Lets talk about beadlock wheels

[WILDHOBO]

The set I have incoming are 29lbs plus ~ 4 ish for the rings in a 17x9
If I remember correctly thats what my methods weighed in 8.5 width but they were also cast and the new ones are forged. Definitely not budget friendly though

That’s amazing. I’ve never seen ones that light. Can’t wait to see pictures.

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[mx5red]

The set I have incoming are 29lbs plus ~ 4 ish for the rings in a 17x9
If I remember correctly thats what my methods weighed in 8.5 width but they were also cast and the new ones are forged. Definitely not budget friendly though

Brand/model?

 

[TheSolarWizard]

Brand/model?

battleborn they are all within a lb or two of that

 

[TheSolarWizard]

That’s amazing. I’ve never seen ones that light. Can’t wait to see pictures.

 

[TheSolarWizard]

I don't know about KMC beadlocks other than they look good. I do think the downsides are generally overstated having run beadlocks (AEV) for several years. Mine balanced far better than the stock rims and tires with 1/4 of the weight. Installation was involved but not difficult. I did it myself. I've never had more than maybe 3 or 4 bolts lose any torque in total in all the years I've had them, but only maybe 1/4 turn at most. I got lazy and stopped checking for months at a time, through seasons, temp changes, etc and deflating and reinflating the spare and all have been ok. Make a template for tightening the bolts out of cardboard. I can check the torque of all 4 wheels in about 5 minutes. Check with KMC, but I know AEV recommends replacing the bolts once a year. I have yet to do that. Sounds like a good winter weekend project.

Id love to see the template!

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

Id love to see the template!

I keep it folded up with my tools under the rear seat in my @813 Fabrication & Design basket.

 

[TheSolarWizard]

I keep it folded up with my tools under the rear seat in my @813 Fabrication & Design basket.

Do you generally like the color on those wheels? Been thinking about using something similar for some parts on mine but ive also never seen that wheel in person

 

[Dr Feelgood 5150]

I have the KMC Tank 17” Beadlocks. My rig rolls on 40s, is my daily driver on winding mountain roads, and gets driven hard. Jumping railroad tracks, off roading, mud, rocks, towing my 4,700lb 26ft Winnebago camper, and long distance trips across country.
Before the KMCs, I used AEV Borahs with beadlock rings and wheel spacers. Now, those wheels are on my wife’s Wrangler with 37s.

-Don’t use antisieze. KMC actually states that and I can say from experience it will cause a problem.-

Torque specs are important as is the pattern to tighten the bolts.
Don’t double-tap the torque wrench to allow extra movement once the torque is reached. That over-stretches the bolts and that’s how they break or strip.
You don’t have to check them all the time. Do you check all of your bolts on your vehicle all the time? After the initial mounting on my trucks, I check them after a little drive to be certain. After that, I don’t check torque again until there’s work to be done on them.
I check bolts for damage and visually inspect the fit and always remain aware of any pressure loss but not much else.
KMCs are well-made.
I use good quality tires that fit well and balance well.
I use beads inside for fine balancing but usually it only takes 0 to 2 ounces.
I run mine at 28-30 psi cold.
(Red are KMC and Gray are AEV)

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

Do you generally like the color on those wheels? Been thinking about using something similar for some parts on mine but ive also never seen that wheel in person

I love them. I originally wanted the machined versions but 5 of those were impossible to find and I’d still like them in bronze with the red Jeep. AEV doesn’t make it easy. Their site shows a matte black version that doesn’t exist. They used to show multiple colors but only some versions were available. They show pictures of their test vehicles with bronze versions but I don’t think they’ve ever had those. These “Onyx” ones are to my knowledge the only color still available unless you find someone’s old stock. But be careful because stores will attempt to pass off the JK versions which have a different offset. Pictures also don’t do them justice. They’re dark metallic grey with a glossy finish. They’re brighter than they often appear in pictures but definitely not silver. They’re painted but I’ve never had issues with AEV chipping. They’re really high quality. These are the 3rd set of AEV wheels I’ve had; Pintlers on my TJ and JK and then these Borahs. Of course the yellow center caps are extra . They come with color matched ones. You can get silver beadlock or “protection” rings if you want the contrast. Mine match the rim. They’re hub centric which makes them really easy to get on with 37s and they required less then half the weight to balance than the stock wheels and Falkon Wildpeak tires.

some more pics in different lighting…

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

There are a lot of people saying things that are wrong.
Don’t use antisieze. KMC actually states that and I can say from experience it will cause a problem.

Folks should follow the manufacturers recommendations. KMC says “no anti seize”, so don’t use it on their wheels. AEV says “apply anti seize, so use it on their wheels. I used it and I’ve never lost torque. I’ve had to remove the ring and break the outer bead to replace valve stems and had zero issues doing that. The bolts came right out, went back in and have held their torque.

Torque specs are important as is the pattern to tighten the bolts.
Don’t double-tap the torque wrench to allow extra movement once the torque is reached. That over-stretches the bolts and that’s how they break or strip.
You don’t have to check them all the time. Do you check all of your bolts on your vehicle all the time? After the initial mounting on my trucks, I check them after a little drive to be certain. After that, I don’t check torque again until there’s work to be done on them.
I check bolts for damage and visually inspect the fit and always remain aware of any pressure loss but not much else.

This. I was checking the torque on mine every few weeks because I was paranoid, probably from all the people (who don’t run them or who install them incorrectly) claiming beadlocks are dangerous. I never even saw a drop in torque the first time I checked them. I agree, if they’re torqued correctly following the tightening pattern, they probably won’t loosen up. I check mine when rotate tires or after a trip where I’ve aired down or after off roading when I check all the other bolts.

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

I can’t stress enough how important final torque, tightening pattern and how you bring them up to torque, is. If you’ve ever built or trued a spoked bicycle wheel the bolts work similarly to the spokes. Tightening a bolt, like tightening a spoke nipple affects both its immediate neighbors and the bolts on the opposite side of the ring. If you just go around the ring you’ll make a mess. You can actually watch the ring deflect slightly as you increase the tension on each bolt. This is a finesse job. You also don’t just follow the pattern and bring each bolt up to it specified torque in one go round. You want to minimize the delta between any two bolts. So you bring them all up in stages. I did more stages than AEVs instructions recommend, probably 5 or more. This doesn’t really take more time. You’re going to have to turn each bolt a certain amount anyway to get up to torque.

In 3 years out of 120 bolts, maybe 4 have lost less than 1/4 turn of torque even with repeated air downs, and the spare being completely deflated and reinflated. Once they were torqued, checking them takes almost no time because the torque wrench immediately clicks on each bolt. Other then replacing bolts based on the manufacturer’s recommendations which I’ve admittedly been slack on, and an occasional torque check, people claiming they’re high maintenance are talking out of their asses. I haven’t found balance to be an issue either.

 

[Rusty PW]

battleborn they are all within a lb or two of that

Just looked at the website. Nice rims. Pricy.

 

[Blade1668]

legal as in not going to pass inspection, I doubt a LE would know the difference between simulated beadlock and beadlock...has anyone on here got pulled over for them or gotten a ticket?

rock monster makes legal beadlocks DOT compliant, the worry is your going to break the ring on the street and have shrapnel flying out at cars next to you or sudden deflation while traveling at high speed

while inflated for the street they are under a lot of pressure

As a former L.E.O most of us didn't give a s### about that. Other than liking them. Along with the lift laws my XJ wasn't within the codes when I lived in GA and I never had any problems even before I was in L.E. More likely if you are driving like a jackass or Carolina squat where you can't see in front of the damn thing you will get someone's attention.
The coming apart is/ was the concern with beadlocks, same problem with certain split rims too. Split rims are not as common now, a lot of the beadlock problem started with many home built ones years ago. So now it's in traffic codes.

That's some fine rims there, I'm afraid to look them up. I don't want to give myself a stroke at the price.

 

[Rusty PW]

As a former L.E.O most of us didn't give a s### about that. Other than liking them. Along with the lift laws my XJ wasn't within the codes when I lived in GA and I never had any problems even before I was in L.E. More likely if you are driving like a jackass or Carolina squat where you can't see in front of the damn thing you will get someone's attention.
The coming apart is/ was the concern with beadlocks, same problem with certain split rims too. Split rims are not as common now, a lot of the beadlock problem started with many home built ones years ago. So now it's in traffic codes.


That's some fine rims there, I'm afraid to look them up. I don't want to give myself a stroke at the price.

About $850 a piece.

 

[Blade1668]

About $850 a piece.

Like I said I don't want to have a stroke.

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