Been looking around but cant seem to find a definitive answer.. Does anyone know a metric tire size for a 1959 chevy 3600? It seems that the size is a 8-19.5-6 but what in the hell is that in conversion?! Albert
8-19.5 is the tire size. The -6 at the end is the ply rating. I think these old tires are pretty hard to find today...do you have a picture of your wheels?
According to the chart, that would be a 8.00-19.5 in a six ply as Jim said. They're actually not uncommon, if you do a Google search for '800-19.5 tire' you'll get lots of results. There's some listed at that size, some listed in various metric sizes depending on aspect ratio. Prices from about $160 up. One issue you may have; if you have split rims, you may not be able to find anybody to work on them, you may have to upgrade to modern non-split wheels. Most places won't touch split rims due to the danger of them.
using that search, I find a lot of 8R-19.5 tires....they're a modern design, I don't know how well they fit the older wheels that were made for bias ply, tube type tires. Still haven't found any 8-19.5 bias tires for sale.
I'd be surprised if you did. Seeing how these are a 'commercial' size, the possible niche market for reproduction bias tires would be less than miniscule. And if the OP has split rims (and probably does if they're OEM), he may not find anybody who will service them. I've known a few guys with older rigs with split rims and in every case they had to replace the wheels along with the tires unless they wanted to change the tires themselves. I do know that replacements are commonly available as the bolt pattern in those sizes seems to be 'generic'. The OP probably needs to talk to a tire dealer that does commercial truck tires to find out what his options are.
8R19.5 tires have a diameter of 33.6", a section width of 8.0", and a wheel diameter of 19.5". The circumference is 105.5" and they have 601 revolutions per mile. Heres some radial sizing in 16 and 15". Might be worth looking at 16" steel wheels from newer trucks to get easy to find tires. 255/70/16 30.0"x 10.0" 265/70/16 30.6"x 10.4" 265/75/16 31.6"x 10.4" 275/70/16 31.2"x 10.8" 285/75/16 32.8"x 11.2" 295/75/16 33.4"x 11.6" 305/70/16 33.0"x 12.2" 315/75/16 34.8"x 12.4" 255/75R15 = 30.1x10R15 265/75R15 = 30.6x10.4R15 295/65R15 = 30.1x11.6R15 31 and above go to this sizing in 15" 31X10.5R15 31X11R15 31X11.5R15 31X12.5R15 31X13R15
I don't. The truck had 16.5-inch rims when we got it; which aren't factory. I've seen split rims on trucks but I ain't got them. I don't need a set of bias tires that are OEM reproductions. I'm more interested in the modern tire size that would be close enough. I already knew from previous searches that I wouldn't find this size. I'd prefer to run radials that are a bit skinnier (sticking to manual steering). @indyjps Thank you! Albert
Please verify your bolt pattern and center bore diameter. Heres a start on donor vehicles 6 x 5.5 108 center bore 67-91 chevy 4x4 04-08 canyon. Probably wrong offset 79-93 Dodge D-50 & RAM-50 Turbo Diesel
8 lug with 6.5" diameter with a 4.5" center bore. The minimum offset is 4.25" I got a set of 15" rims that fit the hubs.
Ok...you don't have wheels that take 8-19.5-6 tire size, so I'm curious why you want to find tires that size? Or maybe you're wondering what the tire height was originally? I'm confused...
He was looking for a radial tire same size as a factory tire. height and width. He has 15 inch wheels for it.
https://www.tacomaworld.com/tirecalc?tires=275-75r15-295-85r15 radial tire size comparion calculator. Doesnt guarantee the size you plug in is available. Bias ply tall skinny https://deestonetireusa.com/bias-light-truck/
I've never seen 19.5 wheels on a 3600 which is a 3/4 ton. Most with original wheels around here run 16.5. That doesn't mean that the farmers in Kansas didn't run them but the Farmers in Central Washington didn't seem to. One reason this "I want to make it all original" BS drives me nuts, a lot of that all original isn't available anymore or isn't practical. Truthfully you would be far better off getting 16 inch wheels for it so you can buy tires that you won't have to hock the farm for. That is if you are actually going to drive it and not just toddle to shows and present it as an all original everything correct truck.
My mistake, I should have been clear.. I don't want the 8-19.5-6 tires. I wanted the diamentions to cross reference. I may have neglected that part I agree! Its entirely impractical. I should've clarified when I started this thread. I wanted the overall diamentions of the tires to cross reference. I have nice 15" rims that are going on. Oh, im going to show her off moment she's built Albert
I agree somewhat. Personally I've never seen 19.5" wheels on a 3600. A lot of the research done is flawed. Why? Because the factory manuals are sometimes wrong. Some stuff in the manuals either never sold well, was obscure, or never made it into production. Thus it practically only exits in print. On the other hand, some stuff produced and combinations thereof never made into the manuals. There's a guy on the FTE that quotes Ford factory manuals and numbers chapter and verse. A lot of the time he's wrong. he has to be one of the most smug and arrogant www. types I have ever seen. In theory by the manual, a 1964 Ford truck with a 292 C4 combo should/could exist. It does not.
I suppose what you really wanted to ask, is what size tires should I get to put on my truck, which has 15" wheels, xx inches wide. We still don't know what your wheels are, there are 15" wheels available with widths from 3.5" to 16", and they all take different size tires. And you won't find tires for a 15" wheel that are the same height and width as those original 19.5" tires.
That's exactly what I meant to ask. I don't have any tires yet. I have the 16.5" rim bare. Also a crappy set of 235/75R15 on the 15" rims (15" x 10.5" rims) that was used to move the truck around. I had those on there when moving the truck but they seemed a bit short. Then I wanted to know what came originally. Then I fell into a Rabbit hole trying to find proper information. Albert
The Jalopy Journal
