tires and gears

I have lifted to 7.5" and am looing for tires I have found some good deals on 35" tires but non on 33" I am currently keeping stock axles and gears is it dumb to think I could even run a 35" and have wheel power and axle strength??

I wouldn't run stock gears with 35's. I wouldn't even run them with 33's. If you plan on driving it on the street, and keeping stock gears, then stick to 31's.

7.5" of lift with stock tires are going to look VERY SILLY. If you do not have the cash to get better gears, then take off the lift until you do. OR take out some of the lift and go a bit lower, like 3" of lift would be more than enough.

7.5 is a big lift. What all did you use to get to this point for componants that is. ya 35s on stock gears I wouldn't.

I used Rock Kralwer Long arms RK 6.5 coils with a 1" poly spacer I also had Alscan springs fab me up some 5.5" leafs and I have a 2" lift shackle, as well as lots of others random little parts that are needed. But yeah I have definately decided against the 35" that was just a dumb question but I think I will be fine with the 33" tires I know mulitple people that run these witht there stock gears and axles and do just fine on and off road.

I have 6.5' lift on 33's. I wish it was 1.5' lower. But no way in hell will I take the ACOS out!

do you have 3.07 (manual trans) or 3.55 (auto)
if you have 3.07 i would say even 33s would probably suck. youd be ok for the little stuff, but climbing a hill or a log.... youd be gettin into some real bogging and binding. id say save up for the gears and tires at the same time. its not going to be worth it wen your spinnin your tires in some dirt or mud and you catch a traction spot and grenade your gears..
my .02

I have the auto trans but I'm not terribly worried about it I'm a pretty mellow wheeler not one to grind on the skinny pedal usually I've had to be carefull before this running my 4" lift and 31"s just because of ground clearance etc. but I think I will manage on the 33" with some precation to just not gun it or anything. But axle build up and gears and lockers are for sure in the future but i'm just a poor teenager still so I'm taking it one thing at a time. The ground clearance will be nice to have though I agree it will be large but we have some big rocks out here in Colorado where clearance becomes an issue but that is also why I went with the 5.5" springs so that if I do feel it is too large I can just drop my shackle down to its one inch of lift setting. But I'll have to wait and see becasue I do know I have an fj60 that sits just about where I will sit that is running 35" tires and even with that it can find itself some clearance issues on some sections. But it is all stuff I can adjust as I go. Thanks for all the feedback everyone about tire sizes with my gear ratios though

yea i have 33s with a manual, its horrible going up hill. i managed for a longtime though, i here ya with the money. finally building my new rears with 4:88s

same boat, but i got the manual so 3.07 sucks for what i wheel so ive stuck with 32s even though its still pretty bad. youve got 3.55 so its a bit better you should be ok with 33s untill you regear

Theres alot of folks who scream gear change at anything over 31's. I too was leaning the same way. I had 31" Cooper Discoverer S/T's on XJ Sport stock steelies. I picked up 5 Pro Comp Xtreme Steel wheels(same as 767's without the pride stipes) and put on 33x10.5 R15 BFG MT's. I sat higher, but didn't really feel any loss of power or ability to stop. I should mention i have a late model 96 with a strong power plant and an AW4. I weighed the 2 tire and rim combo's for shits and giggles. The Coop's on the stockers weighed 70lbs each. The 33"(they are a true 33" tire) BFG's on the Xtreme Steelie was 72lbs. I guess my point is there is no hard and fast rule for gearing as there are a few parameters that need consideration.
Wheel weight, tire weight, tire width, power plant condition etc. If it works for you and you are happy...ENJOY!
Note...I'm from the GWN and prefer the narrow tires for everything. I'm also a firm believer in keeping those wheels as tight to the axle as possible.
Have a great wheelin' weekend!

It's not that your loosing power it's that the power transfer with stock gears and larger tires is different. Stopping no big deal. Going not that big of a deal either. It's trying to hold the speed up and down hills. In my stock 98 xj no problems 235s auto not much shifting work on the tranny on the lifted 2001 xj o boy alot of shifting. SO in the long run your tranny is taking the abuse not the larger tires and gears. Up the gears save the tranny to some point. If you go with lower gears then your just returning back to more of a stock gear feel with larger tires.

I know a guy who runs 35" boggers on stock axles and gears....97 TJ (D35)

It's streetable, and i've seen it in some mild action. I wouldn't recommend it, but if you don't have the cash for gears right now it'll work for awhile.