Do 18" tires and sand mix

[mddisco]

DISCO II with the 18" rims.

It's my turn to take the trip down to the coast for some surf fishing. I wanted to get everyones opinion to see if my disco will have problems gripping the sand. I'm wondering if dropping the tire pressure will cause any problems with my 55 sidewalls.

the last time, we drove 3 miles in deep sand in my buddies pickup...

Load: 3 males average of 185'lbs
and about 300lbs of fishing equipment + a cooler of beer

Thanks

 

[antichrist]

I don't know about those low profile tires, never owned any and no plans to. But for sand, you want wide tires, and usually not agressive tread. If you look at tires made specifically for sand, like the ones fitted to the Pink Panthers, they look very much like airplane tires. Airing down will help, but again, I don't know about tires that already don't have any sidewall to speak of.

Tom Rowe
Four wheel drive allows you to get stuck in
places even more inaccessible.

 

[discomike]

They are nearly terrible but will work for an experienced driver. Run around 18#'s of air, don't stop fast or start fast especially while turning or you won't be doing alot of surfing just alot of digging.
Mike J.

 

[parthog]

Your biggest worry will be the fact that airing down to 150psi or so will give you very little sidewall to absorb bumps, a hunk of wood or rock can damage your tire and rim.

Stick to the wet sand and you'll be fine at higher pressure, if you start having problems lower the pressure until it works, drive slower and more carefully to protect the tire/rim and not risk losing the bead on turns or side-loading the tires.

Dry sand is all about flotation and planing speed, the lower the pressure the slower you can drive and less power it takes.

 

[mddisco]

Thanks for the info.. I decided its not worth taking the chance to roll the tire off the rim.. Any suggestions on where I can get some 16x7 steel rims? I've checked atlantic british but there has to be someone else. Any ideas on for good manf for tires........

 

[discomike]

Here is a good scourse for steel wheels, and I would suggest you stay with the 8" instead of 7's, That is more popular for Disco 2's.
/www.trekoutfitters.com/
Mike J.