Is there a such thing as A/T tires that don't chunk?

Tob

Tob

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Well, it's time for new tires. My Duratracs have been to hell and back (literally, down and up hell's gate). They've seen Texas limestone, Moab slickrock, and Arkansas rocks, and they are in terrible condition. I got a flat yesterday from a large crack or slit that developed in the sidewall. There's so much tread missing and large tears in the sidewalls. I don't trust them anymore.

My dilemma is that my use case is mostly road miles, and about 3 wheeling trips a year. So all terrains have been great for daily driving, but when I do wheel, these tires simply don't hold up to the abuse.

Basically, I'm looking for either a really tough all terrain that can hold up to rock crawling, if that even exists, or make the compromise of daily driving on M/T tires.
 
Supposedly Cooper's are fairly chunk proof. I've ran the AT3's and St Maxx's (2) sets and have never had any "chunking" issues on the many miles of gravel roads mine sees. I don't have rock crawling in my area so can't speak from that aspect.
 
I went through several A/T tires and wasn't happy with them. My two biggest issues with them were chunking and sidewall strength. Not wanting to run a M/T, I ultimately settled on a hybrid. My go-to now is the Mickey Thompson (MT) ATZ P3. These have proven to be very tough, but you do need to rotate them regularly. I see they're made in a 265/75R16. However, they are listed as an "E" rated tire.

https://www.mickeythompsontires.com/light-truck-tires/baja-atz-p3


MT does make an A/T, the Baja Boss, but it is not available in a 16" size.

https://www.mickeythompsontires.com/light-truck-tires/baja-boss-a-t
 
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RMETeeJay said:
Do you drive the Jeep to those 3 annual wheeling trips? Maybe get a cheap, straight set of steelies and have two sets of wheels and tires. One set for DD and another for wheeling.
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That sounds a lot like using winter tires in the winter and summer tires in the summer on any car.

M/T tires being driven to where off roading happens should be fine unless it's terrible weather. Even then just slow down a bit.
 
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I would agree, but he still hasn't said if this is his daily driver. He did say that most of his miles are on road. If it is a DD, and he truly only offroads 3 times a year, then why not change them out?

If I drove mine daily in Louisiana, I'd mount some narrower all-seasons that excel in rain and then store another set of wheels and tires to put on for the big offroad trips. If they're stored carefully, one could get many years out of the specialty tires.
 
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I liked my falken wildpeak m/tj they were just very soft. I’m runnng cooper st maxx right now and they have been great so far especially for on road driving. I don’t really do rocks anymore but I do drive it down shale covered logging roads at 70mph pretty regularly during camping season with no issues.
 
Irun said:
I went through several A/T tires and wasn't happy with them. My two biggest issues with them were chunking and sidewall strength. Not wanting to run a M/T, I ultimately settled on a hybrid. My go-to now is the Mickey Thompson (MT) ATZ P3. These have proven to be very tough, but you do need to rotate them regularly. I see they're made in a 265/75R16. However, they are listed as an "E" rated tire.

https://www.mickeythompsontires.com/light-truck-tires/baja-atz-p3


MT does make an A/T, the Baja Boss, but it is not available in a 16" size.

https://www.mickeythompsontires.com/light-truck-tires/baja-boss-a-t
Click to expand...
Oh, that brings up two more points. I am strongly considering moving up to 33's, and will definitely be going to 15" wheels. I wasn't planning on moving to 33's yet, but if I buy new 31's, I will be ready to go to 33's before they need to be replaced. Thanks for the recommendations.
 
RMETeeJay said:
Do you drive the Jeep to those 3 annual wheeling trips? Maybe get a cheap, straight set of steelies and have two sets of wheels and tires. One set for DD and another for wheeling.
Click to expand...
I don't tow, I drive. That is a good idea, but I don't really have a practical way to haul another set of wheels and tires. Any wheeling destinations are at least a 6 hour drive from me 😒.

Edit: I think I get what you're saying - have a spare set of M/T and change them out before the trip instead of hauling them there. I actually like this idea...
 
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Tob said:
I don't tow, I drive. That is a good idea, but I don't really have a practical way to haul another set of wheels and tires. Any wheeling destinations are at least a 6 hour drive from me 😒.

Edit: I think I get what you're saying - have a spare set of M/T and change them out before the trip instead of hauling them there. I actually like this idea...
Click to expand...

Yeah get something super aggressive and enjoy the roar and superior performance when called for
 
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My KO2's are holding up fantastic and I've never had a problem with them. Neither have several other guys I know that run KO2's exclusively. There may be a better AT for certain conditions but from my own experience and every review I've read, it's tough to beat KO2's for road quiet & performance. And they have excellent offroad performance in most conditions, not including mud.

As for chunking, I've seen a few anecdotal reports but I don't think it's a common issue. Maybe I'm just uninformed.

The only other AT I've run personally are the Goodyear Wranglers that cam from the factory on my Grand Cherokee. I do not like them. Compared to KO2's they are noisy and easily punctured.
 
Cornbread said:
Supposedly Cooper's are fairly chunk proof. I've ran the AT3's and St Maxx's (2) sets and have never had any "chunking" issues on the many miles of gravel roads mine sees. I don't have rock crawling in my area so can't speak from that aspect.
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My Maxxseses had plenty of chunking after their 40k miles. The current set of MTRs, far less despite much more abuse. The Patagonias were falling apart in a short amount of time.
 
Forgot to add pics and give an update. The game plan is to get a set of 15x8 wheels, 33" KM3's, and a set of narrow similarly sized all terrains on the Moab wheels for daily driving. Along with a regear and possibly upgraded shafts and lockers, it's gonna be a big ticket 🤑.

The Duratracs need to be put out of their misery...

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IMG_1133.JPEG

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I may go with Duratracs again for the all terrains. They were nice on the road, but just can't handle the rocks.
 
Obviously if this damage was caused on the rocks any tire is going to get burned on that shit. That's wheeling. You might try the Falken MT3 or whatever they call it or see if you can get an MT/R from Goodyear. You aren't going to get miles on a tire period. Maybe get a BFG Krawler and a trailer?
 
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