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Beadlock wheels are one of those must-haves for a lot of off-road vehicles – and for good reason. By clamping the bead of the tire to the seating bead of the wheel you can run extremely low tire pressures for traction on rough terrain, floating in soft sand, or grip when crawling. Beadlock wheels may have their place in your modification plans, so read up on what you might have wrong when it comes to the facts.
Weld Wheels [2] and Rekon – their off-road division has compiled a handy guide to the myths and misconceptions [3] surrounding the functional trail bling that are beadlock wheels.
One of the first “problems” that comes to mind for enthusiasts considering a beadlock upgrade is the notion that they are not legal for street use. As Weld points out, there are states that regulate and outlaw the use of multi-piece wheels, so some gray area exists in certain places, but all Weld beadlocks are DOT approved.
[4]We had a close look at Rekon wheels here [5].
The next point that concerns many baedlock users is wheel balance. It’s common for big chunky off-road tires to require quite a bit of weight to get in balance. You may not notice much of the out-of-balance vibration when driving off-road, but on the tarmac that harmonic buzzing feeling and noise is very uncomfortable.
Despite the common belief that you can’t balance beadlock wheels, Weld is here to dispel that myth. Because of how the tire and wheel beads engage, Weld recommends a seating time of 50-100 miles before balancing, this will allow the tire to naturally settle in and center itself on the wheel.
For the whole list of tips and info check here [3].