Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

Looking at putting tires on my f100 and would like to have some opinions on what other folks are running and any issues. My problem with my truck is I only drive it less then 100 miles a month thus the tires develop dry rot with a ton of tread left on them. So, I don’t need a 60,000 mile tire. Not sure about radial vs non radial.

Re: Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

Radials will pretty much make it feel like a new truck. If you go that route you'll need to give it a bit more toe in. If you're just looking for a cheap set Wally World is you're friend.

Re: Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

^^What Dobie said ^^, you might want to check out PepBoys also .

Re: Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

I've got a small-ish 4x4 that gets driven less than 2000 miles a year. Same dry-rot / cracking problem except I use, and like the look of, a fairly pricey mud & snow rated tire (oem size).
Last time I checked they were about $200 each, plus installation, plus taxes, etc. :(

The last set I bought were take-offs from a fellow on craigslist who was doing an upgrade to bigger tires on his brand new truck. About half the price of new from a shop.
Wally World installed them for me with lifetime balance & rotation at a nice price.

Some tire shops sell good used tires they take off of customer's vehicles. Just check the Mfr date to make sure they aren't getting too old. (8 to 10 yrs max)
In a previous life I did some local off-road racing and to avoid wasting $$ and new tires for what might only be a limited time (large rocks, etc.) I shopped from the used tire rack for that vehicle.

https://www.tirebuyer.com/education/...-of-your-tires

Re: Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

Thanks for the replys, probably will go with a low priced radials. I rarely drive over 55, just putt around town.

Re: Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

When I rebuilt my 54 and had it painted in 1999 I put radials on it. It rode real nice and took bumps nice but because so much rubber was on the pavement it was very hard to steer at slow speeds. Backing up and turning was very difficult. Parking was very hard. After 12 years of this I put new bias plies on. They look great and steering is a breeze. I can now back up and turn with one hand while looking out the back window. The new bias ply are better than they were years ago. I have no flat spots.

Re: Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

If you inflate radials to the maximum pressure or up to 10% above that figure it will reduce slow speed steering effort and improve gas mileage somewhat. I run the radials on my manual steering Merc at 42PSI. It steers easily at low speeds and the tires wear evenly.

Re: Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

Allowing for driving habits and a slight front to rear pressure difference for; vehicle weight, fwd, rwd, etc. I like filling radial tires to the max rated pressure or something just under it, as long as the wear pattern is even.
Had an OT car with tires rated at 44 psi max. Anything less and the inside & outside edges wore off from being under-inflated.
My current daily driver (different mfr) also has 44 psi max rated tires but only needs about 10% more psi in the tires than the owners book suggestion of 35.

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Re: Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

I've noticed a few comments about over-inflating tires and wish to offer this:
In 1973, I bought a brand new set of G78-15 tires (which at that time were the modern replacement for the factory original 670-710X15 tires). The G78-15 tires are wider than the original tires causing the car to be harder to steer, so I inflated the two front tires to the maximum recommended pressure indicated on the side of the tires. Two days later, I came back from a trip on the highway which heated up the tires and expanded the air in the tires. I Parked, got out, and just as I walked in the house I heard a LOUD explosion behind me. One of the front tires blew to smitherines (inflated to the exact recommended pressure). G78-15 are bias ply tires, but much narrower than radials. I would think that the expansion due to heat would be worse for radials since they hold more air volume.
Ever since that happened, I have never inflated a tire up to the maximum recommended pressure.

Re: Stock 56 f100, new tires
 

Inflating past the max listed on the sidewall isn't something I'd suggest. Many years ago I had a co-worker who tried to get some of the sidewall bulge out of a set of radials on one of our work trucks. They were actively in the process of splitting open, luckily while it was parked.

I'd like to think that tires are better made now than back in the 70's but I wouldn't bet on that either. The 3 yr old tires on my DD have more checks & cracking than the 24 yr old tires on my '55. Which ones should I trust more???

Caution and awareness are the rule of the day.

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