What To Buy ??

[kenmac]

After Our snow/ice storm. For xtra traction, I need to get some chains or cables for the rear tires on my truck. Never bought any and have no idea which is the best for traction / ride.. So,,,,, you guys north of me that get a lot of snow / ice,,, Which is the best snow chains or cables ??

 

[motownbrowne]

I'd buy better tires or put a thousand pounds in the bed. My 2wd open diff f250 is Terrible empty, but hardly slips full of firewood. I run bf Goodrich at tires. Chains are awful at any sort of speed.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Get tires. I have used chains and studs but a set of Snow Tires is they best money spent.

Chris

 

[kenmac]

Due to the little snow/ ice that we get ( every few yrs) The tires would dry rot B-4 I wore them out. I don't want to run snow tires yr round. No more snow / ice that we get,,,Chains / cables would last forever and be a less expensive option for occasional use. Don't know if snow tires would even help. I snow is very wet and quickly turns to ice

 

[motownbrowne]

Well, I don't think you'll get any brand recommendations from us guys up here. I've never seen a set of chains on a car or truck in these parts. They are definitely illegal. I've seen them out west, where you have to have them in the car to cross the mountain passes. Again, you really can't go above 20-25 mph. How much weight do you have in the bed? Sand bags are cheaper than chains.

 

[lostcause]

chains aren't used for commuting. the only ones in use here are for plow/yard trucks. better tires and weight are the only answer. as was said, you can't maintain speed and control with them, and they're most likely illegal where you live. myself and a lot of people i know do run specific tires for the winter months, but the bulk of the people here run the same all season tire year round. it may not be as good, but if you don't want to buy different tires then you don't have much choice.

 

[Ford850]

I'd buy better tires or put a thousand pounds in the bed. My 2wd open diff f250 is Terrible empty, but hardly slips full of firewood. I run bf Goodrich at tires. Chains are awful at any sort of speed.

There's your answer. Weight and tires for the win. You don't have to get dedicated snow tires for occasional use, just get a tire with better ice/snow ratings and run year round. The weight in the bed makes any tire perform better. Also, don't inflate the tires to max for ice/snow. Keep them on the low end of your normal range and you'll have more bite.

 

[Topkicker]

BFG A/T's have been my year round "go to" tire for all my previous light duty trucks. Ran them on everything from F-250's to 1500 Silverado's. They clean out well in snow and mud and are quiet on the road. Pulled a 34ft. 5th wheel about every other weekend in the warm months w my wife's F-250 when we lived in GA and still got 50k out of em with tread left. Wear was even on all 5 sets I have owned. The side walls are stiff enough to air down for extra traction in snow also. When the Bridgstone A/T's wear out on the new Suburban, they will be replaced w BFG A/T's. Edit: Just remembered they come factory on the Ford Raptor. My 03 GMC High Rider ZR-2 came w them also. http://www.bfgoodrichtires.com/tire-selector/category/off-road-tires/all-terrain-t-a-ko/tire-details

 

[Topkicker]

If you get in a stuck situation, MaxTrax's are amazing. Saw a fellow Jeeper use them after packing his treads w red clay.
https://www.maxtrax.com.au/

 

[kenmac]

I currently have Toyo open country tires. I lowered my tire pressure to 40 PSI. I still slid around some. Kept it in 4WD the entire time I was out driving. I just thought I may do a little better with chains or the cables that go on tires. I have an old septic tank top that I may drill a hole in, add a chain so , when the next snow/ice storm comes, I can use the tractor and load this chunk of concrete in the bed . Thanks for the suggestions. We don't get that much snow/ice down here and wanted to know what the experts that drive in this stuff use Again ,,,thanks

 

[Topkicker]

Here's another chain option. A lot of emergency vehicles use this chain set up. Traction at the touch of a button. I almost had these installed on my 2wd C-4500 when I moved from TX to MO. The road to my cabin was up a very steep grade and the truck was worthless on the snowy hill w no load and 2wd. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IPd3O5...uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DIPd3O5_SJEs%26autoplay%3D1

 

[motownbrowne]

Wow, those are sweet. I've never seen anything like that. I suppose they get a nice price for an idea that good.

 

[CurlyDave]

I currently have Toyo open country tires. I lowered my tire pressure to 40 PSI. I still slid around some. Kept it in 4WD the entire time I was out driving. I just thought I may do a little better with chains or the cables that go on tires. I have an old septic tank top that I may drill a hole in, add a chain so , when the next snow/ice storm comes, I can use the tractor and load this chunk of concrete in the bed . Thanks for the suggestions. We don't get that much snow/ice down here and wanted to know what the experts that drive in this stuff use Again ,,,thanks

Chain that chunk of concrete very well. If you ever hit anything it will want to come into the truck with you.

I have often thought about casting a custom weight from the leftovers on my next concrete project. A little rebar, and protruding bolts cast in in the same pattern as the pre-drilled holes in your bed for mounting a fifth wheel for a trailer. Lift it in with the FEL or hoe. Cast a lifting eye into the top side...

 

[kenmac]

Here's another chain option. A lot of emergency vehicles use this chain set up. Traction at the touch of a button. I almost had these installed on my 2wd C-4500 when I moved from TX to MO. The road to my cabin was up a very steep grade and the truck was worthless on the snowy hill w no load and 2wd. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IPd3O5...uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DIPd3O5_SJEs%26autoplay%3D1 View attachment 358084

I knew about those. I haven't checked into the cost. ALL the Fire Engines /Rescue trucks in my area run these Looks like about 2 K for these. I just don't get enough snow to justify the cost. If I lived place that got a lot of snow. I would jump on them

 

[kevinwak]

I currently have Toyo open country tires. I lowered my tire pressure to 40 PSI. I still slid around some. Kept it in 4WD the entire time I was out driving. I just thought I may do a little better with chains or the cables that go on tires. I have an old septic tank top that I may drill a hole in, add a chain so , when the next snow/ice storm comes, I can use the tractor and load this chunk of concrete in the bed . Thanks for the suggestions. We don't get that much snow/ice down here and wanted to know what the experts that drive in this stuff use Again ,,,thanks

40 psi is to much for snow and ice. It would be like riding around in skates. Next time try 30 psi and a bunch of weight. Around here we like to use about 3-4 of the 18"X24" concrete sidewalk blocks. Just lay them in the truck bed and they still leave you with a nice open flat floor.

 

[Topkicker]

I knew about those. I haven't checked into the cost. ALL the Fire Engines /Rescue trucks in my area run these Looks like about 2 K for these. I just don't get enough snow to justify the cost. If I lived place that got a lot of snow. I would jump on them

Totally understand.

 

[kenmac]

40 psi is to much for snow and ice. It would be like riding around in skates. Next time try 30 psi

The truck is heavy. I lowered from 80 PSI to 40. I didn't go any lower because, I didn't want the bead to break away from the rim when making a turn

 

[jel1988]

Tires are the answer! Where I live winter can start in Oct and last into May. I hate winter and now spend it in South Carolina. This year we drove through 2 major snow storms to get here and may not have made it without the snow tires. I run Bridgestone Blizzacks LTs on my F150, no extra weight is required. On some of my other trucks I run them year round. They last about 4 years on my construction van and pickup. Chains suck and are hard on the drivetrain and body if they aren't on right! Buy a good set of tires!