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Beadlocks

jlroman2

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Does anyone use their Jeep as a daily driver and runs beadlocks? Any problems? Should I stay away from even thinking of doing this?
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tonygiotta

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Yes, no, and no. I'm sure you're aware of the pros and cons of beadlocks. You just need to decide if it is worth it to you. They're typically heavy, hard to balance, may or may not technically be road legal, and most tire shops won't work on them for you. Are you willing to deal with the extra rotational weight? Possible road vibrations? Fix-it ticketing (if that occurs in your area)? Properly maintaining them (that's a lot of bolts to check torque on)? I'm perfectly happy dealing with mine, just be aware it's another (unnecessary) maintenance item you'd be adding to your Jeep...
 

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Does anyone use their Jeep as a daily driver and runs beadlocks? Any problems? Should I stay away from even thinking of doing this?
Been on them over a year, to me it’s worth the trouble. I haven't had any problems that Tony listed. It did take me some time to get them dialed in. Had to re-mount one ( turn it to get road force number in spec when balancing ). But be prepared to deal with at least some if not all of the things listed by @tonygiotta .
 

wibornz

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Just to look cool, probably not. If you plan to wheel a lot with your DD. Then yes. Being able to safely air way down makes many wheeling situations better.

Just know they are expensive on top of all the other things already listed. You will most likely want to be able to at least mount your own tires as most shops will not do that. If you find one that will, do not be surprised if they charge you $100 to $200 per tire to do so. It commonly takes an hour or so to mount and balance each tire. The shop usually charges shop rate that is north of $100 at the average shop.
 

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I've run them daily on Fat Ninja (@mgroeger) and Honey Badger. No issues at all. They're an additional maintenance item to keep up with, but absolutely worth it for their off-road capabilities.

I know Mike has been running them on Mud Muffin, as well, for quite some time.

You can easily put them together in your own garage, as well, then take them to get balanced.

Jeep Wrangler JL Beadlocks qqqq


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WontonJLUR

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Roughly 33k miles over 2 years on beadlocks. No problems at all. They're slightly more problematic if you can't get a tire to balance and need to get it road force balanced, since it's more complex to rotate the tire on the wheel.

As far as livability, I don't even remember that I have them until it comes time to go wheeling and I get to air down to single digits. I checked the torque on the bolts after about 500 miles after bolting the rings down, but admittedly I'm lazy and forget to continue checking. No problems with any of the bolts backing out, I've had the rings removed several times to paint them or swap to a different set of tires.
 
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jlroman2

jlroman2

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Thanks everybody. I am aware of the risks but haven’t really come across somebody that would say to completely stay away from them due to a bad experience. I do want to get them to be able to get single digit PSI but also because, of course, they look hella good. Although it is my daily driver, I wouldn’t say I drive a lot. The only concern is that I do mostly city driving. Only visit the parks like 2 times per month. So I keep asking myself, is it really worth it? Yet again, these are my second set of wheels so was considering jumping on to the next level.

I was really considering the Dirty Life Dual Teks to get the best of both worlds but I keep getting mixed reviews on them. Also, the set that I wanted are on back order.

So this is where the thought of true beadlocks came into play. And now I’m juggling between KMCs or the Method 106s. Or to simply go with a light aluminum wheel. Btw I have 39” KM3s coming on the way
 

WontonJLUR

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Thanks everybody. I am aware of the risks but haven’t really come across somebody that would say to completely stay away from them due to a bad experience. I do want to get them to be able to get single digit PSI but also because, of course, they look hella good. Although it is my daily driver, I wouldn’t say I drive a lot. The only concern is that I do mostly city driving. Only visit the parks like 2 times per month. So I keep asking myself, is it really worth it? Yet again, these are my second set of wheels so was considering jumping on to the next level.

I was really considering the Dirty Life Dual Teks to get the best of both worlds but I keep getting mixed reviews on them. Also, the set that I wanted are on back order.

So this is where the thought of true beadlocks came into play. And now I’m juggling between KMCs or the Method 106s. Or to simply go with a light aluminum wheel. Btw I have 39” KM3s coming on the way
You'll be on a very similar setup to me. 3.5" Gamechanger with 39" KM3s. Awesome combo.
 

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So I keep asking myself, is it really worth it?
They are kinda like a winch. How often do you use a winch? But that one time... you're glad you had it.

If you don't have beadlocks it is always a great idea to have ways to reseat the bead should you lose one at lower air pressures.
 

Unix_Gawd

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Thanks everybody. I am aware of the risks but haven’t really come across somebody that would say to completely stay away from them due to a bad experience. I do want to get them to be able to get single digit PSI but also because, of course, they look hella good. Although it is my daily driver, I wouldn’t say I drive a lot. The only concern is that I do mostly city driving. Only visit the parks like 2 times per month. So I keep asking myself, is it really worth it? Yet again, these are my second set of wheels so was considering jumping on to the next level.

I was really considering the Dirty Life Dual Teks to get the best of both worlds but I keep getting mixed reviews on them. Also, the set that I wanted are on back order.

So this is where the thought of true beadlocks came into play. And now I’m juggling between KMCs or the Method 106s. Or to simply go with a light aluminum wheel. Btw I have 39” KM3s coming on the way
I am running Cooper STT Pro 40x13.5R17 on Fuel Zephyr bead locks and haven't had any issues. I'm not sure where you guys get your wheels mounted/balanced but I haven't been charged anything outrageous.
 
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jlroman2

jlroman2

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I am running Cooper STT Pro 40x13.5R17 on Fuel Zephyr bead locks and haven't had any issues. I'm not sure where you guys get your wheels mounted/balanced but I haven't been charged anything outrageous.
Yeah I have a shop that will do it almost free but they’re not that experienced with beadlocks. I also have an off road shop that quoted me at $60 per beadlock/tire
 

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My 2 cents- I’m going for the Method 704 bead grip wheels. Not delivered and not tested yet but with my JLUR diesel I am weight conscious and believe I can get down to “the sweet spot in PSI” without the maintenance of beadlocks. All that being said- beadlocks look cool; can air down to near zero PSI are heavy, and are the way to go if in the world of rock crawling. Good luck-
 

Some Random Guy

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I’m planning to use balancing beads so I don’t have to take them to a shop. I’m also leaning to Hutchinson Rock Monsters since they’re DOT approved. Bonus points for dual beadlock. My work means I deal with a lot of federal facilities and you never know what a smart/bored gate guard is going to notice. That’s the main reason for the attention to DOT approval.
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