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Recently it was suggested to me to upgrade to 19.5's and better rated tires for hauling a truck camper.
In the quest for hooking this all up, I found it to be pretty difficult to find both the wheels and tires, even though after a lot of funny looks, I did end up with them.
It makes me wonder, why 19.5?
I notice a lot of more common sizes out there (20's, etc) and shops that will deal with those. But 19.5's?? What is so special about them.
Can someone enlighten me why I've been running around busting my butt to make this setup happen??
well bolt patterns the same on 19.5 and up ten lug wheels so id go with a 22 from a semi
youll need a lift though big lift
so maybe thats y 19.5 is recomended
also the 22s dont look as stupid they r just standard alcoas
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I notice a lot of more common sizes out there (20's, etc) and shops that will deal with those. But 19.5's?? What is so special about them.
19.5s are "real truck tires", not just toys for kids playing with their trucks. 20s are for "look at me", but 19.5s are for making a buck with your truck. Or hauling a heavy camper. They have a high weight capacity and will last a long time, then they are recappable for use on non-steer axles. So the pros want them for use on work trucks.
Almost ever major brand of truck tire maker will make at least one 19.5 truck tire. Michelin, Goodyear, Cooper, Bridgestone, Firestone, etc. Most are either load range F, G or H, and they're not cheap because they have to stand up to hard work over lots of miles. Here's a popular Michelin for the drive axle: Michelin XDS2
The reason they're "hard to find" is you're probably not looking in the right place. Find a "real truck" tire dealer, not Discount Tire that deals in car and pickup tires. You'll probably find them out on the interstate near the big truck stops. When looking on websites, look under "commercial" tires. Note that Cooper makes "Discoverer" brand tires for "light trucks", but the commercial 19.5" tires are Roadmaster, not Discoverer: Cooper Tires - -
And note that Michelin has a completely different website for "MichelinTruck" than for "MichelanMan" tires.
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Last edited by SmokeyWren : 08-26-2008 at 10:36 PM.
they're 14 ply (plus) tires that actually ride quite nicely when empty. Like smokeywren said, look for commercial truck tire dealers, but be prepared to spend the $$. i found a set of re-caps to be about 185 a piece, and that wasn't even shipped to my door.
Thanks for the replies... I recently got Hankook's DH01's on my vision 19.5's. Much higher ratings, and while they ride a bit harsher, I am williing to sacrifice the ride for the dependability and the safety factor.
I guess I'm just surprised that there are only a few manufacturers of these wheels, and I'm surprised that so few truck shops seem to deal with people wanting them and the tires for them... seems like anyone who is hauling anything would want them, but maybe I'm wrong.
After spending weeks on trying to move up to the 19.5's after countless "no's" from various shops (yep, even truck shops!) just thinking that this is an untapped market!
Rickson has a great rep, but who wants to wait 3-5 months for wheels? I couldn't, unfortunately, plus now they aren't even dealing with aluminum anymore.
So far I have found 2 sources. Vision, and Rickson. Seems like this is a very untapped market.
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They have a high weight capacity and will last a long time, then they are recappable for use on non-steer axles. So the pros want them for use on work trucks. 
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