BEARINGS Q's w/ 20 inch RIMS

[Axe91CVC]

1997 4.0L automatic trans Wrangler TJ SPORT

i have some 20" X 10" inch aftermarket RIMS
with 285/50/R20 performance street tires
which are a 6 X 139.7 CHEVY lugnut bolt pattern
these rims have a very positive offset approx 20mm.....
( which means the wheel mounting surface is 20mm outside the centerline of the wheel ......thats about 6 inches of backspacing.........the face of the rim is closer to the outside of the vehicle )
this wheel would not fit my 1997 wrangler 5 on 4 & 1/2 bolt pattern......and also the offset was never going to work because the wheel would not clear the suspension, fenderwells, control arms, etc.

so.....i found this company who could make a HUBCENTRIC/WHEELCENTRIC wheel adaptor which would step up my stock bolt pattern to the 6 X139.7 chevy pattern......and also provide 2 & 1/2" inches off negetive offset to compensate for the rims 20mm positive offset.......

well after installed everything looks cool.....which is the whole reason i did this in the first place......

however i do have some serious concerns after talking to a few people from different axle upgrade shops......
mostly about the BEARINGS ......since the 2.50" inch thick adaptors have pushed the wheels out much further than stock.....
keep in mind that these wheels are made for a suburban or chevy CK truck or tahoe.......they also come in an 8 bolt pattern.....which fit the HUMMER H2.......the load rating is 3,300 lbs each wheel
they are EXTREMELY thick & heavy.....
but after talking with other people they seem to think this heavier wheel set up and low backspacing is fine since the 2.50" inch thick wheel adaptors are hub & wheel centric......and also the fact that alot of rock crawler guys have really heavy deep dish ( minimum offset ) LARGE wheel/tire combinations....some with 35" inches diameter and OVER.......

i have lost alot of power from these wheels......the JEEP doesnt accelerate fast at all........and the braking has been noticeably affected........hard to stop wheels that heavy with the stock TJ disc & drums
and gas mileage has definitely dropped seems like i fill my tank up every other day.....performancewise i would definitely not recommend this to anyone it has made my TJ into a gas guzzling slug....
however IT DOES LOOK REALLY COOL

but my main concern again is the bearings and the pressures put on them by this extreme offset and wheel weight
which i fear may be leveraging against the wheel bearings and puting more STRAIN on them than is SAFELY acceptable

anyone have any EXPERIENCED OPINIONS on this bearing concern????

i have pictures that i will post once i figure out how to do that
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[windywinters]

You probably don't want to hear this but...Jeeps were made for " Jeepin' " so...forget those street tires and fast & furious rims...get some bead locks and boggers and go off road ! You want 20" rims and silly ass tires buy a honda.

[Axe91CVC]

i'll do what i please with my JEEP thanks....any body got any real knowledge about this???

oh by the way......beadlocks and boggers can put alot of stress on your bearings.....EVEN MORE than 20" inch rims and "SILLY" tires ........ i've seen alot of "JEEPERS" with tires 35" inches or greater on a 12 inch wide or greater deep dish wheel.......
the weight of the wheel/tire combo.....plus the leverage that the wider wheel/tire puts on the spindles puts alot of stress and strain on stuff......
THINK ABOUT IT

[goinbig]

the larger tires are not really all that hard on the vehicle. With a stock setup, I wouldn't go anything larger than 35" tires. You can usually get away with a little bigger, but if you want too be safe, don't be putting 44's on. You will be fine with the 20" wheels.

By the way, beedlocks are illegal for on-road use...they are extremely dangerous! Also, I am very into Jeeps and offroading (in 4 jeep clubs) and i have never seen anyone with 12" wide wheels and 35" tires. 35's are usually 10.5-12.5" wide, and work best on an 8" wheel, and 10" at the most.

[Axe91CVC]

well its not really the size of the rim that i was worried about.
its actually the offset of the rim ( which is very positive....meaning its wheel face is more towards the outboard of the truck ) ......and additionally the use of a 2.50" inch adapter/spacer.......which pushes the wheels mounting surface back into the wheel a good 1" to 2" inches.........
basically im going from the wrangler stock 6" inches of wheel backspacing appoximately??
to about 3.50" inches of wheel backspacing
this essentially pushes the centerline of the wheel more outboard

so basically in effect its very similar to riding on wheels with little to no backspacing

this is why i was concerned about the leveraging stresses on bearings, axles etc.