Petition to restart Rock Warrior wheel production

https://c.org/2vLVzd9pqN

 

Lucky to have 5 of them.

 

They have gotten so damn expensive on the secondary market, this was the only solution I came up with...

 

The Legend of the Rock Warrior (and the "Bolt" from the Blue)


If you know, you know. The Toyota Tundra Rock Warrior wheels are the "Holy Grail" for Tundra and 200 Series Land Cruiser owners. They’ve got that legendary forged strength and the absolute perfect offset for fitting 35" and even larger tires without the dreaded "rub-a-dub-dub" in the wheel well.

But as any Rock Warrior owner will tell you: with great offset comes great responsibility.

The Achilles' Heel

Behind that rugged look lies a delicate situation. The shallow depth of the ring bolts is a notorious weak point. Between road salt corrosion and the soft aluminum threads in the rim, you’re often one tire rotation away from a headache.

The Struggle is Real:

• Seized Solid: Corrosion makes those bolts feel like they were welded on at the factory.

• The "Strip" Show: One over-torque and those aluminum threads are gone, leaving your ring bolts rattling down the highway.

• The Surgery: Once they’re out, it’s a high-stakes game of precision drilling and thread repair to get that ring secured again.

The Verdict?

Are they worth the hunt and the premium price for that perfect 35+ fitment? Absolutely. But if you're lucky enough to run a set, treat those ring bolts with more respect than your first-born. A little anti-seize and a light touch go a long way in keeping these legends on the road!

Who else is rocking the Warriors with big rubber? Let’s see those setups in the comments!

 

@FNWheels

 

I already own my set but...what about 6 lugs for the Gen 3.

 

I honestly had no idea! See these are the things only RRW owners know lol

 

If Dustin gets a group buy going for rock warrior dimension BFDs I’ll buy a set for me, one lucky winner he draws or chooses, and help coordinate however else I can

 

What rims do you have on your truck now? They look factory but from which model?

 

are 35’s considered big rubber now a days?

 

BFD modern Rockwarriors would be awesome. I liked the OG ones so much ended up with three sets and refurbished them.

 

Is 2300$ too much for a set? On FBMP not far from me.

 

I can’t say what I want to say.

 

Lexus 550 Overtrail (Land Cruiser) Got them from Texas Truck Tire. Okay prices and easy to deal with. Good selection of takeoffs.

 

I'd say yes. The secondary market for RRW's is just nuts.

 

Thanks for tagging me @Shanet421 and @BuzzardsGottaEat !

Our fully forged 17" Rock Warrior wheels should be ready to ship in about 45 days +/- in 5x150.

We've also made prototypes of an 18" version and 6x139.7 17" and 18" versions. Those should be ready a little later.

Our Rock Warrior wheels are going to be made in small production runs (not mass produced). We're making small batches because of the relatively high cost of producing fully forged wheels (as opposed to cast or flow formed wheels). If we have continued demand we'll continue producing the wheels. I've got a lot invested into producing these Rock Warrior wheels. We thought about making them mass produced flow formed wheels, which would still be excellent quality and on par with our other flow formed wheels, but I had a feeling that Tundra owners would expect any Rock Warrior wheel to be forged since the original was forged.

We improved the strength of the wheel, particularly the weak rear flange of the OEM Rock Warrior wheels. Improving the strength was of particular importance to me, because of the popularity of Kai aka Tinkerer's Adventure Youtube video explaining how to fit 37" tires on Rock Warrior wheels. The OEM Rock Warrior wheels weren't load rated for tires larger than 33" in diameter. Yes, I am aware of many who have installed 35's and 37's on them, but I'm also aware of issues like this:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/am-i-the-only-one-breaking-rock-warriors.1314858/

I wanted to make sure that I could offer a wheel that was truly designed and load rated for 37" tires. We reinforced both the front and rear flange of the wheel and added strength improvements across the barrel of the wheel in order to pass load testing for the Tundra GAWR with 37" tires.

We also increased the height and thickness of the safety bead humps for better bead retention at low psi. The OEM Rock Warrior wheels have tiny bead humps, which is sub-optimal for offroading, particular with the tires are aired down. Our Rock Warrior wheels have taller, thicker bead humps so that you're much less likely to debead when offroading.

Our Rock Warrior wheels are hub centric, but we've also drilled them to accept extended thread (ET) lugs for maximum stud engagement with short, OEM Toyota wheel studs. This is an improvement over the originals which only used standard conical seat lug nuts.

The removable / replaceable billet rings for our Rock Warrior wheels are fully polished and clear coated. Our wheel use M8X1.25 fasteners for the ring, unlike the OEM wheels which used an uncommon and almost unobtainable M8x1.0 thread pitch.

Our wheels are compatible with the OEM plastic caps (which were discontinued), but of course our wheels will come with improved solid billet, fully cnc machined forged aluminum caps. In fact I released the caps as replacement caps for the OEM Rock Warrior wheels earlier this year. See this thread here:

https://www.tundras.com/threads/need-rock-warrior-center-caps.117599/page-4

This isn't an exhaustive list. I plan to make a few short videos and lots of posts here explaining in further detail. I'll post specs and more pictures later today.

On a personal note, as a Tundra enthusiast, I am extremely excited about these wheels. This has been a project that I've been working on for nearly two years. I have a lot of time and money invested to this. It's definitely been a passion project for me, and I will be installing a set on my 2019 Tundra really soon.

 

These are such an excellent example of one's love and passion for what they do.

Let's see a full polished version for those with deep pockets.

Can't wait to see them on your rig...thanks Dustin!

 

Here's our prototype in 6x139.7.

The specs for this wheel are 18x8.5" et45 6x139.7 (95.1mm hub centric center bore). We can also make this wheel in 17x8.5" et40 6x139.7 for the 3rd Gen Tundra.

Color shown for this prototype is matte black with polished billet aluminum (removable) rock ring. This wheel is compatible with the OEM TRD center cap or our optional replacement caps.

Please forgive the smudges on the ring. I sprayed it and wiped it down with a microfiber cloth, but I must have smudged it when adjusting it for the picture.



17" vs 18" for comparison (these are 3D renderings, not actual wheels like the wheel pictured above):

 

This is phenomenal news! I’ll be spreading the word there’s a new king of best of the best dimensions and strength around!

 

Simply incredible! I had no idea FN was working on this.

 

The OEM Rock Warrior wheels are/were prone to corrosion because they were unpainted behind the face of the wheel:







Our wheel is fully finished front to back for improved durability:

 

We'll be offering two different fitment options in 5x150 in May of 2026:

• 17x8.0" +45mm 5x150
  • 8" rim width is optimal for use with narrower (skinnier) tires.
  • +45mm is the perfect offset for those looking to replicate Tinkerer's Adventure 37x11.50R17 fitment on a "stock" Tundra.
    
    +45mm offset provides the optimal scrub radius for the 2nd Gen Tundra with 37x11.50R17 tires.
    

https://youtu.be/Q7MyN1qOFgs?si=k1Tt1NAGfvCh-9G9​

• 17x8.5" +35mm 5x150
  • The slightly wider width provides better support for wider tires such as 315/70R17, 35x12.50R17, 37x12.50R17.
    • Certain tires in this size (for example - BFG KO2/KO3 and Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac) require an 8.5" minimum rim width.
  • The slightly lower offset and backspacing will provide better upper control arm, sway bar and skid plate clearance with wider tires.

I am considering adding an 18" option as well. If you guys would like to see an 18" version please let me know.

 

Personally, the appeal of 17” wheel size is perfect. Possibly because many tire manufacturers offer SL or C-rated tires in larger diameters vs. an 18” wheel size. Some may find an 18” wheel appealing due to avoiding issues with balancing weights not being properly installed by tire shops and possibly contacting the brake calipers.

 

@haikin I also prefer 17" diameter, especially now that there are more options for narrow 34", 35" and 37" tires.

I often have customers who prefer 18", so we decided to make a prototype in 18" as well.

 

Just wishing these hadn’t grown so much on me now! Perhaps 37s will make up for it

 

Have you gotten far enough along to price them?

 

The big question

 

I have it in the back of my mind that I need to go to 37s with 17" Rock Warrior wheels.

I run 285/75R18 with TRD BBS wheels right now. Everything about the way they fit is perfect. They don't rub. I don't care about the look or the "poke" as much as what these tires let me do, and these were the most plug-and-play option for getting max ground clearance with an OEM suspension setup (I have the TRD Fox kit, which has a 2" lift up front).

My question is, what options for 37s are there in a 285mm width (or close to it)? It seems most are 37x12.5...

If there were such a thing as a 37" x 285mm for 17" wheels, I'd go that route.

 

Yes. Our 17" forged Rock Warrior wheels with removable billet ring will be right around $550 per wheel + shipping. Final price to be determined this May, but it shouldn't exceed $550 per wheel.

This is on par or less than what most 10+ year old used sets in rough condition are going for. I know because I purchased multiple used wheels for R&D, some of which were extremely rough (barrel completely corroded, ring seized up, lips bent, etc.).

In your case, the size to go with is 37x11.50R17. As far as I know Nitto is the only manufacturer who offers this size.

https://www.nittotire.com/light-truck-tires/recon-grappler-all-terrain-light-truck-tire/



Taller tires exert more stress and strain on the rim because of added the leverage and weight. It's important to use a wheel that has been tested for use with the tires you intend to install and load rated for your truck's GVWR/GAWR with those taller tires.

Our 17x8" +45 Rock Warrior wheel will be perfect if you want to go this route, since our wheel has been designed, tested and load rated for use with up to 37" tires.