Being on a relatively tight budget I’m not in a position to go long-travel
with my Rhino or even buy offset wheels for that matter. The next best choice
to go wider for more stability for me was wheel spacers. So I picked up a set
of these 2” billet aluminum wheel spacers from Dirt Demon Racing (www.dirtdemonracing.com).
I chose to use them only in the rear because putting them on the front will
make the steering more difficult. These spacers are CNC machined from 6061-T6
aircraft grade billet aluminum making them both strong and light. I didn’t
weigh them but holding them in my hand I can tell you they are pretty light.
As you can see in the pictures the installation is super simple. Just remove
the tires, bolt the spacers on with the lug nuts that are included, and then
bolt your wheels onto the spacers using the stock lug nuts.
I installed mine at camp in the dunes, and it took less than
ten minutes. The wife was expecting it to be some major ordeal and was shocked
when she walked up a few minutes later and I was already finished.
Before
After
So far I’ve only had a chance to test them at the Glamis sand dunes in
California. I had about 950 miles on my Rhino before installing these so I was
very used to how a stock Rhino handles. Over the weekend I put just over a
hundred miles on the Rhino with the spacers installed. I’d definitely say
it’s more stable. Being four inches wider total physics tells us it has to
be more stable. But what matters is seat of the pants. That weekend I went on
several fast rides, which in a Rhino means staying between 30 and 45mph
through the dunes, so I got a good feel for the difference. Before at these
speeds I was right on the edge of tipping up on two wheels, and sometimes
would, but now it definitely is more stable in the turns. And if there was any
chance of them breaking they would have already because I bottomed out the
suspension quite hard, oh… about a bazillion times. If they can hold up to
that abuse then they should be fine for anything. Although I would suggest
anyone running them to check the tightness of the lug nuts that hold the
spacers on at least once a weekend. If those come loose you’re going to have
troubles.
For around $130 these are a good investment for those who aren’t going to go
long-travel.
