Tire Clearance | Dropped 37 Ford Pickup

I have searched many old threads, but haven’t found the answer I've been looking for. I hoping to find out what radial size tire and wheel width I should use on the front of my lowered 37 pickup. Below is my setup.

Chassis: 37 Ford pickup with Chassis Engineering 4” drop axle and spring
Front Wheels: 4.5” Kelsey Hayes Artillery

My question is…what is the largest size radial tire I can use up front while maintaining enough fender clearance? I believe 215’s will be too big, but would a 195/80/R16, 205/65/R16, or 205/55/R16 work? If I use the 195 or 205 tires, will I need a 5.5” wide wheel up front?

 

Post what tires you have up front without clearance issues. Any comments would be helpful. Thanks!

 

On the 40 I have 185 65 15's on the front end--Must 2, 2" drop spindles. I have a slight rubbing condition---sorry I am no help. Just letting you know a bad example. Rubs a little on a fully locked left turn. P.S. 5" wheels on front

 

Thanks 40fordtudor: That info helps - Your tire is ~24.5" tall which gets me in the ballpark. My current front tires ~27" tall and much wider too.

Any other tire size recommendations would be helpful. 15 or 16" wheels.

 

Well I know this is not what you are asking nor is this traditional but in the pursuit of information, I like your question, and am interested in what you find out. I had a hell of a time fitting 17x7's up front with airbags on my '36. I ended up using 205/45/17, 26 inch tall tire. Again I know this is not what you are asking, but interested in finding out what the consensus is.

 

I am running 165/80r15 tires on 15x5 steel ford wheels and haven`t rubbed yet. It is a mustang II w/2"dropped spindles.

 

Starting to find some wheel size boundaries. Looks like if I go tall, I need to stay narrow and vice versa.

36 pickup: 25.4" tall || 6.5" wide || 5" wheel || 165/80 R15
40 ford tudor: 24.5" tall || 7.3" wide || 5" wheel || 185/65 R15

 

I never posted an answer to this topic. I ended up with 195/65 R16's for the front of my /37 pickup. 2.5" whitewall made by Callitw. They look plenty tall and I'm happy with how they turned out!

If you want to see how they turned out - head over to the pics on my build thread. Pages 3 and 4 should have pictures.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/1937-ford-pickup-build-project-fubar.850720/page-4