215 85 16s
 

OK, this size tire came stock on dually pickups for many years. Maybe some still do, but I think the newest stuff is 17-18". Anyway your average 28 year old refinery worker making 70 grand a year wants some real meats on his rig, and this size ends up on the used tire auction block.. I have always thought this tall/skinny profile would work nicely on a stock ford rim of our vintage. Last month our local gas station-tire place changed hands and the new owner's insurance would't let them sell used tires out back.... But they could GIVE them away, so I hauled off 4 for a test. I have an old Coates 'tireman' manual tire machine so I took four home and mounted them. What a difference! Yes, steering in a parking lot at a standstill required more effort, but down the road like a dream. Today I had a delivery to the mainland so I went to the used tire place and got 4 really nice ones for 150.00 for all. It was 6:00 pm and 40 degrees when I got home, but I just had to peel off some old tires and mount a couple of the 'new ' ones. Not sure I can divide 150.00 by four but I think a real bargain. I know some (Tinker) will think I sold out on the bias thing :) ..... Anyhow, just wondering if anybody else here runs the 215 85r 16 tires. P.S., at the Portland Or swapmeet I asked a salesman from a well known vintage tire company about radials for the woodie and he quoted me something like 275.00 a piece.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

You've done well!! now that you've 'found' radial tires, you'll never go back to x plies....

Re: 215 85 16s
 

You do you GB :). Keep it on the road!

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Work great on my 35

Re: 215 85 16s
 

I'm running 205 80R 16's Michelin's on my '39 pickup. Can't seem to wear them out.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

I'm going tubeless... You? Got the other two mounted after work tonight. Now all four bolted up. Supposed to be ok weather tomorrow and I'm playing hookey, so will file a report after the test-drive.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

No, I'm running tubes. Too many rivets in the wide 5 to make me feel comfortable with tubeless.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Are you guys running these on four-inch rims? Don't know exactly when the rims got wider, as my experience ends at 1940.

Looking at tires for my '40 coupe, and shaking my head at the price and apparent poor quality of many of the bias-ply options (without mentioning names), and price and shipping on the obvious bias-look alternative.

Want something I can drive on without thumping down the road, or wearing out in 3500 miles.

Seems like asking a lot. Well, Pirelli is reproducing the Stella Bianca bias-ply 600-16 they made from 1927 to the early '50's, which is V speed rated (149 mph). Same high price, but perhaps will balance and roll smoothly down the road.

Not too early Ford traditional, but neither were the 195/80/16 Bridgestone Ecopia electric car tires, which have apparently been discontinued. Never had those, but they were a viable alternative at one time.

Anyway, sorry to stray from your original post Gary, but we're definitely on the same page on keeping our heaps rolling. Just would like to know if you are running those tires on 4 inch rims. More appropriate on your woodie, but beats sitting in the garage on baloney skins!

Re: 215 85 16s
 

I'm running the 205-16's on 4" wide rims. They don't looked pinched to me and ride good. I have a set of 5" wide Zephyr wide 5's that I thought about putting these Michelins on but they seem to work fine on the stock rims. An interesting side note, none of these tires required balancing.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

GB....the 215-85’s are 10/ply right?.....what are the 205-80’s.....I looked on-line and all I could find was 10/ply........Mark

Re: 215 85 16s
 

The 205-80's are 6 ply, 4 polyester and 2 steel. They are made in the UK and my tire guy said they were used on Range Rovers back in the '90's. I don't think they are made anymore.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Yes Mark... 10 ply rating, but I dont think they really have ten plies (plys?). Radials always have that flexible sidewall. I don't know how wide my rims are but they mostly came from jailbar half tons. These ten ply tires come on and off the rims so much easier and are way more pliable than the old 6 ply 6.50 16s I peeled off the old rims. The new radials are considerably lighter in weight than the bias truck tires I removed. And they don't look pinched at all. Wife, dog and I heading to town in 2 minutes for another joy ride.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Ok... thanks guys. I went from 245/75R16 to 235/85R16 on my XXX daily driver and they only came in 10/ply.....but it doesn’t ride hard at all and they wear well. I never air up a tire to the max press on the sidewall (unless the vehicle loaded heavy) anyway...thanks again...enjoy the Holidays.....Mark

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Ran on 35 psi. Still a bit stiff. Gonna do the next run on 30. But.... I gotta say it stays so straight ahead between the ditches, running nice and true. I don't have any way to balance these, but fastest stretch on the 24 mile round trip is 35 mph. The run to the ferry has a stretch of 40 mph road, but we don't do that one very often..

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Gary;
Check out Dyna-beads. Spendy but they work.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Thanks! Looks like a good way to go. Here's a shot of my 'truck' with the 215s mounted up. I like the way they fill up the wheel wells, and with 30 psi they steer a bit harder when stopped, but the ride on my ol' potholed road is improved. Maybe I'll settle on the old tried and true 32 psi.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

When buying used tires always check the D.O.T numbers to make sure they are not too old , I tried to have some mounted and the clerk said the numbers indicate they are 10 years old and can blow out due to internal failure ,mine were new and sat on the shelf for what I thought was a shorter time , just a word of caution.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Thanks Stenny, those 205-16's sound good on the 4-inch rims. Just have to see if I can find some somewhere. The 215's seem a bit more plentiful.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

The width is probably very similar on thje 215s and the 205s. The 215s are an 85 series, and the lower the aspect ratio, the shorter and wider the tire. Right down to those 22" things that are popular now with a tire about about 3" in section. Gag me with a tire spoon.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Yeah, always thought some chromed Conestoga wagon wheels would be just the thing on lowered Cadillac. Yech!

Anyway, I think your used tire idea is a great way to try them out and see how I like them without jumping in head first. Have a bunch of spare rims around, too.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

There's nothing like having a bunch of 5 on 5 1/2 " early ford rims around the place. The newer ones with 'outie' hub cab nubs just look wrong.....

Re: 215 85 16s
 

so i was told 205 is 205 mm wide 85 is 85% of 205mm for sidewall height. so 215 is only 10 mm wider that 3/8 of an inch.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Is that tread width or section width? That's great to get some inside scoop about what that 'aspect ratio' is about.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Yeah, section width and tread width can be two different measurements, and most of these tires I've been researching seem to be lacking detailed measurements.

Overall diameter shows the 215's to be more like a 700-16 in diameter, which might be fine for a truck, or the rear of a hot rod, but seems a bit much for the front on a car. Wouldn't mind some lower revs on the highway with my 3.78 rear end, but looking for something similar to the 650-16 rear, 600-16 front I'm running now. There are always 205/75/16's available for the front, which come in close to the diameter of a 600-16.

Just thinking out loud here. Have to get out the old manual tire changer and shop for some used ones to experiment with.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

it should be tread width ! i know for a fact that a cheap chinese tire compared to a known brand will not be exactly the same. to keep cost down the cheaper ones don,t usely respect the tread width. but over all diameter should be close.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

I would suggest that people should be very careful mounting 8/10 ply tires on vintage wheels, especially wheels that were intended by the manufacture to have 600 x 16 on a 4" rim.
During the '40's/50"s my father was a Ceramic Tile & Marble Contractor. Dad learned the had way that heavy loads with over-size tires was nothing but trouble, the wheel would split right at the bead line, sometimes as much a half the circumference of the wheel which really made a mess of the fender and bed of the truck.
During the late '30's and through the '40's Dad generally had the wheels changed to the artillery style, which was a HD wheel. During the late '50's Dad switched to split rims on his trucks.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Any of these tires are technically too wide for a four-inch rim. That prompted my question as to whether they were being mounted on the early rims or later five or 5 1/2 inch rims.

Sorry if I spoiled the party here - there's always a catch somewhere, it seems.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Didn't spoil my party one bit. Everything about these old rigs is way beyond the safety standards of today. Metal dash with knobs that stick out... Gas tanks at your knees or under the seat, mechanical brakes, no seat belts, high center of gravity..... :( the list goes on. This is not a hobby for the faint of heart. I don't haul weight in my woodie wagon with the 215s... My big antique trucks have new bias ply tires on split rims and I guess we all draw our own lines at some point. Car crashes were absolutely brutal in the 30s, 40s and 50s. My thing is that if I leave this world driving an old, outdated ford is that I'm alone and don't take anyone out with me. I suppose I could take up golf instead but then I'd probably clobber someone with a nine iron that slipped outa my hands, or collapse from exertion on the 17th hole. Still better than the nursing home.... :).

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Yeah GB, my sentiments exactly!

Re: 215 85 16s
 

During the late '60's the buying public went crazy buying RV's, a large percentage of which were pickup trucks with campers.
My wife and I had five kids, I had been raised in a family of outdoors people, tent camping was all I ever knew. On the other hand my wife had never camped in her life, roughing it was to have room service be ten minutes late.
Having five kids and not a lot of spare change I suggested that we take the kids camping, our Olds station wagon could do in a pinch for sleeping quarters for the wife and two youngest girls, me and the two boys could sleep in the tent. Our first venture did not go well.
I then proposed that we buy a camper, since we owned a Tile Contracting business a new pickup could be used by the company, the slid-in camper would be stored at the business when not in use as an RV. Took some doing, but my wife finally agreed to the idea.
I started shopping for a new HD 3/4 ton pickup.. I knew that a good self contained camper would weigh in the 2,000# range, adding seven people and gear would add at least 500 + lbs. Doing the math showed that I needed a truck that had a GVW of at least 9,500 lbs, the average GVW of a '65 3/4 ton was/is 7,400 lb's.
Working with truck salesman I was able to get a 3/4 ton pickup up to 9.500 lbs with HD options. We bought a '65 HD 3/4 ton and an 11' self contained camper, fun times ahead.
Following several trips in the RV over 18 + months I noted that the original tires were not holding to well. Prior to heading out for a long trip to several Western States I took the truck w/camper to my tire dealer, I got the shock of my life, I had a truck that was rated to carry 9,500 lbs, however, the 6 ply tires and 15" wheels were only rated to carry 3,000 lb's per axle, a gross of 6,000 lbs which is the GVW of a basic 1/2 ton pickup. (5,700 lb)
I purchased new Firestone 16" split rims and had the tire dealer install 10 ply radial tires which had a load range of 3,000. lbs per wheel, 12,000. lbs gross.
Not long after I up-graded my wheels and tires I received a recall letter from the manufacture of my truck informing me that if I was using my truck for an RV I should have the vehicle weighed by certified scales and bring the truck into the dealer for a valuation. After I drained the holding/water tanks and removed some gear I was under the 9,500, lb's.
The dealer was surprised that I had put HD wheels and 10 ply tires on the truck. In a few months I received a check from the manufacture of the truck, the amount of the check was in excess of what I had paid for the tires and wheels.
Within a few months the media was full of reports concerning tire and wheel failures on RV's. I had told many of my friends that had RV's that they should check into the weight rating for their tires/wheels. I also sent out a letter to all of my employees informing them of the problem, most choose to ignore my warnings.
Sadly, many people find out the hard way that the pretty chrome wheels and raised letter tires they have bought for their outfit are an accident waiting to happen, an example being Ford Motor/Firestone and the Excursion tire mess that cost a lot of people their lives.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

No offense intended for your valid points, blucar. Don't think anyone here is out to endanger anyone's life.

Just meant that perhaps a slightly oversized tire on an early rim supporting a 2800 pound car is likely safer than the 1966 6-ply Kelly Springfields (one almost bald) that are currently holding my '40 off the garage floor, where it is harming no one.

Used to stand on the passenger side floor with my hands on the dash while riding around in this car when I was five years old and lived to tell about it. Do I recommend this to anyone today? Probably not, but I think this stuff is within the grey area in which people can weigh their own options.

Think we've about covered this topic, and I will fade back into the woodwork.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Hell, on long trips, my little brother used to take a nap in the package tray in dad's Oldsmobile. Talk about a potential projectile. Things have really changed; think about it, when you were a kid, who had ever heard of wearing a helmet riding a bicycle?

Re: 215 85 16s
 

it must be a minnesota thing, being the baby in the family the rear window was my seat also on long trips, 53 olds

Re: 215 85 16s
 

bought a '65 HD 3/4 ton ......several trips in the RV over 18+months......had the tire dealer install 10ply “radial” tires....??????
Radials???......in the late 60’s???......Mark

Re: 215 85 16s
 

That's about when I first learned about radials. They seemed to start as a foreign car thing but in '69 I was working for a rich guy that put radials on his station wagon. More surprising to me was that with all those HD options this truck was on 15s! The only 15" 8 lug wheels I recall were on a '54 GMC I bought in '78. Of course the 15s were 7.00. I immediately switched over to 7.50 x 16s, and later to 7.50 x 17s in my unending quest for tall, narrow tires.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

Radial truck tires were not a common thing in the mid to late '60's. I first noticed them on UPS route vans, UPS generally used split rims with the ring painted silver. I figured that if radials were good enough for UPS, they were good enough for me.
The 10 ply radials I bought were 750 x 16 Michelin's mounted on Firestone 16" split rims. I would run the tires on my RV unit for two years, switch them out to one of the Company trucks, putting a new set on the RV. When the tread got thin we would have the casings recapped, just like UPS did.
I still have a set of 700 x 15 Michelin's on Firestone split rims that came off of my '59 Ford F100 4x. I bought that set of tires and wheels in '68 or '69, they were recapped twice.
When I took the '59 out of the company service, I restored it, down graded the Michelin's/wheels to a utility trailer.

Two years ago I removed the Michelin's from the trailer, installed Ford F150 HD 5 on 5.5 wheels with radial trailer tires.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

This tonner I brought home from Twisp in Eastern Washington about 5 years ago has a set of recapped 7.50x17 michelin radials on the front. Two years ago I bought an unused set of the same tire on craigslist, but not capped and put them on the front of my good driver jailbar tonner. Steers so nice. That's what got me thinking about tall skinny radials for the woodie.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

I think some of the comments to this topic bares out the old adage, "don't confuse me with facts, I already have my mind made up".
When I first looked into Michelin radials for my RV unit I to thought they were to expensive, my mind got changed when I blew a rear tire late one evening on my way to the lake. Fortunately I make it a practice to carry a spare tire that is as good as the weakest tire on the road.. Our weekend excursion was not ruined.
As time went bye I came to the conclusion that the safety of my employees was just as important as my family, I switched all of my trucks to radial tires, including the large three axle units. The net result was that I cut our tire problems down to almost zero.

Re: 215 85 16s
 

I worked at a garage on the Maine Turnpike from ‘74 - ‘82. When a car came in with radials in the late ‘70’s it was a big deal!...everybody that changed tires came out of the garage area to look at them. We didn’t have any sizes to replace one if a car lost one. Big truck sizes were limited to 10.00x20 bias ply. Of course when auto manufacturers started putting them on new cars, availability increased then. The reason I asked was because, I never saw radials regularly until the early ‘80’s.....Mark

Re: 215 85 16s
 

I used those tires on my '54 Ford Panel truck with later 50's outside bump 5" wheels, worked great. I also put them on my '56 Chevy Panel truck with 4.5" wheels, they were crowned and wondered when driving (also started to wear in the center. I used 80's Ford 3/4 ton truck wheels, cut the centers out and welded the Chevy centers in the Ford hoop. Turned them into 16"x6" and now everything is great with the 215/85LT16 tires.