Field tire change on a Hutchinson, yeah or nay?

burquedoka

Adventurer
I'm going to make the leap to a set of Hutchinsons soon, and I would love to hear from folks with experience with them. I'm looking to see if a tire change in the field is actually all that hard or not with a proper set of tire pliers (like these for example http://www.tyrepliers.com.au/New/BB100.html )
I'll buy a fifth wheel if necessary, but can someone who is not traveling around the world get away with only four wheels and a spare tire? The savings in weight and money, and addiction of storage space within the spare tire is quite a lot, and should be considered.
The biggest draw back I can think of is damaging the cast wheel in the field and not having a spare wheel. Obviously that would suck, but it is a very slim chance occurrence, and like I said, this is not an around the world, weeks from help kind of scenario.
How often do we really need to field change our tires? Not that often, and I'd be willing to bet the procedure of changing a tire on a Hutchie, with the right tools, would not be that bad.

This guy has put together a really nice video tutorial on YouTube to reference. http://youtu.be/d5gJUAjqeWo

I am not looking for consult as to why I don't need bead locks, I know perfectly well the pros and cons so let's not turn this into that discussion please.
 

SiliconTi

Stuck in the Mud
Well, I do not have them, but have the same question as you. I assumed that with a real beadlock wheel, you can easily disassemble it, repair the tire and reassemble it. I do not see why not.
 

scottishpinz

Adventurer
The issue with any tyre change is re-inflating. You will need a good compressor or an air tank. I have changed normal rims without any special tyre levers, breaking the bead with a hi-lift jack.
 

Martyn

Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
In agreement here. The Hutchinson beadlock can be disassembled and reassembled with hand tools.

Getting the tire back on the bead takes a quick blast of air. We carry the Extreme Air Products including Tyreplyers, repair kits, and compressors that would assist you in any type of tire work.
 

Mrknowitall

Adventurer
In theory, the Hutchinson wheels will be easier to field dismount/remount, since you unbolt the one side and everything slides apart. IN theory...
...the reality of wrestling about with a big, heavy tire, a big heavy wheel in the heat, in the mud, in the snow, whathaveya, might make it a huge pain in the back to perform a tire change out in the wild. Then there is the transport aspect- a spare tire/wheel easily hangs off the back of a G. If you're carrying just a tire, you need to keep it clean somehow- have you ever tried to get water or sand out of a tire? Not fun.
 
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DiscoDino

Observer
The theory vs. practice argument is very valid here...in fact, I installed all 4 of my Hutchs in person with a friend...well, until we had to take all 4 of them to a professional tire shop to use the press and other tools to best install, align, etc...everything.

A normal rim would be easier to mount in the field in my opinion with the addition of the tire irons or that handy tire install tool...
 

mk216v

Der Chef der Fahrzeuge
In my personal experience...FAT CHANCE!

Hutchinson shows in the literature all the tools req'd to do a field swap, but jeez it's a ton of tools, and some damn big tools.

Here was the issue when mounting my Hutchie WA-1207's using an experienced Hutchie seller/installer and their high end mounting machine; getting the outer trim ring down over the studs took slowly spinning the wheel on their mounter while 1 guy is trying to get the ring to walk/press fit onto the wheel barrel, another guy is operating said machine(this process took about ~10min per wheel). Yes, you'd think that the outer ring would just fit right on over the studs and you could start tightening the nuts, but it's such a tight fit that the ring won't just slide on--you have to buy it dinner first, then sweet talk it, then.....you get the gist.

All in all, I'd hate to think of the words coming out of your mouth in trying to swap a spare tire onto 1 of your 4 Hutchies in the middle of BFE. MUCH less headache to buy a 5th(wheel/tire) and find a custom way to mount it onto the vehicle which suits your needs. My $0.01.

I have some play-by-play pics of wheel mounting if you'd like to see, PM me and I can email them.

Other than the fact that Hutchinson engineers have micrometers which are ~1mm off(centerbore of Hutchie is ~55mm IIRC, nose of G hub is ~54mm = steering wheel shimmy at 59mph+....although said seller/installer is working on a solution as Hutchinson won't admit their mistake), I love mine and would buy them again.

-Jeremy
 

zimm

Expedition Leader
i'll race a hutch guy with a standard rim and two nice tire irons with soap.

we'll do it for pinks, man. i may even use my backup foot pump. :)

the hutch value is the dot beadlock that gives you piece of mind at 12psi. if youre not airing that low, its an ego thing, right jeremy? :)
 

chris505

Observer
i'll race a hutch guy with a standard rim and two nice tire irons with soap.

we'll do it for pinks, man. i may even use my backup foot pump. :)

the hutch value is the dot beadlock that gives you piece of mind at 12psi. if youre not airing that low, its an ego thing, right jeremy? :)

12 psi will NOT break a bead on either set of my standard G wheels, 4-6 psi is where things get weird.
I had both of my Gs @ 12psi (35/16" and 37/15" tires/wheels) over the weekend playing on slickrock trail (Arnold CA area) and never even got a burp. If my wife and 2 of her lady friends (and Mr. Jim Beam)couldn't unseat a tire after 3 days of severe boulder dancing I'm pretty sure it's not an issue.

Every time I've had my tires dismounted/mounted from the wheels the tire guy invariably comments (complains) about how difficult it was for him to dislodge the bead. I'm not sure if my particular G wheels have super tall bead retention 'humps' or if BFG and Goodyear make their bead rings super tight. I suspect field removal/mounting of my tire with 'tire pliers' and soap may be nearly impossible after watching all these tire guys wrestle for 10mins on their machines.

Bead lock wheels were on my G's to-do list 14 years ago before I actually went off-roading at super low PSI. After the first 2 trips to Moab (@8psi all week) I realized they are pointless for my use.

Short video from last Friday illustrating "my use": https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=plkO3JYReY8
Sorry about the blithering , I didn't realize he was shooting video:snorkel:

The only major alterations to my G500 are 35" tires and 30mm wheel spacers on front axle only... No lift necessary!!!!
 
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DiscoDino

Observer
I have faced situations going down to 6psi in the sand dunes here in the UAE and the Arabian Peninsula...I usually ride on 10psi in the sand...but I had to go to 6psi several times...and once had to go to 3psi when the other truck with me was stuck and I was "about" to get stuck trying to reach him...with a winch up front, the adage of "I don't think you'll need to carry the Pull-Pal tomorrow" bit me in the ***...decided to go to 3pso and it floated safely to a better point to winch the guy out of a bowl.

I'll admit: 80/20 rule here...80 poseur/looks, and 20 function...only because I don't spend as much time as I'd like outdoors...
 

mk216v

Der Chef der Fahrzeuge
the hutch value is the dot beadlock that gives you piece of mind at 12psi. if youre not airing that low, its an ego thing, right jeremy? :)

As I've mentioned in other threads, for me it was either take a G steel wheel and send it to Stockton to have modified for my specs, or spend about the same early on for a set of Hutchinson's at a great price. I chose the latter. Yes, more weight, but if I ever need to drop to 3psi, I won't worry as much.
If I had to do it all over again? I'd like to find a lighter wheel. But I say that (lighter) about all the G parts. Truth is, isht is heavy--anymore I just roll with it. No Colin Chapman in the G camp! :(

PS--great info Chris! You wheel harder in a G than anyone I know.
 

zimm

Expedition Leader
As I've mentioned in other threads, for me it was either take a G steel wheel and send it to Stockton to have modified for my specs, or spend about the same early on for a set of Hutchinson's at a great price. I chose the latter. Yes, more weight, but if I ever need to drop to 3psi, I won't worry as much.
If I had to do it all over again? I'd like to find a lighter wheel. But I say that (lighter) about all the G parts. Truth is, isht is heavy--anymore I just roll with it. No Colin Chapman in the G camp! :(

PS--great info Chris! You wheel harder in a G than anyone I know.

im sorta messin with ya. if i found a set cheap, id buy them for the looks. haralsd was right about the atics basically being the right G wheel. at least he seemed to imply that, and if he did, i now agree.
 

mk216v

Der Chef der Fahrzeuge
im sorta messin with ya. if i found a set cheap, id buy them for the looks. haralsd was right about the atics basically being the right G wheel. at least he seemed to imply that, and if he did, i now agree.

I know Zimm.

As I said on that "other" forum;

--Hutchinson's, purchased new from the correct company, are really no more expensive compared to what used Atik's are going for these days($300-400/ea, if you can find them). Plus with Atik's, in order to get the best footprint, you then need 4 30mm spacers and 20 extra lugs(contact Karl for pricing/availability)...I'd rather stay away from wheel spacers myself--just another fastener to possibly come loose. So, no real huge difference in overall cost.

--WA-1207 Hutchinson's like I have are 35.6lbs/ea. Atik's are supposedly 25lbs/ea, so yes, 10lbs/corner of unsprung weight. Add in some weight for the wheel spacer and 5 steel lugs and yes, the Atik's are still a bit lighter.

--I wouldn't say the Hutchinson's are bad quality. Would we like to see the centerbore more precise? Yes. Is a Hutchinson dealer working on a fix for this? Yes.
 

bojo999999

New member
I have 5 Hutchinson Beadlocks in which I put all 5 together with a Bucket underneath, some tire lube, rubber mallet and torque wrench. I would suggest getting the 5th wheel for ease, especially if you break down in bad weather (no fun). Foto.jpgIMG_0227[1].jpg
 

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