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Decision needed for wheel choice....

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Rob_P

Rob_P

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Darn,
I didn't think i would have to make this decision so soon.

When I bought my '76B it came with the wire wheels (which were supposed to be good)

I really like the look of the wire wheels but i know that they can be a pain in the rear, with the tubes and such.

Closer inspection on the wheels shows that the splines on one of them (the right rear) are pretty worn.

So now the dilemma. Do I spend the money/time trying to find a used wire wheel? I will probably then have to paint all 4 so they will match properly.

Or do I suck it up and replace them all now.

I have been told that the only things i will need to change over are the hubs, which i can get used for about $100 (for 4)

I was hoping to be able to ride the wire wheels for a while and get a feel for how reliable they will be.

What would you do?

I do prefer the look of the wire wheels, but I am coming around on the minilites. Some of the recently posted pics of them have me leaning that way as well.

Rob
 
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:]Or do I suck it up and replace them all now.[/QUOTE]
Yes.

Mixing and matching used wheels and hubs will only lead to more pain and money later on. I went against my own advise on this once and ended up losing a wheel on the road. It's a large investment, but a new set of hubs and wheels will last a lifetime, will perform better and will keep you safer.
 
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I'm in the same boat with my GT6. I recently saw one identical to mine with the Minilite clones on it, and based on the looks of it, decided to go with the new wires.
Jeff
 
Alternatively, Dayton makes a tubeless wire wheel. The only problem I see is I don't know whether or not they make one that you can use with your splined hubs. It's still worth checking out, IMO.
 
Yes, they do. They are the same as any other wire wheel except that they have a safety lip on the rim, and the back side of the spoke nipples have a heavy silicon-like sealer on them.

It's still a good idea to carry a spare tube in the trunk in case the seal is damaged while on the road.
 
I have heard good things about the dayton tubleless wire wheel, but i believe they can cost a pretty penny. Over 5 bills for each wheel. I am hoping to get all of them for that price /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif

Looks like i'll be on ebay for a while.

Thanks, you guys confirmed what i was thinking.

Rob
 
I've got Dayton chrome tubeless spokes on my 67 GT, totally trouble free spoke wheels. Make sure you have REALLY good spline hubs when you replace your wheels.
 

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Rob_P said:
I have heard good things about the dayton tubleless wire wheel, but i believe they can cost a pretty penny. Over 5 bills for each wheel. I am hoping to get all of them for that price /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif
Click to expand...

1 - you will have these wheels for as long as you own your car - don't be afraid to spend a little.

2 - they don't cost $500 each, more like $300 - 350. There is a guy selling them on Ebay as low as you'll find them - the mad dentist - nice guy. Had them do up some AC Cobra 15 x 6 rims for my Jamaican

3 - Steve, no need to carry a tube. The sealant on the nipple ends is thick enoug not to ever have a problem, and if it did a tube of silicone would get you home.

4 - like Hap says - BIG mistake to put new wheels on anything but pristine hubs. Use worn ones and throw your investment away. I bought 4 new hubs for the MGC when I replaced the wheels, and yes, it did hurt (a lot more than MGB would have), but I won't be wearing out the new wheels any time soon.

It took the last owners 100,000 miles to trash your original wires and hubs. Not only will that sort of mileage get you well into the 2050s, I expect everyone here will take better care of their cars than the old owners did, so basically you are making a lifetime investment in the car.
 
I put 15" Panasports on my 79B. Could not be happier.

Are the hubs bolt on or do you need to get new axles in the rear?

I plan to put them on my TR3 also..But that could be many years from now.
 

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The hubs are bolt on, so I do not have to change out the axle.

man, some great suggestions here.

The biggest problem is I don't want to spend too much on the tires since I don't know what other work may be in my future.

Right now I am leaning towards the 2 extremes:

get some used rims off of an old Z, and 4 used hubs. put the $50 Kuhmos on them and drive it for a while.

Or suck it up and go with the tubeless Daytons now. I would hate to pay all that money for the rims/hubs only to find some big expense over the horizon. I don't foresee any more big expenses, but that doesn't guarantee they won't come.
 
??? conversion from steel wheel to wires sometime in the car's history? errr... what's it called "Splined hub adapters"?

If you have steel wheel hubs, with bolt-on splined hubs, you may be able to just unbolt the splined hubs and bolt on a set of wheels of your desire. That also allows you the option of bolt-on wire wheels that Dayton makes. So, if the splined hubs are worn out it's possible for you to not even use them with the new wheels, and with out the cost of new hub adapters it should be a bit less pricey.
 
Hmmmm,
I am probably messing up the terminology.

My current splined hubs are not bolted to a bolt on hub.

But I have been told that I will not require new axles.

I believe the earlier cars need to change the axles, but the RB cars can swap out the hubs.

I probably have my facts all screwy.

Rob
 
Rob_P said:
Right now I am leaning towards the 2 extremes:

get some used rims off of an old Z, and 4 used hubs. put the $50 Kuhmos on them and drive it for a while.
Click to expand...
Thats a pretty good option.

I'm still running a set of wheels that came off of a 240z. Got'em off of ebay for a couple hundred bucks back in 2002. Currently running some Bridgestone Potenza 195/60x14’s and like the look & feel.

zwheels.jpg


Here's a close up;
alloywheel.jpg
 
Looks good!
Makes me wish i kept the wheels off of my 260Z many moons ago. That car rusted so bad on me the engine almost fell out! I didn't even notice until it started overheating (the radiator hose kinked from the engine moving so much. The side draft carbs were smashed up against the fender. good times.....
 
I'm confused...

Do you want to stay with wire wheels or switch to bolt-on's?

Are you talking replacing bad wire wheel hubs with good wire wheel hubs? Or are you talking replacing wire wheel hubs with rostyle-type hubs?
 
Hey Tony,
That's the thing, I haven't decided. In a perfect world I would want the tubeless wire wheels.

Trying to save some money that will be used for other things.

So my second option was to go with some decent bolt ons, if i can find a good deal used.

My other option was to replace the one bad wire wheel, but I am hesitant to put money in the current wire wheels as they may give problems down the road.

With the used wheels option, I can drive the car, get it to be dependable (it is not a daily driver, so it doesn't need to be perfect) then down the line if i want to go with the wire wheels, I can do it then.

to answer your question, if i went with the new Dayton tubeless i would want to replace my hubs with new ones (so not to ruin the new splines)

If i find some decent tires for a good price, I can get 4 used bolt on hubs for about 25 a piece.

Rob
 
The deal with axles is this... Wire wheel and steel wheel axle housings are different lengths. Therefore you need to change the entire rear axle, not just half shafts or hubs, to achieve a proper conversion.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:]3 - Steve, no need to carry a tube. The sealant on the nipple ends is thick enoug not to ever have a problem, and if it did a tube of silicone would get you home.[/QUOTE]
That's fine if you're just running around town. However if you need a tire replaced far from home and the tire shop damages the seal, then you're stuck until you can locate an inner tube. A single tube takes up no storage space and costs only $12. It's one heck of a good insurance policy!
 
Steve - you got to where I was going with my questions....
 
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