I just recently visited Oceano Dunes In pismo beach California......ANd saw a lot of duallys out there on sand dunes most of them where stuck!...Is there anything out there that we can do to dually trucks to make them GO on the SAND DUNES Or do Duallys Dont wourk out good on sand........tips are helpful, cause im planing on taking my truck out there to see how it does ok !!!!! thanks in advance! i have a 3500 Dually lbz 4x4 stock thanks!

Sounds like they dont know how to pick right line out there to me:D
Just lower your air pressure,keep in 4hi and keep moving at good pace.:ro)

If they're out there on the stock pizza cutter tires, there's not much you can do. There's a lot of weight over the two front tires, and too much flotation from the four in the rear to effectively help the front ones.

You can air them down, but I wouldn't go too low. Be careful to not deflate the rears too much. I imagine that they wouldn't like sand rubbing between the sidewalls.

You could also install a wider set of tires with an all-terrain tread pattern. Mud tires wouldn't really help in this situation. Another thing you could do is to install a single wider tire/rim on the rear.

Throw some weight in the bed to help the rear out, and don't stop unless you are on hard-pack sand or pointing downhill.

The 97 dually I had was a b!tch to drive in sand, the front end would just plow if I wanted to make the slightest turn at all. The best method seemed to be just keep moving at all cost.

Rick Rick,
I have to ask this, why would you want to wheel out there in a K3500 Dually? These deals were intended to tow your tow hauler there and then dump out the toys to play. I have been there and see motorhomes, Duallys(All makes) stuck. Some guys actually try and wheel their Dually trucks. I would stay away personally. The truck plows to much as others have stated and once stuck, it is ALOT of truck to get out.... :)

Bring two more tires and bolt them on the front and run dual fronts.

Buy 4 of these!

:grd: http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=22102&stc=1&d=1153097510

They actually will get you through the sand.....

I Was Out There Last Month, I Put Some 285-75-16 Bfg At's, Aired Them Down To 18 Psi And Pulled My 40 Foot Toy Hauler Any Place I Wanted It To Go.. SEE MY GARAGE FOR PICTURES OF THE TRUCK...

I made my truck for that reason only. Family likes to play in the sand and I could not get it where I wanted it to go stock. Added 8 inches of lift, 35 inch
tires, and all the suspension and engine goodies. Not only will it tow but we have a blast in the truck on the dunes. Don't even need the 4wd, now just air the rear down. I think a different tire size and low air presure will help a stock truck alittle.

yerp. air it down....

It can be done ... I'm proof. My current 2003 GMC dually on stock 215/85/16's pulling a 30', 11,000 pound 5th wheel through the sand at Glamis. Not just once, but every visit (3 times per year). To move on sand you have to have FLOATATION (staying above the sand, mostly anyway). There are 2 mandatory things for floatation:

1) Footprint, usualy by Airing Down. You have to air down until the tire "pancakes" to some degree. Every tire size, construction, and weight its carrying change the pressure at which this happens. On my rig I go about 22 psi on the fronts (keep in mind they are almost flat at about 15 psi). For the dual rears I let out air from ONE tire (inside or outside, doesn't matter) on each side, to say 15 pounds. You won't see rears pancake because the other tire will hold you up - until you hit the sand. DON'T FORGET THE TRAILER! It has to float, too, or it will anchor-in and bring you to a halt. I air down my trailer 245-75/16's to 25psi, with 11,000# that's when they are pancaking. Set up like this I pretty much stay on top of the sand, can even back-up a slight incline, provided ....

2) Patience. Most people get stuck by allowing their power to dig a hole under their tires before they get any forward momentum ... and then they sink into it and get stuck. Roll the power on S L O W L Y, just enough to get things moving, and then increase power as you get going. This means 4LO range, you have much better control over your wheel rotational speed. Don't spin your tires, if they start spinning you're digging holes and working on getting stuck. Yeah, yeah, I know - for a lightweight vehicle with lots of power and paddles, you can use Newton's law (for every action ... etc.) to propel yourself forward with those big roosters of sand - but that doesn't work for big trucks and skinny street tires. ('cause I've tried it, and had to spend the next hour digging!)

I've pulled out way too many leadfoots with my duallies, and they always go "wow, that thing must have Power!" Yeah, fine, but power isn't what did the trick, it was a light touch on the throttle, keeping my truck above the sand, and exerting a steady pull on the towed vehicle.

Difficulty traversing sand of course depends on conditions ... wet sand is much easier, as is coarse sand. Pismo can be tricky because near the water the sand is packed and wet, and the first thing you know ... Poof! You're stuck in the soft stuff. Pismo sand is finer than Glamis sand.

And yes, that old WW trailer weighs 11,200 full-up, because I've had it on a scale. Why do you think I'm towing it with a K3500 instead of a K1500? :)

Final note ... I can't wait for those damn skinny stock tires to wear out so I can get some decent meat on some rims ... I like using BFG All Terrain Radials, 245-75/16's, because they have really tough sidewalls. And when you pancake, the sidewalls take a beating.

Sure wish some wheel manufacturer (ALCOA?) would make us some larger/wider dually rims, maybe 18x7's or 19.5 x 7.5's or thereabouts. I want to keep a decent truck tire type (at least D range if possible), some good width, and yet still be dually. Oh yeah ... and not pay $1,000 for each wheel!

where i live the whole place is sand. i always gotta use 4 wheel if i get in sand


sand is way worse the snow

My brother put duals on the front f his 6x6 Army truck it looked pretty cool , it was pretty easy to.

thnaks guys for the advice , I have not been able to get some free time to go to the sand... But i will go some time for sure , and I will use the tricks ,,,,, and hopefully i wont get stuck! thanks !@

When in doubt....run some fat tires up front, and super singles in the back! :)

Can't say I've experienced the sand aspect too much, only in Daytona Beach, but that certainly isn't the same I know. Its so hard packed you can drive anything on it.

Snow is pretty much the opposite in fact, wider tires hurt your abilities as they stay "above" the snow. Skinny tires cut through the snow and can usually make their way to the pavement.

Buy 4 of these!

:grd: http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=22102&stc=1&d=1153097510

They actually will get you through the sand.....

For roughly $35,000 a set, I believe I could make the truck fly. But yeah, those are cool and work amazingly well.