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Tire Size w/ RE 5.5" and Recommended Gearing

fdsa487

NAXJA Forum User
So i have the RE 5.5" kit sitting at the house and im so excited to put it on... The thing is that i vowed to myself that i would wait until i have EVERYTHING that i need before i start the project... I get paid once a month so i have to wait til the 5th of next month to get my GEARS and TIRES... I know that most of you run 33's on your lifts. Im thinking about getting BFT A/T's 33X11.50X15 Will i have to do any trimming with these tires? I want to keep the trimming to a minimal so should i go with 10.50's instead of 11.50's? Would they look like pizza cutters if i was to get 10.50's? Also It has the Chrysler 8.25" rear What gears would you recommend i run with 33" tires? IT is a daily driver and also my weekend toy in the desert and i do tow a trailer on a regular basis. Thanks in advance for you anticipated responses.
 
The 11.50's may rub at full flex... But you should be okay. 10.50's will not rub, I have run them without a problem, but it is all dependant on your backspacing... 4.56's would be ideal, and that is as deep as you can go with the 8.25...

Will.
 
fdsa487 said:
So i have the RE 5.5" kit sitting at the house and im so excited to put it on... The thing is that i vowed to myself that i would wait until i have EVERYTHING that i need before i start the project... I get paid once a month so i have to wait til the 5th of next month to get my GEARS and TIRES... I know that most of you run 33's on your lifts. Im thinking about getting BFT A/T's 33X11.50X15 Will i have to do any trimming with these tires? I want to keep the trimming to a minimal so should i go with 10.50's instead of 11.50's? Would they look like pizza cutters if i was to get 10.50's? Also It has the Chrysler 8.25" rear What gears would you recommend i run with 33" tires? IT is a daily driver and also my weekend toy in the desert and i do tow a trailer on a regular basis. Thanks in advance for you anticipated responses.

i'd just go with 33x12.5 MTR or BFG, and 4.56 gears. get some rims with 3.75 backspacing and you should be good, may need no trimming. i'd get everything on then decide if ya want to trim from there.

HTH
brandon
use the search forum if ya have more questions... theres plenty of threads discussing 33's, trimming, and gear ratios with those combinations.
 
i ran this exact life with 33x12.5 muds on 15x10 wheels with 3.75bs and i had to barely trim the front of the fender flares. going offroad was a different story. if i were you i would trim the hell out of the fenders, do TJ flares or flareless and run 35's. jason (owner of jeepin.com) runs 35's with the bushwacker flares with no problems. if i could do it over again i would of gone with 35's. i got them now but thats beside the point.
 
yeah i agree.. for the trimming you will have to do to fit 33's you can go ahead and get 35's.
 
But, 35's opens up a whole different predicament than what he is in now. I'd stick with 33x12.5" muds, 4.56 gears and depending on what year your XJ, might want to upgrade the front u-joints and rear to 29 spline axles.
 
Woah, I have the same lift. Here's my educated opinion. Skinny tires are great for traction in mud, but suck for trailering. 33x11.5 with 4" BS will fit just fine. If you do any extreme flexing then you may want to tweak your bumpstops if the tires rub at full flex, but I don't think with that setup that you'll have a problem. Any wheel with less than 4" BS may rub. If you want 33's go with those. Trailering with 35's, not fun. You always have the option for that later with a little trimming. 4.56's I think is the way to go.
 
OK so i think that i will go with the 33" 11.50's BFG's of course (my favorite tire) BUT i already have the wheeles... I just have one more question, how do i measure to see what the back spacing is? Im assuming that i would take a tape measure and measure from the furthers piece out inside the rim to the edge of the wheele. Is this correct?
 
Easiest way to measure backspacing is lay the rim face down on the ground, then lay a board across the wheel. measure from the bottom of the board (ie: "top" edge of the wheel) to the mounting surface on the center. That's the backspacing. Even with 33x11.5's, you're really going to need 4" or more of BS to keep the trimming up front minimal (of course, I guess it all depends on what you consider to be "minimal").

2d349bb0.jpg

(gotta love google image search!!)
 
with a 5.5" lift? i wouldnt run less than 4.88 gears (lowest gears for the d30) because the 5.5" lift puts you in 35's range...

3-4.5" lift for 33's...

realize that re-gearing is about $700 big ones - larger if you go lockers while you re-gear...
and you wont want to do it WHEN you go to 35's...
 
He's running 33's though, not 35's, regardless of his lift height.

Regearing both axles will run at least $1000 to have both done once you factor in gears, install kits, carriers (even more $$$ if you go with lockers, but I'd recommend going that route if at all possible), and then labor.
 
it's liveable, but just barely, and really only if you live in the flatlands. I did it for about a year. mileage was in the crapper and 4th/OD was useless.
 
Jeepin Jason said:
He's running 33's though, not 35's, regardless of his lift height.

Regearing both axles will run at least $1000 to have both done once you factor in gears, install kits, carriers (even more $$$ if you go with lockers, but I'd recommend going that route if at all possible), and then labor.

didnt read the 33's 35's discussion

and i was estimating low on the $$$...

stock gears with 33's? well - i will be upgrading to 3.50's (ford 9") before i put my 33's on...

stupid 3.07's...

now if i could only come up with the bling for real gears and a locker in the rear... set up fee is free...
 
XJ_ranger said:
with a 5.5" lift? i wouldnt run less than 4.88 gears (lowest gears for the d30) because the 5.5" lift puts you in 35's range...

It has the Chrysler 8.25" rear

4.56 is the deepest gear he can run.

Lift height has nothing to do with gearing. Some people are running 36s with 3" of lift, should they have 4.10s?


XJ_ranger said:
3-4.5" lift for 33's...

I want to keep the trimming to a minimal

XJ_ranger said:
...didnt read the 33's 35's discussion

Did you read any of the post?

XJ_ranger said:
stock gears with 33's? well - i will be upgrading to 3.50's (ford 9") before i put my 33's on...

stupid 3.07's...

now if i could only come up with the bling for real gears and a locker in the rear... set up fee is free...

So you aren't running the gears or tires you're recommending either?
 
basalt51 said:
So you aren't running the gears or tires you're recommending either?

your gettin good at this bASSalt...

im going to run 5.13's with 33's once i get the $$$ to re-gear - have the 33's working on the ford 9" to go in, next project is the d44 front - then the 5.13's and the 33's come (street tires) and the 35's come after that (wheeling tires)...

but - good call with 4.56 being the lowest in the 8.25 - forgot about that...

and - i am done...
 
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