For those that have used a Tire Mountmate:

http://www.autowaretech.com/mountmate/index.html
http://www.autowaretech.com/mountmate/images/mm2.jpg

in your experience was the tool worth it? Especially given the cost of 379?

I'm coming up on finishing my entire suspension and going to need to measure for wheels/tires. I want to get rims once and have them be perfectly sized, so I thinking about buying one of these to make sure.

Any experiences you can share about this tool would be much appreciated!

Thanks in advance.

You can buy this one and have enough money left over to buy a fat tire !!!

http://store.summitracing.com/egnsearch.asp?N=400251+320134+115&autoview=sku

Most guys on the sight can tell you what fit their rides and save yourself 100% of the money! I would just ask questions to get the back spacing you need in a particular size. Most all camaros will not vary enough to keep a size from fitting and not cause a problem.

I have done a bit of research. So far I think a 17x8 (245/45/17) in the front at 4.875 or 4.75 backspacing and with a mini-tub in the rear with a stock rear end and a 17x11 rim (335/35/17) a backspacing of 7" or 7.125" should be close (anyone care to comment?).

I am trying to run close to the maximum size tires. Since I only want to buy rims and tires once, I am bit nervous without knowing for sure that they will fit. I'd much rather spend $400.00 extra dollars on a tool than buy 2 sets of rims/tires. Especially since it seems a lot of people just sell the tire tool after they are done and get 2/3-3/4 their back on the tool anyways.

I used a mountmate to figure my bs out. It worked good. You have to have the tire you want to use. The challenge is for the front at least, having the car jacked up with weight on the suspension and turning the wheels side to side.

I think I could have done almost as well with a tape measure and a square. We know that a 26" (+/-0.5") diameter tire fits our first gens best. So it's just a matter of nailing the backspace not choosing between many different tires.

For me it's easier to think about "front space" instead of backspace. 1st gens had about 3.25" of front space on the wheel from the factory. So if you want to go wider than stock, all the remaining width has to go to the back space. So an 8" wheel minus 3.25" equals a 4.75" bs. You can't increase front space or the tires will stick out too far.

Your front number looks good to me. Is your car mini tubbed? That's the only way you'll get a 335 on.

When you get ready to "pull the trigger" talk to Frank at Prodigy/GP Superstore. He'll help get you pointed in the right direction. He offers his help free of charge even if you don't order from him. But he does "have the hookup" on a lot of cool wheels.

Good luck.

Thanks Steve for sharing your experience. Yep, my car is mini-tubbed.

I run a 17x8 in the front with 5" back spacing and a 245/45/17 which pretty much known on the site, but you are running a different size and seems you got it taken care of. I cannot help on the backspacing for a mini tubbed rear as mine isn't done yet! However, it will be in the near future and I will probably use this post along with others to nail the backspaing! Currently I run a 17x9.5 w/5.5 spacing on a 315/35/17 which fits nicely and has no rubbing issues at all