[SpaceHiker]

I've had my truck for almost 16 years and still haven't found tires that I like! My latest disaster has been the Duratracs. In my configuration they are scary dangerous, so they're going back. As can be seen in the picture, I have the 17" Laramie aluminum wheels from a newer truck, so I've been running 265/70--17 tires, which are the stock size for those wheels.

I had Cooper ATP's on there before the Duratracs, and they were OK except they were terrible in snow. I've used Duratracs on several other (light-duty) vehicles and they were always great, so I tried them on this truck and they are so unstable I'm about to have a coronary. Literally just fighting to keep the truck on the road and preferably in 1 lane, for hours. I've never experienced anything like it. I've put about 2,000 miles on these tires, including 2 trips with the camper, and I'm done with them.

Back when I had the stock 16" wheels, I ran Yokohama Geolandar A/T, but those were a load range D tire. That was before I had the rather heavy truck camper that I have now. It looks like they do make those tires in an E load range for my 17" wheels, so maybe those are an option.

And just to be clear, I've checked all suspension/steering components to be sure they're tight, then I had the truck aligned, and I've been experimenting with different tire pressures, and none of it cures the dangerous wander. I also have a redhead steering box with not too many miles on it, steering brace, and borgeson steering shaft, so I really shouldn't be having all of this drama.

I don't necessarily need an A/T tire, so it might be better to move into something a little more highway-centric. If it's great in the snow, that would be a huge bonus. But first and foremost it has to be solid while carrying a big load. So far I'm thinking about the following:

Nitto Dura Grappler
Michelin LTX A/T 2
Yokohama Geolandar A/T
General Grabber HD

I'd appreciate any experience and advice you may have. Thanks!

 

[Lins]

I’m not surprised you didn’t like the Duratracs with an in-bed camper. Goodyear typically has softer sidewalls. I had the Geolanders on a half ton years ago. It was not good for winter AT ALL. I think you’ll like the Michelin’s. I haven’t ran them but a few people I know have. Toyo open country should be a contender for you as well. Their AT2, AT3 and CT’s are well liked and get good reviews in winter typically. I currently have the AT2 AW (more siping). Cooper AT3s are starting to pop up more locally and have good siping but I don’t know anyone that has ran them yet.

 

[Mauler]

Toyo M55's are supposed to be a heavy duty service tire and are available in that size you mentioned. I haven't run them but it might be something you could look at also.

 

[hutchmj]

BTW - like the look of your camper. Is it a short bed? I'm about to pick up a Lance camper for my 2nd Gen.

 

[Marq92]

I really like my Toyo M-55's. They are a legitimate commercial rated tire. I'd go 255/80r17 to have more sidewall as they ride pretty rough.

 

[skidrow_23707]

 

[Andy2500]

I have always had good luck in the snow with the Cooper ST maxx, but they are pretty heavy and pretty aggressive.

My favorite highway tire is by far the Bridgestone Duravis R500, or if you want the all terrain variety go for the M700. They are kind of pricey but they are a great tire. You'll get sick of them long before they wear out they last so long.

You can actually find the Bridgestones with buy 3 get one free offers alot of times.

 

[Bobby K]

I’ve got almost 10k on a set of Bridgestone Duravis R500’s and they’re wearing great. They were the highest weight rating tire I could find in 17”.

 

[SpaceHiker]

BTW - like the look of your camper. Is it a short bed? I'm about to pick up a Lance camper for my 2nd Gen.

Thanks! The truck is a long bed, but this camper is built to work on either short or long bed trucks. It's a Palomino HS-8801.

 

[BFD]

I know the feeling. I left a tires shop with Hankooks, once, and I turned around and went right back for Michelins. The Hankooks were like driving on ball bearings. It would go sideways, on a curve , with any throttle at all. I have Yokohamas now and they are very solid but don't ride like the Michelins. I'll gladly go back to Michelins, next time.

 

[cowboyhan]

Chiming in pretty late on this, but FWIW: You can't go wrong with the Falken Wildpeak AT3.
As a rancher in the mountains, I also struggled for many years to find the "perfect compromise" tire, but my usage is too varied to commit to a straight MT. I run (too) heavy all the time (either hauling 10-12 horses, 2400 gallons of water, 10+ tons of hay etc), drive on dirt as much as pavement and a lot of 4x4 roads too and deal with significant winter conditions. I've been known to feed in snow that's over 2 feet deep (light fluffy CO stuff though).
With all my previous tires being pleased with one attribute meant sacrificing another. If I liked the off-road traction, I didn't like the load handling and wear, if I liked the load handling I didn't like the traction, in almost all cases the dirt roads ate up every tire I had way faster than I thought it should.
The Falken is the only tire I've had that has left me satisfied in all categories. Granted, it's not an MT, but I've never been stuck and our mud is straight grease. They also handle snow and ice well, which many (unsiped) MT's do not. I've also gotten the most mileage out of these of any tires I've ever run.
For comparison, the previous tires I ran were:
Hercules Commercial traction (serious traction degradation in last 50%)
Cooper AT3W (wore out quickly, poor mud performance)
General Grabber AT2 (Looks good, but just worthless in real mud)
Cooper ST Maxx (too squishy under load, traction degradation in last 50%)
BFG Trailsomething (looks like an AT but garbage for anything other than dry road driving)
Firestone HT and AT (factory tires) garbage
There's a few others in there as well from Mastercraft and Hankook that I forgot the models on, but suffice to say the Falken's are the only ones that I felt met my needs in all categories. I've had such good experiences I'm even willing to pay the extra money they cost now that they've been discovered... Sure was nice when they were an unknown
Good luck!

 

[krs]

I've had pretty good luck with anything toyo or Cooper. Oil patch use. Lots of weight, dirt roads, breaking trail in the winter. For most rigid tire the M55 is probably the toughest tire for these full size pickups.
Both of my current trucks have the ST Maxx and I've had the best luck with them. Both my trucks are used oilfield in northern BC and AB.

 

[Hawkins2015]

...
Cooper ST Maxx (too squishy under load, traction degradation in last 50%)
...
There's a few others in there as well from Mastercraft and Hankook
...

Glad to hear on the ST Maxx, I almost went with those or the STT Pro.

Interested in the Mastercrafts you tested, and the review.

 

[cowboyhan]

Glad to hear on the ST Maxx, I almost went with those or the STT Pro.

Interested in the Mastercrafts you tested, and the review.

The mastercrafts were their old AT ( Courser CT?) and the old snow tire (Courser MS?). They performed reasonably well in their advertised area but both were super soft compounds and short lived. Back then (2005?) they were a bargain price, so somewhat acceptable. But neither were solid under load.

I have to admit I put some GoodYear Duratracs on my feeding truck bc I needed something more aggressive for off-roading thru unplowed meadows to feed with. They’ve been awesome! I’d avoided them because someone on here advised me that I’d find them to be like the ST Maxx (clearly the OP had that experience!). I feel they’re a lot less squishy than the coopers. They seem to do reasonably well under moderate loads (5-6 horses in a trailer or a 1300 lb bale on the flatbed). They aren’t as solid under weight as the Falkens, but are more aggressive for really trying (pushing snow with the bumper) conditions. I haven’t run them in the application the OP has.
For the first time in 22 years of ranching (I’m a picky *******) I feel I’ve got the right tires for the right applications.
Falkens for pulling with some off-road capabilities and GYs for off road with some load handling.