bead locks

[Pete]

Has anybody here done the diy beadlocks where you cut the lip of the rim off and weld on the rings on? i have seen some that require the lip to be cut and other that do not. which one would be better?

[OWEN]

I got mine from A-Z Fab, "within the lip style." I have not seen any where you have to cut the lip, they are either within the lip or on top of it, in which case I guess you could cut it... Anyway the within the lip style are nice and recommended if you are going to MIG. They fit within the lip and you just fill from the lip to the ring and then grind it flat when your done. I welded them with my wirefeeder, no leaks and I am a shitty welder. If you can get all the hardware for under $80 it is a good deal. Use a lot of bead sealer when you mount them and go around a bunch of times. I love mine, although it took a little practice getting the hang of mounting them so they don't leak, worth every penny.

[OWEN]

Heres a few pics

the ring within the lip


Center it within the lip and tack it down before you weld then go tack to tack, making sure your weld is level with or higher then the lip.


Grind them smooth, I used a 7" flapper. Again this has to be a smooth surface as this is where the bead seals, if there are any low spots in your weld, fill them if not the air can escape.


Lots o bead sealah


I put this many bolts in, not very tight, just enough to hold air to seat the back bead. I fill them til the back bead seats, this way the tire also kinda centers itsself. Then go around and tighten til you don't hear air leaking. Then put in the remaining 16 bolts and go around and tighten.

[LittleD]

What kind of bolts did you use owen? nuts on the bottom or are they tapped?

[OWEN]

A to Z gives the specs, they are 3/8 x 1.5" or 2" I forget, grade 5. The bolt head on the outside, Nylon insert lock nut on the inside, washers on both sides

[Pete]

i think that's the route in going to go. my wheels are still in good enough shape to use, thanks for the pics Owen

[OWEN]

No prob man

Off topic, but I saw your Jeep at CCSU Car Show, looked good!

[Pete]

thank you, looking to get it to your status eventually , buddy has a set of dana 60's for sale for cheap, but its gonna take a long time to build them, thats why im gonna do the beadlocks on what i have now to hold me over.

[customcreationsllc]

I've seen both styles cut the bead off and inside the bead.

Make sure your rim has room for the bolts/nuts I just finished welding AtoZ bead locks on Adam's jeep to find out when I was done that you cannot fit a bolt. So I'm going to tap each hole 7/16-20 not the best solution I don't feel like cutting them off.

I wish they gave me a heads up before I welded them on.

I just TIG welded it almost no wire needed. But it does take a while.
Lets see how they seal.


My suggestion is Inner Air Locks. All you need to do is drill a hole if the rim gets bent you just get another $50 rim and drill another hole.
It is a double bead lock with a cushion before the tire pinches on the rim.
Plus it is lighter and street legal, DIY bead locks are not DOT approved and good luck trying to balance one.

I have some problems with mine popping the tubes but I talked to Shawn from Inner Air Locks he has redesigned the the bladder added an air channel and uses larger tubes now. He is sending me a replacement set. Good Guy.

Well worth it.

~Justin

[Even]

If those Inner Air Locks are anything like Staun Internal Beadlocks, I've been told they are a complete pain in the sack to install.

They are definetly a cool design, but the horror stories deterred me slightly. This is only what I've been told on the net though, so It could be BS.

[Ktmracer419]

seems like you are going the diy route

but allied beadlocks run $160 each. the bolt heads are pretty well protected, the rings are tapered to the bead of the tire, never had any leak, never had to use bead sealer, never had any balancing issues.

[Pete]

Do you use bb's to balance

[customcreationsllc]

If those Inner Air Locks are anything like Staun Internal Beadlocks, I've been told they are a complete pain in the sack to install.

They are definetly a cool design, but the horror stories deterred me slightly. This is only what I've been told on the net though, so It could be BS.

Same concept.

I don't know where they get off saying they are a pain in the sack.
I would agree they harder than just plane wheels but nothing any of you couldn't handle.
I bet I can install all 4 faster than 1 bolt-on, never mind from scratch (welding them on), no contest.

I've probably had my wheels on and off my rims a dozen time between straightening the wheels replacing tubes etc. Now the tube issue is fixed I shouldn't need to take them off until I bend another rim.
And I just use tire irons to take my tires off.

It is like installing a dirt bike tire hardest part is getting the valve stem through the hole once that is done it's is just like installing any other tire.
And seating the bead is as easy as filling up the tube.

If you need a hand just let me know.

~Justin

[OWEN]

Do you use bb's to balance

I don't have any type of balancing on mine and furthermore my jeep has solid motor mounts and unbalanced driveshafts not to mention a tape measure alignment, it goes down the road pretty well, although it does not go far. For the price and intended use for me the weld-on's were just what I needed. If you do a decent job of centering the ring and mount the tire as I described, you can probably get it to balance. They are not a double bead lock but they have only given me a problem once, when I flopped the jeep on its side and the bead-locked bead pulled out of the ring a little, but still held air, that was at 3 psi. They are not DOT legal, but then again neither is my jeep to begin with, other then it is registered.


So in summary, there are better options out there, depends on how much you want to spend and how you are going to use it. I honestly think if you are going to be driving over an hour to any trail, spend a little extra and get some inner locks, or Allieds. I spent my extra on a tow rig and trailer... everyone does it different.