Let's talk beadlocks

Post by **Steinberg** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 12:50 am

The more I look around, the more I confuse myself.

I would like to:
-Not worry about denting the lip of the rim, or bending the whole wheel
-Achieve good wheel balance for highway driving
-Keep the weight down

Inflatable, internal beadlocks:
Stauns: $155/ea
Inner Air Lock: $125/ea
They claim to not affect wheel balance, and get the job done. I can use them with an aluminum wheel to keep the weight down, but then I worry about breaking or bending the lip still. DOT legal.

Re-centered H1 wheels:
$200/ea
I wonder how precise the re-centering process is, with regard to ending up with a true, balanced wheel. DOT legal (I guess?). Could add rock rings, but they're probably already pretty heavy.

Forged aluminum beadlocks:
$200/ea Here
Not DOT legal, but could maybe be passed off as fake beadlocks. Lightweight, forged- so they should be pretty strong. I am cautious about these just cause they're on eBay. Anybody know anything more about this kind of wheel?

Post by **BlueDodgeRam** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 1:03 am

how about DIY locks with your current steel wheels? I think you can get the outer rings up to 3/8". More work, but cheaper i guess.

Im not a fan of the Stauns really, i would think that if you cut a tire, its possible to cut the inner "tube" as well.

Post by **Steinberg** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 1:27 am

I'm not interested in DIY locks, for a few reasons: lots of weight, might really throw the balance off, harder to sneak past DOT, and frankly I don't want to spend the time prepping the old wheels, welding, and re-painting.

YouTube · Post by **TerryD** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 5:34 am

I like the idea of the Staun/Inner Air Lock type. You keep weight down, DOT is none the wiser, very little chance of cutting one down due to its position inside the wheel, doesn't affect balance much (it does affect it, but it's due to having to drill a hole on the light side of the rim to put in the other stem), and is a double bead lock instead of just a single outer bead lock.

Post by **Arya Ebrahimi** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 6:53 am

Please explain to me WHERE you are seeing that beadlocks are illegal? This has been an ongoing internet debate for years and nobody that I know of has yet to provide a legitimate source saying that beadlocks are illegal for road use.

With that said, I'd go forged aluminum. Either Allieds, Trail-readys or Racelines. Stronger, lighter, better looking.

Post by **shmoken875** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 9:18 am

Arya Ebrahimi wrote:Please explain to me WHERE you are seeing that beadlocks are illegal? This has been an ongoing internet debate for years and nobody that I know of has yet to provide a legitimate source saying that beadlocks are illegal for road use.

With that said, I'd go forged aluminum. Either Allieds, Trail-readys or Racelines. Stronger, lighter, better looking.

I've done a lot of reading on this. From what I've read DOT, at least as far as beadlocks go, does not determine "legality". They just certify that they are ok and safe to use for whatever application. Companies whose rims have not been tested (they aren't always tested to be approved anyways) or don't meet DOT regs are not DOT approved so the company says "for off road use only" or something to that like to protect themselves.

EDIT: this is where I got my info, always cite your sources kids! http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.p ... gal&page=3

Post by **willhf1011** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 7:44 pm

i'm running recnetered h1's, i love them, but i'm not on the road. they are heavy for sure, combined with a heavy tire it makes for a pita when you need to take it off on the trail in an inconvenient spot. i've run with guys with stauns and they seem to work well and they are doubles, but they just seem so expensive when you can almost buy an aluminum one for that. if i were you i'd definitely either go aluminums (kmc's are where i'm headed when i move to 17's) or DIY's. i know you said you weren't into them but if youre on a budget theyre awesome, and honestly not that hard to do.

also i really dont think you will have any trouble from police with them. there are so many trucks running street locks and most cops dont truly know what they are looking at anyway, nor do they even know what a beadlock is half the time

Post by **hklvette** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 10:12 pm

TerryD wrote:I like the idea of the Staun/Inner Air Lock type. You keep weight down, DOT is none the wiser, very little chance of cutting one down due to its position inside the wheel, doesn't affect balance much (it does affect it, but it's due to having to drill a hole on the light side of the rim to put in the other stem), and is a double bead lock instead of just a single outer bead lock.

Also, unlike any other rim beadlock (with the possible exception of HMMWV wheels with the mag. ring), even if the tire is 100% flat the wheel will still not contact the ground because of the space used by the tube.

Website · Post by **tsmall07** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 11:21 pm

Remember, I have H1 wheels for sale for $200/4 and (as far as I know) they still have the magnesium runflats inside.