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Is anyone's ferret currently equipped with run-flat equipment?


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Has anyone been able to retain runflat capability on their ferret after replacing the old dunlop trak grips?

 

i really want to retain this feature on my ferret.

Options might be:

 

  • finding a source for thick-walled tires like the trak grips.
  • ridged inserts inside the tires like the bulldog product.
  • external plate bolted to wheel which is close to the diameter of the tire.

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Has anyone been able to retain runflat capability on their ferret after replacing the old dunlop trak grips?

 

i really want to retain this feature on my ferret.

Options might be:

 

  • finding a source for thick-walled tires like the trak grips.
  • ridged inserts inside the tires like the bulldog product.
  • external plate bolted to wheel which is close to the diameter of the tire.

 

Are you expecting to go into combat with your Ferret?

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Are you expecting to go into combat with your Ferret?

 

He might just want the project to feel original from an operational standpoint, he might want to be able to drive around in areas where there might be some rubble that could puncture a tire and be worried that getting a recovery vehicle in could be a challenge (and in that part of the country, fatal due to heat), or he might want to hire himself out as part of a security convoy. Not sure how it changes the answer.

 

He's implicitly clear that he isn't worried about using different-looking tires changing the external look, so that frees things up.

I suspect that finding some more recent military wheels/tires and replacing the centers would be a way forward.

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Making major modifications like this could open you up to litigation if an accident happens and someone is hurt. Insurance companies love to find ways to avoid paying out a claim and a custom wheel modification is a great place to lay blame. I will watch this thread with great interest hoping someone will find a safe way to do this as I would like to have the run flat capability back as well. In my case it would be for some peace of mind during parades :)

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Has anyone been able to retain runflat capability on their ferret after replacing the old dunlop trak grips?

 

i really want to retain this feature on my ferret.

Options might be:

 

  • finding a source for thick-walled tires like the trak grips.
  • ridged inserts inside the tires like the bulldog product.
  • external plate bolted to wheel which is close to the diameter of the tire.

I have 1 in the shed, complete on the rim and with plenty of tread. Pm me if interested, £200.
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Here is the Hutchinson runflat information, I mentioned this in another thread to you. We used them in the British Army Fox armoured car when the Dunlop Trackgrip runflat was changed to a standard Michelin tyre. If you want to retain runflat capability then this is your answer, but I guess it will be expensive.

 

http://www.hutchinsoninc.com/CMS/index.php?page=Tactical_RunFlats

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Here is the Hutchinson runflat information, I mentioned this in another thread to you. We used them in the British Army Fox armoured car when the Dunlop Trackgrip runflat was changed to a standard Michelin tyre. If you want to retain runflat capability then this is your answer, but I guess it will be expensive.

 

http://www.hutchinsoninc.com/CMS/index.php?page=Tactical_RunFlats

 

 

THanks mate, ive emailed them twice with no response. fingers crossed

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  • 2 weeks later...

The track grips on our ferret were badly cracked, so were replaced with bar grips. I left the ferret at my local tyre fitters for a few hours and when I returned they told me that only 3 of the track grips had runflat inserts!  They put them back inside the new tyres. So I now have 3 "bulletproof" wheels!

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9 minutes ago, Jimland74 said:

The track grips on our ferret were badly cracked, so were replaced with bar grips. I left the ferret at my local tyre fitters for a few hours and when I returned they told me that only 3 of the track grips had runflat inserts!  They put them back inside the new tyres. So I now have 3 "bulletproof" wheels!

Not quite! The sidewall of the trakgrip gives you the runflat capability, not the insert. Take it from someone who had 2 punctures on normal tyres with those inserts in on the same weekend!

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6 hours ago, sirhc said:

Not quite! The sidewall of the trakgrip gives you the runflat capability, not the insert. Take it from someone who had 2 punctures on normal tyres with those inserts in on the same weekend!

Chris

Agreed. The run flat insert is not their correct description, they are actually a bead spreader. They serve to keep the beads

from moving away from the rim edge and thus the tyre collapsing. Those Hutchinson inserts that somebody put a link to

have some good photos on their site, you can see the normal tyre is deflated, but still tight on the rim.

The Ferret tyres are actual run flats, whether containing air or not, there is some visual difference.

I note that the Ferret ones are inferior to the US spec run flats:

Ferret spec - 50 mile maximum allowable use if punctured. Effectively running them flat damages the tyre. If punctured or flat, you can notice it. 

WW2 US spec - flat mileage not limited. If punctured or flat, you will only tell with a tyre pressure gauge. 

The Staghound I once owned came with its WW2 run flats. One of them had a crack in the side wall. I well remember pushing a pocket knife blade into that crack. It bottomed out about 1" deep in the sidewall. How thick those tyres actually were I do not

know, but I was very impressed.

What were you doing when it happened, being really adventurous?

Regards

Doug

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  • 1 month later...

Doug, I fitted my Ferret with Michelin XZL (got them from Bandag in Adelaide), and they work a treat. Please note that post war, the Brits changed over to using American style beads on their 9.00 x 16, so for the Ferret, that is actually what you want.

What would you be after for your NOS tyres? Are they cracked or in good condition?

Cheers,

Terry

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 12/5/2017 at 11:19 PM, Starfire said:

Doug, I fitted my Ferret with Michelin XZL (got them from Bandag in Adelaide), and they work a treat. Please note that post war, the Brits changed over to using American style beads on their 9.00 x 16, so for the Ferret, that is actually what you want.

What would you be after for your NOS tyres? Are they cracked or in good condition?

Cheers,

Terry

 

Terry - my runflats are roughly 1998 production. I brought them out from England after buying them at Beltring 2000 from the last batch of Ferret tyres. They have been wrapped in black plastic and dry stored ever since getting here.

I was not aware that the Ferret rims were US spec, I thought they were same as 25pdr with the zero

angle instead of 5 deg or vice versa.

Price, will need to think about it. I would imagine that to fit the XZL I would need tubes and rust bands so will have to find out what that would cost so as not to end up out of pocket. Do you remember what yours cost all up?

Did they have any trouble getting your old runflats off?

Regards

Doug  

Edited by dgrev
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