Technical 1948 to 1950 Ford Trucks: Rubber

[Ryan]

So a friend of mine just got himself a brand spanking new 1950 Ford truck. For the most part, it's bone stock and he is already gathering the parts needed to give the little hauler a lower stance. However, he isn't quite sure yet what to do about tir...

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[1950ChevySuburban]

Even after pics are discussed, things look different based on rim width, offset, etc....
Narrow it down with pics, but having a friend with a tire shop is great! Like trying on shoes.

[JeffreyJames]

Sounds like call for The Mother Of All Tire Threads!!!!

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...d.php?t=256812

I think Chris will have some options since he seems to have a really good grasp at this and knows how to get a car sitting.

I was worried when ordering my tires for my '35 whether to go with 6.00-16's or 5.50-16's up front. In the end i went with the 5.50's because I needed room to turn. I am still waiting to see how it pans out. I hope I made the right decision.

[Alex Yohnk]

i love these trucks, all photos lifted from the hamb

[Jive-Bomber]

I had a '56 Ford truck about 10 years ago (hence the red wheels and goofy flames), which had 15" wheels. I went for the "big and little" look on it, and the rake was kinda cool...
(Probably 7.00 x 15s on the rear and 6.00 x 15s on the front.)

[Alex Yohnk]

if you lower that f100, that tire size looks really good.

[GreenMonster48]

mine with 6.50-16s with stock caps and some smooth trim rings. They fill out the wheel wells nice, but they're damn skinny when looking at them from the back. The other pic with the thin whites (old G78-15s) and caps is more to my liking.

[DRuss32]

Here's ClutchDumpinDan's 48. He said the rear tires are 30 inches in diameter which would make them 700s. Hopefully he'll chime in with actual sizes.

[Jive-Bomber]

Originally Posted by rustbelt

if you lower that f100, that tire size looks really good.

Man! Now I wish I had it back!!

[Tiny]

<<<--- L78x 15 and 670 x 15 Rears are like 28" tall

[Paul]

yes deffinately bias and on a 15" rim

I think width is also important here

with a skinny tire it can look a little goofy from the front or back
especially if the tire is tucked way in

I would go with about 6" of tread in the rear
and a little less in the front

so a 29 inch tall tire in the rear on a 15 by 5-1/2 or 6 inch rim with 6 inches of tread
and the same wheel up front but with a tire about 1/2 to 1 inch shorter and narrower tire

L78-15 rear and G78-15 front with nice wide white walls

[orinpowell]

I'm also looking for some tires for my 55 gmc. Shes a farm truck and I want to keep it that way with some 6 or 7 inch wide tires on 16s as well. I think they look great. My problem is finding tires, aside from paying 700 bucks from coker they seem to be hard to find. Where do you get these treads?

[flatheadbob]

I found this on the Classic Trucks website - it's one of my favorite trucks. Stance is perfect!

Front tires: Diamond Back Classics WW, 205/70R15
Rear tires: Diamond Back Classis WW, 235/70R15

[Harrison]

I'd don't have one of these trucks, or pics even, but since I'm an expert on everything I'll jump in anyway.

I'd go with a pair of 6.00x16 'Stones in front with a pair of 7.50x16 'Stones in the back. Then lower it as much as possible over them. Blackwall or whitewall, depends on the truck.

JH

[shmoozo]

Originally Posted by flatheadbob

I found this on the Classic Trucks website - it's one of my favorite trucks. Stance is perfect!

Front tires: Diamond Back Classics WW, 205/70R15
Rear tires: Diamond Back Classis WW, 235/70R15

That, to my eyes, in at least some ways looks like the best stance out of everything I have seen in this thread so far. The way the top edges of both the front and the rear fender well openings line up just slightly above the top of the wide whitewalls looks absolutely perfect to me. It also appears to leave enough ground clearance to actually drive the car on normal roads without worrying too much about scraping over speed bumps or crashing body, frame or whatever into the pavement when negotiating pot holes and driveway entrances.

Personally, I also appreciate the fact that the owner wasn't afraid to use radial tires. It may not be period correct or traditional, but if you are going to drive the thing regularly and for any sort of distances the improved traction radials provide for braking wins out for me. Yeah, I know that isn't generally accepted view here, but on a vehicle that I actually intended to drive more than to and from the local weekly cruise night parking lot I, for one, would prefer the extra margin of safety provided by radials over the period correctness or tradition of bias plies.

If the wider aspect ratio of the 70 series tires seen above looks a bit wrong to you on a truck of that vintage (and I can certainly see where folks might feel that way about those tires as I'm thinking exactly the same thing) there's always tires like the Coker Classic Radials which are available in some of the same tire sizes as the bias-ply tires folks here favor and with the same wide whitewalls. Frankly, tires like those Coker Classic Radials seem like the perfect solution for a guy like me who wants both the traditional look of the old bias plies and the safety of modern radials.

So, for me, the combination of something like the 600R16 Coker Classic 3" whitewalls up front, and the 700R16 Coker Classic 3.5" whitewalls in back (yeah, I like the 16 inchers) might be the way to go. The tire sizes might need to be taken up or down just slightly to make the look and the stance just right, but care should be taken to make sure that the tires are large enough to carry the loads they'll be subjected to on a truck like that, especially if the truck will actually be used for hauling now and then.

Safety first and all that.

[GreenMonster48]

I dunno, I always just assumed I would put wide whites on my F-1 when it got to the appropriate stage, but with green and the red wheels and whitewalls it looks like Christmas candy or a rolling Italian flag.

Chromed steelies with blackwall piecrusts....think it over.

[GreenMonster48]

Which is not to say the above truck isn't gorgeous or anything. I just feel a truck should be a little more 'serious' looking.

[shmoozo]

Originally Posted by GreenMonster48

I dunno, I always just assumed I would put wide whites on my F-1 when it got to the appropriate stage, but with green and the red wheels and whitewalls it looks like Christmas candy or a rolling Italian flag.

Chromed steelies with blackwall piecrusts....think it over.

Yeah, I was withholding my reservations about the color choices on the wheels, too, but I winced a bit when I saw that red with the green, too.

I do like the green, but that red just doesn't work for me with that green. Then again color choices are an entirely different subject and not what we're trying to discuss here.

Right?

[4tl8ford]

Ryan

Here are the specs for the F1 cab & chassis (More dimensions).
http://www.fordbarn.com/earlyv8/foru...F-1%20Info.pdf

[James66g]

My girl wants one of them bad I am real partial to the above orange one w teeth instead of bars and black scalloping . I believe that is the truck that was upholstered at A.S.S man just love that interior !as for tires and stance I believe Mr . Weesner has done a rendering called ..... Um. Think swap king or something like that tat t th look perfectly maybe this could (an un official friday night art show theme ?