the tire height also determines with width, it dosent make sense but a 275 is not a 275. A 275/60 vs. a 275/50 on the same rim, the width is going to be different.
The 275/40 will work great on a 10'' rim. It seems like drag radials work best on the widest rim they can fit on. MT reccomends a 9-11" rim for the 275/40 drag radial. Alot of the guys in the 275 class are even running a 12" beadlock on the 275/60 wheels
Buddy of mine was a manager of a discount tire for about ten years and what he said was pretty much in line with this below. I was off on the
tread width, it's
section with I was thinking-but that number doesn't change. Width is width according to the tire guys.
This is from tirerack.com's how to read tire numbers:
Section Width
Following the letter(s) that identify the type of vehicle and/or type of service for which the tire was designed, the three-digit numeric portion identifies the tire's "Section Width" (cross section) in millimeters.
P225/50R16 91S
The 225 indicates this tire is 225 millimeters across from the widest point of its outer sidewall to the widest point of its inner sidewall when mounted and measured on a specified width wheel. This measurement is also referred to as the tire's section width. Because many people think of measurements in inches, the 225mm can be converted to inches by dividing the section width in millimeters by 25.4 (the number of millimeters per inch).
225mm / 25.4 = 8.86"
Sidewall Aspect Ratio
Typically following the three digits identifying the tire's Section Width in millimeters is a two-digit number that identifies the tire's profile or aspect ratio.
P225/50R16 91S
The 50 indicates that this tire size's sidewall height (from rim to tread) is 50% of its section width. The measurement is the tire's section height, and also referred to as the tire's series, profile or aspect ratio. The higher the number, the taller the sidewall; the lower the number, the lower the sidewall. We know that this tire size's section width is 225mm and that its section height is 50% of 225mm. By converting the 225mm to inches (225 / 25.4 = 8.86") and multiplying it by 50% (.50) we confirm that this tire size results in a tire section height of 4.43". If this tire were a P225/70R16 size, our calculation would confirm that the size would result in a section height of 6.20", approximately a 1.8-inch taller sidewall.