Alright, so "what gears should I use with xyz" gets asked daily, and everyone points to the same charts. I've looked at them, and I've used the grim jeeper calculator ad nauseam.
I really don't understand the driving factors behind some of the recommendations, and I'm trying to better understand where people are coming from.
It seems that everyone recommends gearing WAY deeper than I would have thought.
Here's an example: my current TJ has the AX15, it's on 33s, and it is currently geared 4.10s. Charts would suggest 4.88 ideal. HOLY CRAP! So I've considered maybe better with 4.56, but I can't imagine 4.88.
With the current setup, I have occasionally desired a lower crawl speed, but the 4:1 conversion seems like a better choice there. On the highway here at 75 I'm turning 2500rpm. That's pretty comfortable. Of course you have to downshift to pass, and sometimes on hills, but this doesn't seem that bad to me. Very rarely does it annoy. What am I missing?
Now I'm at the point that my next set of tires will be 35s. (Yes everything else is done to support them) I will definitely be regearing at that point, but with 35s all the charts would have me going with 5.13. This is nuts to me! That would have me turning 3000rpm on the interstate. Talk about a screamfest.
Where do these recommendations come from? Are people allergic to downshifting? Is 3000rpm on the interstate actually desireable? Or is it truly that people just REALLY want that lower crawl speed and sacrifice everything else? What am I not getting here?