Moving from 15" to 16" wheels

I have a 3795 Cyclone (2007) that we bought used. So far it has been a great rig but I continually worry about ST tires and toy with the idea of moving from 15" to 16" so I can open up my options to LT tires as well. Has anyone done this? If so, are there any concerns or issues anyone wants to throw at me? We are parked for the winter but might want to travel south in Feb-Mar to find warmers temps. I'd love to settle my concerns about tires this winter before we make the decision to seek some warmer weather - which for us would be a lot of miles on tires I now have no confidence in. All comments, critiques, admonitions welcome.

Shawn, it shouldn't be a problem. Things to keep in mind. The psi capacity of the new wheels need to be the same or greater than the current wheels. The tire OD should be as close as possible to the OEM unless you have plenty of clearance both above and between the tires.

I helped my bro-in-law do this on his TT this past spring. He had no problems and went to the Bridgestone Duravis Lt tires so he could go up to 80 PSI. I think he made a good move. In fact I still have his 15" aluminum wheels with ST tires on them still here. Going to try to sell them for him. Nice set of 4, anyone interested?

Ray LeTourneau said:

Shawn, it shouldn't be a problem. Things to keep in mind. The psi capacity of the new wheels need to be the same or greater than the current wheels. The tire OD should be as close as possible to the OEM unless you have plenty of clearance both above and between the tires.

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Thanks Ray. I don't have much clearance on the triple so when I size up on the wheel I'll have to take most of that inch off the sidewall. And I'll be looking for wheels rated to at least 100 psi to make they can handle the pressures. Thanks for the reply.

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Gizzy said:

I helped my bro-in-law do this on his TT this past spring. He had no problems and went to the Bridgestone Duravis Lt tires so he could go up to 80 PSI. I think he made a good move. In fact I still have his 15" aluminum wheels with ST tires on them still here. Going to try to sell them for him. Nice set of 4, anyone interested?

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Thanks Gizzy good news for my plan. Good luck with the sale.

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Shawn, keep this in mind. Any measurement you make going from 15" to 16" is only half of that. The off set in the wheel can make the tire go in or out from the outside of the wheel openning. The issue you might have is....how many lug bolts do you have. You might have to change the brake drums to do this swap. Some 16" wheels are 6 lug, some are 8 lug. No matter what you do...use a LT tire.

Bob&Patty said:

Shawn, keep this in mind. Any measurement you make going from 15" to 16" is only half of that. The off set in the wheel can make the tire go in or out from the outside of the wheel openning. The issue you might have is....how many lug bolts do you have. You might have to change the brake drums to do this swap. Some 16" wheels are 6 lug, some are 8 lug. No matter what you do...use a LT tire.

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Thanks for the good advice. I haven't started my search yet but the offset and wheel lugs are all part of the analysis. Happy holidays.

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Hoping to reactivate this thread now that we're in the new year. Does anyone have any thoughts on a good source for 16" wheels that would fit my Cyclone. I don't need fancy and would be willing to buy used if I could find a matched set of six (actually 7 so I'll have a matching spare) wheels that would fit my 3795 - lugs and offset, etc. I suppose I can reach out to Heartland or a dealer but thought I'd try folks here first. This is a swap I want to make this spring before we take any trips as I have no confidence in the existing tire and wheel setup after reading all the horror stories here and elsewhere.

http://www.tredittire.com


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Thank you priorguy. I see now that these folks have a spot in the forum. Still finding my way around.

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No problem. Prices seen reasonable and they are heartlands OE supplier. Lifetime wheel warranty from what I've read too.


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sbryan said:

Hoping to reactivate this thread now that we're in the new year. Does anyone have any thoughts on a good source for 16" wheels that would fit my Cyclone. I don't need fancy and would be willing to buy used if I could find a matched set of six (actually 7 so I'll have a matching spare) wheels that would fit my 3795 - lugs and offset, etc. I suppose I can reach out to Heartland or a dealer but thought I'd try folks here first. This is a swap I want to make this spring before we take any trips as I have no confidence in the existing tire and wheel setup after reading all the horror stories here and elsewhere.

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One of those horror stories may have been mine. I pull a 2008 3795 Cyclone and just recently purchased 6 new tires and wheels from trailertiresandwheels.com out of Ohio. I had been very frustrated with blowouts with around 5,000 miles on the original Marathons then Maxxis. Your rig should handle the Goodyear G614 RST LT 235/85R 16. They are G rated and will carry 110 psi. These puppies weigh in around 80-90 pounds per wheel and are very stout. They also carry a stout price tag! My frustrations made me do it. Now, I only have around 3750 miles on these so far so the jury is still out on their longevity but you can SEE and FEEL the difference when you handle them compared to the originals. Of course you'll need new wheels to support these tires in the larger size and rating. If you go to the website mentioned, the last tire and aluminum wheel shown in 6 lug is what I'm now using. Good luck Shawn, you're doing the right thing!

Odie,
Your rig looks just like mine - Cyclone Full Throttle. I've got two BMW R1200GS in the garage ready and waiting for warmer weather. Thanks for the input - good info. I did call Heartland today and they said no issue with moving to a 16" wheel. I also called Tredit tire and wheel and got some encouraging suggestions from them - they also felt I'd have no problem moving to 16". The questions now are ST or LT tires - I'm leaning LT, maybe Michelin or Goodyear. The tires are pricey but the peace of mind with a better tire and wheel is priceless. Especially if we want to take some looooong trips this spring. Thanks again for the enouraging word.

I'm guessing you have 6 lug wheels, however just in case. I just changed out my 16" wheels for 17.5 and have four wheels plus one new 614 and one with about 15000 mile, which would make a good spare. Mine are 8 lug though. Make offer.

Niles said:

I'm guessing you have 6 lug wheels, however just in case. I just changed out my 16" wheels for 17.5 and have four wheels plus one new 614 and one with about 15000 mile, which would make a good spare. Mine are 8 lug though. Make offer.

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Niles,
Thanks for the offer but you’re correct, I have six lug wheels. Good luck with your sale.

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So here we go with more tire questions. My dealer gave me a couple of 16" X 6.5 wheels with 235X80 tire mounted. I can get them to fit OK on the two front axles but the rear axle will not take this tire without rubbing on the fender skirt. Also, the 6.5" wide rim with the 235 X 80 just seems a tad too big for the 2007 3795. It suspect a 16 X 6 with a 235X75 would work. What say you tire experts that have done a swap of tires and wheels? I may end up this summer with new 15" Carlisles just because I can't get the 16 to fit. I'd love to hear some more advice on this - I don't really want to start cutting the fenders on the RV.

Shawn

Are the axels flipped? I am looking at doing the same thing on my Cyclone even though I just put new 10 ply tires on. Mine appears to have enough room for the 235/80/16 ST tires and I am betting they would take the LT235/85/16 as well and the axels were flipped by the previous owners. But from what I can find you would have to go with the 16x6 wheels with the zero offset.

Zedd said:

Shawn

Are the axels flipped? I am looking at doing the same thing on my Cyclone even though I just put new 10 ply tires on. Mine appears to have enough room for the 235/80/16 ST tires and I am betting they would take the LT235/85/16 as well and the axels were flipped by the previous owners. But from what I can find you would have to go with the 16x6 wheels with the zero offset.

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The axles are not flipped Zedd. And I have no issue with the front two axles. It is the rearmost axle that won't fit - the axle almost seems to be a bit off center to the front on the rear so the wider tire rubs on the inside leading edge of the fender. Could I move the exle to the rear? Maybe. I haven't looked at that option yet. But since I don't plan any major trips this summer I'll just replace the 6 year old tires with new Carlisles this year. At $735 from Discount tire it's a lot cheaper than $3,500 for new wheels and tires. That may come in the future but the risk to me today is small since most of our trips this year and probably next will be local camping, within 200-300 miles. Since the rig made it to Florida twice without incident with the previous owner on even less "capable" tires (according to many on this forum) I'm feeling OK about my decision for now. Most of my travel locally will be on secondary roads at pretty low speeds so I'm rating the risk as low.

Just glad to see another 3795 owner on here. As a retiree I can't really justify or afford $80 to $100K for a new rig and it seems there aren't a lot of 3795 owners left (or they're just a real quiet bunch). Thanks for touching base Zedd. Keep in touch as you break in the new to you Cyclone.

Shawn

I think i I am going to do the same. The tires I put on were better than the stock 8 ply and I don't really want to dish out the extra right now. If I am going to do anything it would be upgrading the suspension. And the previous owner towed it from California to Idaho on tires I wasnt comfortable going the forty miles to my house on.

As a non retiree i couldn't afford a new coach even if I could I just like this 3795 too much I can see some upgrades coming suspension, maybe the level up in good time but I am not sure what to do first. How does that Airborne hitch do?

Zedd said:

Shawn
How does that Airborne hitch do?

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The Airborne is worth it's weight in gold. Cushions the shock of the trailer to the truck on rough roads. It's a simple concept but makes a big difference in the smoothness of the rig going down the road.

I like the 3795 design and build quality a lot better than some of the new rigs that cost 100k.

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