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Tj Rubicon tire chains

4K views 23 replies 12 participants last post by  irnmadn88 
#1 ·
Had some problems yesterday. Got stuck 4lo and the lockers would not get me out. Can I run chains or will it break something I have heard both ways wondering if there is a definite answer.
 
#2 ·
Stock tire size? I often run chains on my 2wd work trucks and vans, but have no experience using them with 4wd vehicles. Chains belong on drive tires, so on a Jeep you would at least chain the rear and possibly the front if in 4wd. Other concerns are clearances front/rear around the shocks,, coils, sway bar etc. There isn't much room in there and chains can get pretty bulky where the ends connect. Also, if the front is chained, then you will rub, grab and tear on the front end during full turns.

A winch and shovel helps. Lockers are useless when the tires can't get traction like when you are resting on the skid plate. Chains need something to grab onto as well. Snow can trap you when you least suspect it. Even in June.
 
#6 ·
There is nothing specific to the Rubicon compared to any other TJ that would not allow chains. Its a matter of clearances against the peculiarities of your setup and equipment. I suppose a stock base Wrangler with 29" tires has more room than a stock Rubicon with ~31"s. Chains can get bulky while the lighter duty and less effective cables are more compact. Putting chains on in the first place can sometimes be tricky or really unpleasant. When I teach my guys in the parking lot, I make sure to stress that one rarely does this on the road in favorable conditions. Last Monday in Snowmass, we had to chain up a Sprinter van at the base of a long unplowed and icy switchback "driveway" in the dark with one wheel buried in the ditch. Highly unpleasant, except that I took advantage of the teachable moment and made my new guy do the hard work. :)
 
#10 ·
Unless you have lots of clearance, tire chains can cause problems when big oversize tires are taking up extra room in the wheel wells. If you need more traction than your tires can provide, tire cables might do the job. While not as aggressive as chains, tire cables don't need as much clearance but they still add substantial traction in slick, especially icy, conditions.
 
#11 ·
What Jerry said. I'm looking at my Jeep right now. In the rear well there is just over an inch of room between the upper spring bucket and the tire sidewall. There really isn't room back there for the chains I am used to using. Any chain/cable device would need to be very low profile. There is room up front, but you would really need to be careful with sharp turns.
 
#12 ·
The key is clearance. If you space out the wheels and have enough lift for the size of tires you are running you will be ok. You also must get them on correct and tight. You have to be careful because they will do some damage.

I live in Denver and the group I run with uses them all the time when doing snow runs. Some just chain one axle some do both. I run one set on the rear tires. Mine are cut down semi chains with the cam adjusters.

I'm good at chaining because I drive a semi and we are forever having to chain up in the mountains. To be legal when the chain law is in effect for commercial vehicles you have to chain four drive tires. That's a lot of work with truck chains and sometimes may have to do it several times on a run if I'm going over several passes.
Jim
 
#13 ·
What conditions were you in? offroading in snow can require a lot of the skinny pedal, and that aint gonna happen in 4lo. I do a winter run with a group of rovers, and those who are not locked run chains on all 4 tires. Very rarely are we ever in lo gear. Its usually low tire pressure and a lot of RPMs. Be careful though, if you are adding RPMs and the chains grab a hold of something firm, something is bound to break loose and it isn't always the tire chains...
 
#14 ·
I posted in the shooting thread... Where were you at on Squaw Pass/CO-103?

EDIT: That spot is on the north face of Squaw Mountain. There is 8" of snow on top of snow pack. That spot will not be free of snow likely not before the first spring thaw... If you got stuck on the hill side there is a drainage ditch on that side. Been there done that just a couple miles further up 103...

 
#15 ·
Low Pressure and Feather the Pedal

I go wheeling in Sierra snow every year. I'm always amazed how fast I lose traction with highway air in my tires. As soon as I drop the air down to about 12psi I'm back to walking on top. I don't use high horsepower either. My stock Rubicon lockers won't let me go over 10 mph with all 4 locked. So I put it in low, lock all 4 and feather the pedal. I rarely get stuck. If I do it's time to winch. But hey that's half the fun.
 
#16 ·
I use to drive a front wheel drive car in the west Virginia mountains. Putting on chains every morning before work was a ritual in the winter. I got pretty good and fast it it. It made all the difference on the car, so I can only imagine how awesome it would be in a 4wd. Just make sure to get a good set of tensioners too. I haven't used the cam style chains before, but with the normal style, not using tensiors will let the chains have enough slop to really wreck your wheel wells.
 
#17 ·
I didn't see this asked anywhere, but how are your tires? not only PSI but tread as well. Lockers aren't always the best solution in snow either for the record. Not that open diffs are but luckily you have a rubi so you can have it both ways lol.
 
#18 ·
tucsonzj said:
I didn't see this asked anywhere, but how are your tires? not only PSI but tread as well. Lockers aren't always the best solution in snow either for the record. Not that open diffs are but luckily you have a rubi so you can have it both ways lol.
This is from a sidebar in another thread in response to asking if he had done the locker switch mod.

xd1 said:
No I have not done the mod, but 4lo and the lockers were doing nothing. Do you think its possible to make it up there or screw it. I have Discovery AT2's and they are 3 months old so its not bald tires or anything.
He was likely stuck in a small drainage ditch to the hill side on the passenger side. The ditch was drifted over and the dirt road is snow pack covered by 8" of fresh powder. To drive it out would have meant going backwards down hill trying to steer the rear axle out. Unfortunately where he was stuck, there likely wasn't room for that If it is where I think he was stuck. Shovelling and winching uphill were just about his only option.
 
#21 ·
I don't know why one couldn't run them on a Rubi? Just making sure that their tight is the key so that they don't damage anything.

Many moons ago, living in CO I use to drive rear wheel drive cars and chains were just part of going to work on some occasions. I later converted to cables, as I recall they were a little quicker to install?
 
#23 ·
I don't know why one couldn't run them on a Rubi? Just making sure that their tight is the key so that they don't damage anything.

?
No reason you can't , if clearance is good... If you are running a stock rubi then the lockers won't really come into play... 4wd yes, lockers not really. If you watch any of the above vids, you can see wheel spin / rpm will be over the 10mph cut out, and rpms usually are needed...

Unless you are slow crawling an ice section or some hard pack, you won't be using the lockers, per say...

I did the locker bypass so I can use them at any speed, and find chains are not needed, but rpms are...
 
#22 ·
grogie said:
I don't know why one couldn't run them on a Rubi? Just making sure that their tight is the key so that they don't damage anything.
Clearance issues on the frame side of the tire...

Rear tire and the chain has to clear...

Front tire and the chain has to clear at full lock.

Stock wheels and their backspacing may be the issue.

Then depending on the diameter of the tire and clearance to the body, that has to clear at full stuff...

Lots to consider.
 
#24 ·
This is this morning...

First entrance to Fire Service Road (FSR):



Second entrance to same FSR further up and connects to the first one:



And the road to the parking lot below the summit of Squaw Mountain. This one has a gate blocking it off from the second access point.



Based on the mileage and the comment about being blocked, the OP was stuck at the second one?
 
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