Wire Wheels

In our quest to get wire wheels on our TR3, we've come across a set of really poor quality 48 spoke wheels. I am going to send them out to be sand blasted to see how bad they really are. My question is, does anyone know where I can buy spokes, and how do I go about repairing/tuning them if they are repairable.

Thanks
RL

Perhaps some help here.

https://www.hemmings.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/articles.editorial/article_id/589

For whatever it is worth, I think wire wheels on these older cars look far better than any other wheel. Classic looking Minilites are a close 2nd though.

Hi RL, Spokes for wire wheels are readily available from either Hendrix wire wheel on the east coast or British wire wheel here on the west coast.The 48 spoke wheels have a reputation of being a bit weak and are usually upgraded to 60 spoke wheels. However, if you purchase new spokes I would suggest that you get the Stainless Steel ones.---Fwiw---Keoke

Hey Earl,

I've got personal experience with Allen Hendrix here in Greensboro and he's a real standup guy. I bought a set of 72 spoke wheels to replace my worn out original wires. His price on Dayton's turned out to beat all of the big three.

Since you live in WV, it might be worth a trip to come to Greensboro to see him.

Where abouts in WV do you live? I grew up in Bluefield.

Sorry, don't mean to hijack the thread but while we're talking wire wheels, I'd like to get a quick show of hands on something. What do people think about chromed vs painted? I've always thought I'd end up eventually getting a set of panasports or something like that, but I saw a TR6 at my buddies shop the other day with wires on it and it really blew me away, I loved the look. This car had painted wires on it, and I think they looked just as good as chrome, in a different sort of way. The painted ones are also a good deal cheaper, so thats another advantage to getting them. Was wondering what others peoples opinions are.

Scott,

I think it really depends on the look you're going for. I have the chrome wheels on my TR6, which look 'less' racey IMO. My original wheels were painted, when I had my car at Hendrix, I just fell in lust with those chrome wires. I think it completes the look that I'M going for. Either way, painted or chrome, they look great.

Attached pics of before and after:

Before:


After:

The wires are certainly the classic look. My view is this: If you are one of those people who keep up with cleaning wheels, the chromes look great. They both look alike covered in dirt and grime.

My personal preference is for the painted though maybe the chrome suit the '6... they certainly look fine.

These have 60-spoke painted, I'm not sure you'll find 48-spoke robust enough for frequent driving though some keep a set to mount for car shows.








Quite right that either way looks best when kept clean. BTW, those are the same wheels in each shot as I switch back & forth with disc wheels. At least each time I swap 'em it's an opportunity to pressure wash them.

Hi,

Most commonly when wire wheels were fitted to TR2/3/4 orignally, they were painted. The most common color was argent, a slightly warm silver. However, the factory spare parts catalog for TR4 shows the following wire wheel options:

- painted, silver
- painted, body color
- satin chrome
- polished chrome

Personally, I like the looks of wire wheels a lot. To me they especially look appropriate on the TR2/3s.

But, wires add considerable weight - wheels/adapters/knock-offs. Worse, it's unsprung weight and will effect handling. On the other hand, track is widened 1", which might have some positive effect. That may or may not matter depending upon how the car is used.

Also, I'd be concerned about durability during regular use. Partly that's because I live in the city ranked as having the second worst streets and roads in the U.S., and a city council that's trying to solve their budget crisis by eliminating most street repair and maintenance funds. (But managed to keep their new $350 million city hall on track!)

Alan Myers
San Jose, Calif.
'62 TR4 CT17602L

In general, chrome wires were only popular in the US. Most true sports cars did not use chrome wire wheels, because the chroming process weakened the spokes.

I love the look of wires, and my personal belief is that TR2-TR-250s all look better with wires (although early TR2s never came with wires, so I'd go steel discs on those.)

For some reason, I like the TR6s with wires and disc wheels the same. Mostly it's because they look aggressive with the steel wheels, or classic with the wires. Neither is really better in my eyes.

While I think chrome wires look good on a GT car, I always associate painted wires with true sports cars.

DOT: What do people think about chrome wires vs painted. I think it boils down to LABOR. A set of chrome wires can easily be kept clean.Painted wheels require cleaning stripping and repainting to look good. But its an individual's choice---Keoke

I installed painted 72 spoke Dayton ww on my TR250 and I am very pleased with them. Being much tighter in construction than the old Rudge/Dunlop type wheel they do not leak grease from the hubs. The enamel finish seems to be smooth and glossy enough that dirt is not sticking much either. They are cleaning very easily.
On my previous car, an MGB from Arizona, the wheels might have been painted once but they had never rusted, and the finish was in excellent shape, without the minute pitting that you get with repainted wheels that were once rusty. Those little pocks collect dirt. And those old wheels still shed grease even though I had sealed the inside of the hub with silicone and used just the minimum of grease on the splines. Cleaning those wheels wasnt too bad and I found a citrus based bug and tar remover that you sprayed on and hosed off did the trick most of the time.
I once had a 66 E-type with chrome wires where the spokes had bled rust through. I cleaned everyone of those 72 spokes on five wheels with a Dremel tool They looked good from a few feet, but required frenquent cleaning with chrome polish to look good. The Dayton chrome wires use stainless spokes to avoid this and problems with spokes being weakened by chrome hardening.
As to looks, its a matter of taste I guess. Most every car at the shows seem to have chrome wire wheels, which is a little ironic as so very few MGs or TR were ever purchased with chrome wire wheels.

[ QUOTE ]
Most true sports cars did not use chrome wire wheels, because the chroming process weakened the spokes.

[/ QUOTE ]
While this is true, it "could" be avoided. The weakening is caused by hydrogen embrittlement. Hydrogen being trapped in the metal during chrome plating. The standard procedure for removing hydrogen from the plated steel consists of baking the part at 375 to 400 degrees F. for three to 24 hours as needed. The baking must be done within one hour or less of the plating.

I would imagine that this process adds greatly to the cost of the spokes. It is likely that some high dollar wheels for racing applications were done this way. Probably with many spoked wheels, this process was just omitted & left the spokes vulnerable to breakage, which they did. Much safer & cheaper to just paint the spokes. Since good stainless steel spokes came into being, it is no longer a problem.
D

On the chrome/painted thing you should take into consideration the color of the car. When I was replacing my painted wheels I thought I wanted chrome. I went to a speed shop that had chrome spoked wheels mounted for display. I took two out and set them by my car and got a big suprise. My car is Primrose Yellow and the chrome wheels overwhelmed the color of the car so I went with painted. If the car had been red or black I'm sure I would have done chrome.

Wire Wheels: Restoration

While this discussion is going strong, I'd like to ask how people prepare their original wires for refinishing.

I have a set of original 48 spokes that are in decent shape (roundness / spoke tension / etc) but need painted. I cringe at the thought of blast grit in the spoke threads (or wire heads). How about paint stripper and high pressure water followed by hand sanding as required for 'tooth'?

Dave

Thanks for all the input guys, and I have to agree that the painted wires looking original, but the chrome wheels do add a nice touch. The problem with both of them is that we seem to be locked into a single supplier. Besides Dayton I've found a wire wheel supplier that sells chrome wires in the $110 range. The problem is that they don't have wheels that will fit our cars. They sell a 14X6, 15X7 but nothing in the 15X4 - 15x5 range.
Oh well, I guess it's back to ebay.
RL

Re: Wire Wheels: Restoration

If it were me and the wheels were a bit rusty...I would use electrolysis.

Just need a container large enough to submerge the wheel.

Here is a link that you might find helpful


https://www.davidbradley.net/ERR.html

Earl I would advise againt buying used wire wheels from a stranger (ebay) because the condition of the splined hub is very hard to evaluate unless you have a new one to compare with or are an expert. So it's not just the spokes being loose or the rims bent that you have to worry about.I agree that 60 spokes would be better except for gentle driving.
I too prefer the look of painted wires, although stainless spokes have resolved the earlier problems with embrittlement; I feel the chrome look is flashy, like cheap costume jewellry. On red, dark blue or green cars I like the look of wires painted white or cream, though its probably not original I have seen quite a few cars that way.
Finally, if you do buy used try to get a set without tires on them as you can do a simple test to see if they are more or less true by rolling them on a flat surface to see if they wobble.
Simon.

[ QUOTE ]
...The problem with both of them is that we seem to be locked into a single supplier. Besides Dayton I've found a wire wheel supplier that sells chrome wires in the $110 range. The problem is that they don't have wheels that will fit our cars. They sell a 14X6, 15X7 but nothing in the 15X4 - 15x5 range...

[/ QUOTE ]

As stated, wire wheels are one thing I would not look to eBay for.

I believe there is a source other than Dayton as (I think) the Moss wheels are Dunlops (now made in India or maybe Pakistan). One of the big 3 does warn against using these wheels, but then they are the one who sells the Daytons.

I have the Moss/Dunlops and thus far (5 years) have found them to be round and durable. Painted, 60 spoke, 15x4.5 are $189 in the catalog -- maybe less from a Moss distributor (particularly if local as you avoid shipping).

Has anyone tried powder coating the wheels? I was thinking of having a set made for my TR-6, which is Mimosa (yellow) and was wondering if the heating to 450 F would affect the wheels or spokes? Maintenance would be easier if the powder coating held up.

Paul