Method beadgrip wheels and BFG KO3s, lowest pressure?

[JAsh1967]

So the tire pressure one should run at depends on the terrain and the wheels / tires, running on dirt roads you'd have a higher pressure than if you're rock crawling or cruising sandy trails.

Well, this summer we're probably taking my truck with the wheel / tire combo above to Silver Lake Dunes ORV area, they list on their page for the rules and such, 12-15 psi. Now, from watching some youtube videos talking about beadgrips, it sounds like (and especially on sand) this is going to be a easily and not likely to unseat the bead, pressure.

What I'm curious about, from others with beadgrips that have more experience than I, how low have you gone without a problem? Yes, I know, I should have the gear and such to re-seat a bead, maybe someday, but not right now

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[Silverator]

I don't normally go that low, but I'd be confident you'll have no problems. I've seen videos with the bead grips well below 10PSI and they were fine. The Beadgrips are fantastic - I love em. I think the only "issue" might be if you're throwing the truck sideways at speed in deep sand. Then I could see a debead happening, but I could see it at 20lbs too.

 

[AustyPosty]

Its hard to say what the limit is, but I can say my dad accidentally hit/drove over a small cut log going 10-15mph at I believe 10PSI on the trail and he lost the bead in his bead grip wheels. As long as you have an air compressor (you would have this anyways if you're aired down) you can most likely reseat a bead. In our case we were able to reseat the bead with just an air compressor and the oem tire jack. If not, bring a spare tire.

TLDR, in my opinion, There's no "guaranteed safe" pressure to air down to, there's always a chance, however small, to a lose a tire bead off-road. Always be prepared off-road.

 

[Bandit’s Lair]

Yep. Don’t need a lot to reseat a bead. Ratchet strap, a bottle of water, and an air compressor have worked for me a few times.

 

[slodsm]

I run mine at 10 when I play on the rocks and I have 0 issues. I don’t run BFF’s, I have been using Patagonia’s for about 6-7 years and love em, but I’ve never once had a bead break loose on some pretty gnarly trails.

 

[ZilverFox]

I did silver lake dunes in the oem wheels the first year i bought it and then last year on beadgrips with 35s. About 12psi both times, no problem. Would drive the whole weekend back and forth to town aired down.

 

[Wharton [SCAMMER]]

If you’re going to Silver Lake and they recommend 12–15 psi, that’s a safe starting point. On sand you don’t usually need to go crazy low anyway.
With beadgrips you’ve got more margin than a standard wheel, so 10–12 psi is pretty common without issues. Some people go single digits, but that’s usually crawling, not dunes.
If you don’t have bead reseat gear yet, I’d air down to 12, see how it feels, and only drop lower if you really need it. Sand is way more forgiving than rocks.

 

[Trailbuilt Offroad]

We've dropped to 8-10 without a bead grip wheel for some rock crawling. Like stated above, if you're really getting after it and throwing it sideways, you might run a risk of rolling the tire enough to pop the bead, but that realistically could happen with any wheel at any pressure.

Plus side of the dunes, there's tons of people out there and if you are unable to reseat the bead if it pops, I'm sure you would be able to find someone pretty easily that can help.

 

[Zachanadandy]

I don't normally go that low, but I'd be confident you'll have no problems. I've seen videos with the bead grips well below 10PSI and they were fine. The Beadgrips are fantastic - I love em. I think the only "issue" might be if you're throwing the truck sideways at speed in deep sand. Then I could see a debead happening, but I could see it at 20lbs too.

Short of pitching it sideways into a solid object like a rock at speed(where you risk bending an axle, breaking the wheel, flipping the rig, etc anyway) you'll never lose a bead at 20 psi. I've never lost a bead or seen one come off at 10 psi. Pushing the sidewall hard into a rock when crawling at 10-12psi can cause air burping. That lowers the pressure further. Then when you're well into the single digits you will lose a bead. Running 10 in the sand should be perfect unless it's really hot. The hotter the sand the softer it gets. On a hot day I've gone as low as 7 psi to get good traction. That low without beadlocks I do avoid sharp turn to minimize the risk of pushing the tire off the bead though.

 

[caryt]

I have been down to 4-6psi playing in the snow ..

 

[raypla]

 

[Zachanadandy]

I think he even mentions it in the video, but snow is misleading. Hitting a regular tire and wheel at 4 psi with pillows (similar to the sidewall impacts of snow wheeling) won't push it off the bead either. Whatever pressure I'm comfortable running with any given wheel or tire combo in the rocks can be halved for sand and halved again in snow pretty comfortably. With beadgrips and KO3s that the op is asking about I'd go 9-10psi in the rocks, 4-5psi in the sand, and 2-3 psi in the snow. Of course the OP doesn't sound prepared or willing to deal with reseating a bead on the trail so I'd probably add 2 psi in each scenario.

 

[S JEEPN]

Never had beadgrips or beadlocks 12 is a very safe pressure to try out if you are afraid of loosing the bead. Put it at 12 all around and cruise around in the really soft stuff if it feels not floatie enough go down a few PSI at a time to get a feel for how it works for you. With 33s on stock wheels i run 10 to 12 to start if there is some moisture in the sand. Bone dry ten max unless you plan to drive it like you stole it. I would run 6 to 8 on the sand in my TJ and YJ only once had it get sand in the bead and it was not me that drove it so do not know how hard it was driven.

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