Interco tires

[bronkenn]

Was wondering if anyone has any experience with the Swamper TSL tires. They are a bias ply tire and claim to have good street manners. Thanks, Ken

 

[camodown]

They don't have good street manners. They are going to be very loud (especially in a bronco) and only get louder as they wear down. They will wear funny, develop flat spots that hopefully go back into shape as the tire heats up but if it has set long enough then sometimes they don't. The list goes on and on.

They are an off-road tire and if you want to run them on the street then be ready for a horrible ride.

 

[Nothing Special]

I've never heard that the bias ply TSL has good street manners, but I have heard that the Radial SSR, which has a very similar trad pattern, is supposed to be surprisingly good on the street. Still, it's not what I'm looking for so I'll never have anything but hear-say on that.

 

[willtel]

I run them on mine. As others said they are loud and flat spot when cold and are aren't great in snow. They work on the street if you don't mind the noise but a radial should have better road manners. They do look the business though and I've had loads of compliments on them.

IMG_8819 by willtel, on Flickr

 

[Glass Pony]

For off road tires (mud/trail riding) IMO they are one of the best.
For the street they outright suck.
Even the Interco Trxus STS radials I run now are great in the sand and aren't too bad on the street but very hard to balance. They have been balanced a few times by different shops and I still get a little shake at 60 mph.

 

[sprdv1]

For off road tires (mud/trail riding) IMO they are one of the best.
For the street they outright suck.
.

Totally agree... not good on road manners at all

 

[bronkenn]

I've never heard that the bias ply TSL has good street manners, but I have heard that the Radial SSR, which has a very similar trad pattern, is supposed to be surprisingly good on the street. Still, it's not what I'm looking for so I'll never have anything but hear-say on that.

That is what the description states on the web site. Says they need to adjust tire pressure for the street. I liked that they were available in 32x9.5x15 tire size, that is why I was curious about them. Sounds like the street manners on them aren't to good. Thanks for the input. Ken

 

[bronkenn]

I run them on mine. As others said they are loud and flat spot when cold and are aren't great in snow. They work on the street if you don't mind the noise but a radial should have better road manners. They do look the business though and I've had loads of compliments on them.

IMG_8819 by willtel, on Flickr

By the way they do look great on your Bronco. The truck looks real nice as well. Ken

 

[Nothing Special]

I'm a fan of wiltell's Bronco too. But then again, I might be biased...

Ford Sonic Blue (color code SN)?

 

[nvrstuk]

WOW, propaganda on their website for sure! lol

I ran TSL's for 2 yrs...off road in several TTC (Team Trophy Comp) competitions, Moab/Rubicon, etc and as a DD...they SUCK on the street. Tried BB's, typical weights from spin balance, and a combination of both. I could get to 60 but at 61+ they would shake the front end off! Great tuff tire but not much good for anything but mud IMO. Fair on rocks, not good on sand or snow, street they suck...TOUGH tho... seriously tough... but so are my backhoe tires!

I ran the SSR radial for 2 years also... much, better street manners compared to the TSL but nothing compared to a BFG or MTR (which I've also ran for dozens of years).

The SSR sidewalls are paper thin...I sliced up several on roots and rocks before giving up on them.

Tire LOOKS ain't anything unless it's a mall cruiser IMO... or a magazine ad.

 

[bronconut73]

Speaking of looks....


To me....its hard to beat the look of BFG A/T's on an eb.

Nothing Special's eb is about perfect and the BFG A/T's seal the deal.

I realize they aren't great in rocks and mud but they do ok...and are phenomenal everywhere else....

 

[kntr]

I ran the SSR for a long time and they were not bad.

 

[tabyers]

AT’s make me sad.

 

[DirtDonk]

Glass Pony, that first pic of yours could be a calendar shot, or a desktop image for a computer!

I have Thornbirds on mine and I consider them completely unsafe for the street. I drive mine like I expect it to handle, and was never surprised until I put those puppies on there. Also a great tire size, in the 33x11.50x15, but I needed to cut and sipe the tread extensively to feel like I had anything nearing a street tire.
And these were supposed to be their answer to an All-Terrain tire and more street friendly!
Talking about sidewall strength... They're pretty old now, so I can't blame them for much of anything, but wanted to save them until I could justify new rubber after I got to driving it again. When I attempted to fix a leak at the edge of the tread and sidewall, the initial poke with the plug hole borer tore an even bigger hole in the sidewall!
It didn't just poke a hole in other words. It literally tore the rubber.
I don't think that bodes very well for them in the rocks.

Here too, my limited experience with the SSR's has been very favorable. But only in a basic "for a mud tire" sort of way.

Paul

 

[nvrstuk]

Two of the SSR's that tore were at a tire speed that didn't speak well of their "toughness".

One was at just under 5mph on a rock, the other SSR literally had a 2liter pop bottle size hole ripped in it on a root. We were going so slow we heard it rip open and by the time I stopped the tire had only rotated to the 12 oclock position. We got out, the root was sticking out of the bank about even with the back edge of the door and realized I'd just spent several hundred bucks that day. That was the end of Interco for me...

I drove around with the 2 liter Coke bottle stuffed 1/2 way in it for about a month until I got my new tires... got a lot of comments from Swamper lovers! : ) Heck, any tire will fail... Decades ago when Les Slob was bragging up Kevlar in their off road tires I bought a set...wasted 4 of them in 8,000 miles. 6,000 of those miles were on one trip in the SW.

I've got pics of all this stuff...

 

[sk1nw4lk3r]

I have Interco M16s on the 78. They're noisy, but so is the truck. Only put ~2000 miles on the truck a year, if that, so it doesn't bother me much. They look cool, though, and I do get a lot of compliments on them.

 

[rspd505]

I drove around with the 2 liter Coke bottle stuffed 1/2 way in it for about a month until I got my new tires... .

...I've got pics of all this stuff...

WOW!! Now I need to see! It’s not nice to tease! LOL

 

[toddsrods]

AT’s make me sad.

I agree.