some other brands in that size. Personally, I wouldn't go narrower than a 11.5" width due it may effect the handling of the Power Wagon.

Oh, the 35.3" Super Swamper SSR tire height is 0.5" taller than even the 34.8" tall Toyo 35 12.50R17 Open Country. It looks like there is nothing taller until the 37 12.50R17 tire sizes.

My 285 75R17 (34.1") tires really look somewhat like pizza cutters though to me. Living at 6,000 feet elevation I have to deal with driving through snow for some 6 months of the year. Prefer a tall and narrower Mud Terrain tire with some siping for better ice/snow performance.

I like in theory but having some experience with Interco (from LA, Opelousas to be exact) I think I made a good decision to blur the lines between offroad, towing and DD duties. I really like the tire though. I like the KM3's even though they are no where near 35" tall. Just work for my uses and so far on the interstate they are predictable. Good choice if it ever becomes a toy.

 

[Mazer]

Thanks! I think I may just go with the 35's 12.50 to begin with and use the stock wheels, they are actually very nice wheels. Match the truck! I will look into the thuren tech forums and options on an air tank, don't know about a CO2 tank, but I'll look into those as well! I figure 60psi would get me where i needed to go to top off the tires if I needed more than the 60! I want to move things slowly (makes the wife happy)....especially since she is questioning why I want to change perfectly good tires out!

 

[Low_Sky]

Thanks! I think I may just go with the 35's 12.50 to begin with and use the stock wheels, they are actually very nice wheels. Match the truck! I will look into the thuren tech forums and options on an air tank, don't know about a CO2 tank, but I'll look into those as well! I figure 60psi would get me where i needed to go to top off the tires if I needed more than the 60! I want to move things slowly (makes the wife happy)....especially since she is questioning why I want to change perfectly good tires out!

If they’re OEM duratracs, they aren’t perfectly good tires. So there’s that problem solved. The faster you sell them the more tread they’ll have left and more you can get for them.

Don’t bother with an air tank (in addition to a compressor) unless you need to run air tools. If you just need to fill tires just get a big enough compressor. A CO2 tank is a whole different ball of wax. It’s an “air source” on it’s own, but if you don let know if/how one would be a good fit for you, you don’t need one. I get 5-6 inflations from trail to street pressure out of my 15 lbs tank. An air tank is just a vessel to hold enough air to run tools or energize air lockers without running a compressor all the time.





Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Mazer]

Thanks Low_Sky, I will look into the 35's tomorrow. I'll sell the Duratracs on Craigslist! I can strap an air compressor into my truck in the meantime, just enough to air up enough to get me to a strong air source!

 

[Grand Mesa]

I like in theory but having some experience with Interco (from LA, Opelousas to be exact) I think I made a good decision to blur the lines between offroad, towing and DD duties. I really like the tire though. I like the KM3's even though they are no where near 35" tall. Just work for my uses and so far on the interstate they are predictable. Good choice if it ever becomes a toy.

Also, if you have a tire issue with the BFG tires you can obtain a replacement much easier with a top brand tire within most areas of the USA. I also stuck with a top brand in making my purchase. It may be different if I lived near a large city where more choices are easily available, but I don't.

 

[Rugged]

Just had to throw in the firestone m/t2’s
Ive had mine for about 12000 miles now with no problems. Tires are surprisingly quiet at pretty much all speeds and have been great in everything I have thrown at them. Mud, pavement gravel, snow, rain, heavy rain, standing water, ice curbs. I will let you know about deep sand when I take it to the beach. E rated 10 ply. 121 load rating which is pretty standard on a 35x12.5x20 had a decent tongue trailer on them no squat whatsoever and I had the tires at maybe 45 psi. The truck on the other hand couldn’t handle the weight very well. Drove fine but headlights a little high in the air. Love em and made in the usa stamped on the side. My nittos not so much.



Tires still look brand new.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Meister]

Just had to throw in the firestone m/t2’s
Ive had mine for about 12000 miles now with no problems. Tires are surprisingly quiet at pretty much all speeds and have been great in everything I have thrown at them. Mud, pavement gravel, snow, rain, heavy rain, standing water, ice curbs. I will let you know about deep sand when I take it to the beach. E rated 10 ply. 121 load rating which is pretty standard on a 35x12.5x20 had a decent tongue trailer on them no squat whatsoever and I had the tires at maybe 45 psi. The truck on the other hand couldn’t handle the weight very well. Drove fine but headlights a little high in the air. Love em and made in the usa stamped on the side. My nittos not so much.



Tires still look brand new.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What do you mean the truck didnt handle the weight, how heavy was it?

 

[Rugged]

What do you mean the truck didnt handle the weight, how heavy was it?

Not too crazy I didn’t think. it was a little tongue heavy maybe. I think I could use some helper air bags to level it out. The hemi pulled it no problem


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Low_Sky]

Not too crazy I didn’t think. it was a little tongue heavy maybe. I think I could use some helper air bags to level it out. The hemi pulled it no problem


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You’re playing in the Power Wagon subform. Thanks for visiting, it’s time to wrap this up and take your maybe a little heavy tongue weight back to half-ton land. Haha


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Grand Mesa]

After purchasing 6 weeks ago some new 285 75R17 load range E, ST Maxx tires to replace my worn out OEM 285 70R17 load range D, Duratrac tires, I finally got around to running on them to haul up some heavier full bed of supplies to my home. Takes about an hour of rural highway driving one way up from town. Wow! What a difference in the way my 2016 Power Wagon handled the same drive with approximately the same full load.

No more side to side roll and the dreaded white knuckle squirrelly feeling around each of the mile upon mile of canyon corners. It behaved that way with 1,600 pounds of bagged wood pellets on the original OEM tires. Today I hauled 2,220 pounds of bagged material with a full bed. There was absolutely no sway or any feeling of losing control. Other than the front suspension being a bit higher due to the load, it handled entirely positive and excellent. Same tire pressure of 60 psi in the front and 65 psi in the rear with the same topper covering the load. Finally I have a newer pickup that I can use for hauling instead of having to rely on my old 1998 Chevrolet K1500 to do it.