$1k for Duratracks NOW vs $3k for ko2s on steel LATER

[morrisdl]

The duratracs will end up casting you more! After 10, I give up on them. Almost every trip I lose 1 or even 2 new tires to a sidewall cut. Cant air them down <30psi with out increasing the risking too greatly. Im probably moving to BFG KM3, since most of my miles are just adventure trips at this point. I am tired of being the only one changing tires every trip:

 

[Bryan Jones]

I've only ever lost 1 Duratrac, and out quite a few miles on mine off road. I've been on some trails lol, trust me

 

[Socialseb83]

@Socialseb83 since you noted in your other posts that you're going to be potentially spending money (in your stack-ranked / prioritized list of spend), and that you want to "go off-road", you're always going to be better going for a tire with more and stronger sidewall and more load capacity and puncture resistance. If all you're ever going to do is go on dirt roads, something like the Duratrac or Continental CrossContact or Bridgestone Dueler Alenza that are all Load Index 111, 50 psi, SUV tires will be more than plenty.

But I agree with the other forum members above, if your use case dictates going on harder trails, potentially getting into some rock crawling (you mentioned sliders and front/rear bumpers in one post), then you'll be wanting 18" wheels, and beefier E-rated tires.

In short, if you just want to look good but be a liability on the trail to yourself and others from having sidewall punctures, throw a set of Duratracs on. If you want to be useful and safe off-road, then invest first in good tires/wheels. Your use should dictate the equipment.

1. Light-duty off-roading: 19" wheels (or bigger) with something like the Duratrac / CrossContact / Alenza. But if you have those 6 ply SUV tires, you probably don't want to be putting yourself in situations where you need sliders, bumpers, and armor.

2. Actual base off-roader: 18" wheels with E-rated truck tires, and a shovel and maxtraxx and first aid kit in the back plus driver and first aid training.

3. Serious off-roader: Everything in 2 above, plus bumpers, winch, roof rack, etc. Pros: Capable. Cons: Expensive.

I think you need to be honest with yourself what you're planning on doing with the truck. There is nothing wrong with "making your truck look cool" but don't confuse that with building an off-road or overlanding vehicle.

You mention budget constraint. You'd be better off doing the wheels and tires now and getting some driver training and then skipping the rest of the truck additions you were planning. My two cents. I'm sure others will have different opinions. Regardless, welcome to the clan and good luck with the build!

This was a very good and helpful post.

 

[Socialseb83]

@Socialseb83 since you noted in your other posts that you're going to be potentially spending money (in your stack-ranked / prioritized list of spend), and that you want to "go off-road", you're always going to be better going for a tire with more and stronger sidewall and more load capacity and puncture resistance. If all you're ever going to do is go on dirt roads, something like the Duratrac or Continental CrossContact or Bridgestone Dueler Alenza that are all Load Index 111, 50 psi, SUV tires will be more than plenty.

But I agree with the other forum members above, if your use case dictates going on harder trails, potentially getting into some rock crawling (you mentioned sliders and front/rear bumpers in one post), then you'll be wanting 18" wheels, and beefier E-rated tires.

In short, if you just want to look good but be a liability on the trail to yourself and others from having sidewall punctures, throw a set of Duratracs on. If you want to be useful and safe off-road, then invest first in good tires/wheels. Your use should dictate the equipment.

1. Light-duty off-roading: 19" wheels (or bigger) with something like the Duratrac / CrossContact / Alenza. But if you have those 6 ply SUV tires, you probably don't want to be putting yourself in situations where you need sliders, bumpers, and armor.

2. Actual base off-roader: 18" wheels with E-rated truck tires, and a shovel and maxtraxx and first aid kit in the back plus driver and first aid training.

3. Serious off-roader: Everything in 2 above, plus bumpers, winch, roof rack, etc. Pros: Capable. Cons: Expensive.

I think you need to be honest with yourself what you're planning on doing with the truck. There is nothing wrong with "making your truck look cool" but don't confuse that with building an off-road or overlanding vehicle.

You mention budget constraint. You'd be better off doing the wheels and tires now and getting some driver training and then skipping the rest of the truck additions you were planning. My two cents. I'm sure others will have different opinions. Regardless, welcome to the clan and good luck with the build!

This was a very good and helpful post.

 

[m_lars]

An LR4's curb weight is over 1,300 pounds more than a JKU.

Yeah, stock for stock. I don’t see any stock JKU’s in my area. They’re loaded up with all of the latest absolutely necessary bolt on gear. I’m not sure an LR4 has much on a JKU running ultimate Dana 60’s and the requisite gear for serious rock crawling. Those guys do not run LT rated tires.

 

[m_lars]

I've only ever lost 1 Duratrac, and out quite a few miles on mine off road. I've been on some trails lol, trust me

What type of terrain? They don’t do well with sharp rocks.

 

[morrisdl]

Good point. All my Duratrac sidewall cuts occurred in KY, NC, VA, PA, WV, VT, and NY. All very rocky. Maybe the perfect tire for FL and UT

Jeeps and LR# are apples and oranges. My buddy with JKU hates same Duratrac E rated tires for harsh ride. Same tire rides great on LC80 and LR3.

 

[Troy A]

Jeeps and LR# are apples and oranges. My buddy with JKU hates same Duratrac E rated tires for harsh ride. Same tire rides great on LC80 and LR3.

Yeah I don't think we should be comparing them at all. This conversation got me curious so I went and looked at typical wheel/tire/load combos of the JKU vs. the LR4. Really totally different situations.

Us LR4 owners, especially if we want to stay near OEM spec have 5 or maybe 6" sidewalls. The stock SUV tires have 111 load index tires and terrible tread depth (12/32).

You can swap down to 18" wheels and run something like a 265/65R18 and get either a 6 ply (non-LT) or a 10 ply E-rated tire which is what I decided to do. Personally I would only go E-rated because I want the extra durability and tread depth. The extra load index is probably wasted is my guess.

And for our brethren over in the jeep world, they have the option of dropping from their factory 17" wheels down to 16" or 15" and then going up to 32" wheels (minimum) which means they're starting at 8" sidewall and able to get up to 9" or higher. So are there JKU owners running around with C-rated 6-ply tires? I'm sure there are but they're probably also running 15" or 16" wheels and maybe beadlock wheels and airing down to 5-10psi on the trail. I agree strongly with @morrisdl that the JKU references are a distraction.

 

[Bryan Jones]

What type of terrain? They don’t do well with sharp rocks.

They weren't necessarily sharp rocks, but it was a little rocky. Oddly enough, I had taken almost bald highway tires on that same trial with no problems

 

[hatch]

Would those of you with experience with the Duratracs (or the Conti TerrainContacts) feel comfortable airing down to 13 or 15 lbs on sand? While I don't need to air down around rocks very often, I do fairly regularly want to air down on sand.

I also can't make sense of the wildly varying noise reports on the Duratracs. One reviewer will say the noise is fine and they can't hear anything unusual and don't know what others are complaining about, the next will say they sold them at a huge loss after 500 miles because the noise and whine was deafening. And this pattern seems to go on and on and on ...