BFGoodrich Tires - Not what they once were?

[troopertrek]

Just had a set of 37x12.50R17 KO2’s installed (5) on my stock Rubicon wheels. The best of the 5 required 3.5 oz to balance… the worst, 13.5 oz. Those were the two extremes. I believe the other three were like 8, 12 & 12 oz. These weights seemed excessive to me, but full disclosure - this is my first set of 37’s. Production dates on all the tires were mid 2022.

These tires replaced a set of 315/70R17 Toyo R/Ts. I want to say the worst of that set took around 7-8 oz. These were installed at a reputable tire shop; the guys working on it seemed to think this was a move in the wrong direction (quality wise) as they claim that BFG quality has really fallen off in the past 5-6 years.

Just wondering what others experiences may have been with these or other 37’s.

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[bleda2002]

Bfgs are well known for horrible balance.

 

[Deleted member 57233]

The lil 215/65r16 K02s on my VW always have shit balance and pulse at freeway speeds regularly.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

The taller, wider, heavier a tire is, the more difficult it is to balance it, and keep in mind, 2 ounces of imbalance at the outer portion of the tire means more weight in the wheel to balance it.
I'm not saying they are great, or their balance quality is even good, just that physics sort of get in the way on these things. You are putting weight out at roughly 8.5" to balance something sitting out 18" from center.

 

[troopertrek]

Helpful. I suppose I never thought of it that way. Again, first time on tires this tall. To my surprise they rode just fine. No vibrations up to around 70 which is the highest speed I could obtain between the shop and home on the roads traveled. In my past experience it seems like balance issues I’ve had show up in the 60-70mph range and tend to fade away 10mph above or below that speed.

 

[bd100]

Could be the wheel, too. And I don't know how many folks try remounting the tire at a new place on the rim if the first try was not so good.

 

[Lunentucker]

More traction in deep snow and mud!

 

[Shopshirt]

More traction in deep snow and mud!

Dayummmmmm! ?

 

[bleda2002]

More traction in deep snow and mud!

Pff, 1/4 ouncers only. My best km3 was 8.5 oz, my worst was 23.5 ounces, and the other 2 were around 20 a piece lol.

 

[troopertrek]

Pff, 1/4 ouncers only. My best km3 was 8.5 oz, my worst was 23.5 ounces, and the other 2 were around 20 a piece lol.

Well, I feel somewhat better now. That’s a lot of weight.

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

Pff, 1/4 ouncers only. My best km3 was 8.5 oz, my worst was 23.5 ounces, and the other 2 were around 20 a piece lol.

I hope the tire guy knew to try spinning the tire on the wheel before stacking weights. If so, those tires should have went back as defective.

 

[loganjeeps]

The weight amounts OP listed I agree aren't a big concern if they end up riding properly at all speeds.

That said, I do think BFG quality has declined. I ran KOs and KO2s on so many rigs I'm losing track. Before the JT I was in a WK2 running KO2s on stock 265/60 R18. I went to replace the almost bald 5 year old KO2s that were otherwise riding fine and went through 2 sets that they could never get rid of the vibrations. I switched to Mickey Thompsons when I got the JT and may never go back to BFG now.

 

[bd100]

Aside from construction and balance, I had 2nd generation BFG KO which got slippery when down to half tread. Maybe the newer ones have a better compound.

 

[Jteakus]

Tire could (should?) be broken down, turned a half round on the rim, reinflated and balanced again. Most tire shops don't take the extra steps anymore though. As others have stated it is common to have more weights when the tire diameter grows.

 

[troopertrek]

Tire could (should?) be broken down, turned a half round on the rim, reinflated and balanced again. Most tire shops don't take the extra steps anymore though. As others have stated it is common to have more weights when the tire diameter grows.

This was was tried on two of the five with negligible results.

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