• Hi Guest!
    You can help ensure that British Car Forum (BCF) continues to provide a great place to engage in the British car hobby! If you find BCF a beneficial community, please consider supporting our efforts with a subscription.
    There are some perks with a member upgrade!
    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Subscribers don't see this gawd-aweful banner
Tips
Tips

Wire Wheel Concerns

Share this page

R

rusty55

Jedi Hopeful
Offline
We have brand new wire wheels, hubs, and knockoff nuts on the TR3.
I was cornering today, rather aggressively, since it is a sports car, and I got to thinking. Are these wheels held on by only the knockoffs? My father in law really assembled the car, therefore, I'm not familiar with what, if anything, keeps that knockoff from just backing off. I've put a wrench on them a couple times since we've had the car to make sure they're tight and no problems.
Should this be something I obsess over or if they're tight, they're tight?
I looked in my catalog and don't see any sort of pin or anything else besides the knockoff.

thanks for any info that might help me sleep better :smile:
 
You'll note that the left side and right side of the car have opposite thread patterns -- the result is that these big nuts tend to be self-tightening.

I have never heard of a properly installed knock-off in good nick coming undone.
 
OK then. I shall corner with confidence and sleep well tonight. Thanks
 
However, beware towing one of these backwards! I had a TR6 parts car on the wrecker once and one of the wires passed me on the passenger side of the road. The wheel was easy to find, but it took us a while to find the knock-off.
 
Aloha Rust,

The knock off nut is not the thing to be concerned about, as others have noted it is self tightening. The hubs are attached to the axle assembly by four nuts. When you have brake work done, especailly the rear wheels make sure those are tightened to specs.
 
One of the things that really caught my attention when I first got my TR3 was how vigorously mechanics who worked on the car whacked the knock off nuts. I thought for sure they were hitting them too hard with the special hammer that is made for that purpose, but they assured me that the knock off nut has to be pounded until it no longer moves on the spline. I have followed their instructions, but have used the rawhide side of the hammer instead of the copper side for the most part (last strike is with the copper side).

Bottom line: I don't think you can get them quite tight enough using a wrench. A hammer is what you need to use.

If I'm off base, others will correct me.
 
LexTR3 said:
...how vigorously mechanics who worked on the car whacked the knock off nuts...
Click to expand...

IMO, that is not necessary. I get 'em snug then hit them (length of 1x1 oak hit with a 3 lbs dead-blow hammer) to move the knock-ff about another quarter inch.

Never had one loosen. As mentioned somewhere above, correct tightening of the bevel nuts holding the adaptor in place is a critical thing (as are any lug nuts).
 
George. I feel much more comfortable with your approach. By using the rawhide side of the hammer, instead of the copper side, I have lessened the effect of the whacking that the mechanics used on the wheels. I'm still amazed, however, that many hammers come with both sides in copper, and one hammer sold looks like a lead hammer!

In any case, I'm a little skeptical about using a wrench, even though the knock-offs are self-tightening. And most knock-offs with ears, I believe, don't have an extension or lug that can be gripped by a wrench.
 
LexTR3 said:
../. I'm still amazed, however, that many hammers come with both sides in copper, and one hammer sold looks like a lead hammer!
Click to expand...

Actually, lead is the preferred material for whacking the knock-offs. Lead, and the plastic dead blow hammers are the only ones that will not mar the chrome on the knock-off. I've tried copper and brass, and they all leave marks. I currently use a 4 lb. lead hammer.
 
I did have a wheel loosen while cruising the Blue Ridge Parkway. Luckily I noticed the car felt funny and stopped before it came off...but it was close (in more ways than 1!). The wheels were brand new, so I think they were still mating to the hub and nut, as they never loosened after that. I now put them on pretty tight and checked often with a wack...just for insurance.

John
 
Darrell_Walker said:
There is this "wrench":

https://www.mossmotors.com/Shop/ViewProducts.aspx?PlateIndexID=37175
Click to expand...

Those so called wrenches will last about 5 whacks with a hammer before starting to split apart. I trashed the one I had. I use a pure lead hammer and it leaves no marks on the knock offs. These knock offs are going on 6 years old and these wheels get pulled for cleaning before every show. Here's a photo. PJ

 
CJD said:
I did have a wheel loosen while cruising the Blue Ridge Parkway....
Click to expand...
What is almost as exciting is the rather helpless feeling one gets when a particularly worn set of splines on both hub and wheel results in said wheel continuing to turn once the brakes have stopped the hub! :cry:
 
Had something similar happen to me when I converted my car back to wire wheels. Thought I could hold the front rotor with one hand and tighten the adapter hub nuts with a ratchet in the other hand.

Remember going around a corner and hearing a clunk-a-clunk-a-clunk sound as the nuts had loosened up letting the hub flop around. Luckily caught it in time before losing the wheel or any damage was done.

Glad that I learned enough about the correct ways of working cars before I hurt myself!

Scott
 
I, too, had one of those wooden "wrenches." And it, too, lasted about four or five whacks before it started to break apart. Besides... you have to use a hammer or mallet to tighten the hub with this "wrench."

Lead hammer is good.... but I prefer using the rawhide side of a rawhide/copper hammer. Only problem is that the rawhide doesn't last very long.

I would prefer solid steel wheels, but (1) not available new and (2) used ones are questionable. Once they get bent, there's no fixing them, so I am repeatedly told.
 
I have a lead hammer but prefer the 4 lb. neon orange dead blow from Harbor Freight. No marks, never misplace it with that color and very reasonable at $12.

And don't forget to have that wheel off the ground and free to spin when knocking those nuts tighter!
 
John. Good point about having the wheel off the ground. Less stress on the spokes/wires.
 
Quoth the factory:
"Restraining the wheel with one hand, continue tightening by striking the ears of the nut with a soft faced hammer or on later cars, tighten wheel nut with special wrench included with tool kit. Lower the wheel to the ground and finally tighten."

https://www.triumphsonly.com/pages/technical/1-f-1.htm


Compared to what happens when you dump the clutch in 1st, or hit a pothole in the road, banging on those knockoffs just isn't going to make any difference to the spokes.
 
Back
Top