Rims and tires for my Wee Wind

[vonkamp]

I got home from Thanksgiving holiday and one of my tires On the Wee Wind is flat. No big deal, I knew I needed new ones as these were dry-rotted bad. Well, it turns out I have a 16" rim on one side and a 15" rim on the other .

Okay two tires, two rims. The lug pattern is 5 by 5.5. The only ones I could get were the wagon wheel type. That ought to look real good...Not.
I got 'em anyway as I need to be able to move it.
That's my Airstream story this week. No morale, no point.
Cheers,
Baron

[59toaster]

That is a weird lug pattern these days. Tried figuring out what came with that wide of pattern that might be common

Might check with Fred
http://www.airforums.com/forum...47weewind.html

Did some looking around. that was a common lug pattern used by Ford back i nthe 40's and 50's.
Found a set of them for sale too that were really nice on H.A.M.B. but they already sold.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=97478

I would go through the for sale forum on that site. Lots of vintage car parts and probably your best chance of finding anything reasonably priced used.

http://www.stocktonwheel.com/ can probably get or make new.

In fact the have some Chrome nostalgia wheels
http://www.stocktonwheel.com/nostalgia_wheels.htm

[clancy_boy]

I have three. I changed my axle and the new bolt pattern was 6 lug - 5.5 inch so I bought new rims. I have the three that came on the Caravel in your bolt pattern. One has a tire on it - old - and two are rim only with new valve stems. Want them?

[clancy_boy]

I see you are in FL and near where we are having the Florida Can Opener Rally in January 2007. Come by and I can bring the rims there - they are OEM and older but have no damage and surface rust only. Join in the rally and show us your Wee Wind.

[vonkamp]

Wow! This forum the BEST!! Thanks guys.

I should take a close look at my axle/hub condition first. If I need to replace, I may go to a 6 lug.
Thanks again,
Baron

[47WeeWind]

Originally Posted by 59toaster

That is a weird lug pattern these days. Tried figuring out what came with that wide of pattern that might be common. Might check with Fred ... Did some looking around. that was a common lug pattern used by Ford back i nthe 40's and 50's.

The wheels used on the 48-49 Wee Winds were contemporary 16" Mercury car wheels, kissin' cousins to Fords.

[vonkamp]

Originally Posted by clancy_boy

I see you are in FL and near where we are having the Florida Can Opener Rally in January 2007. Come by and I can bring the rims there - they are OEM and older but have no damage and surface rust only. Join in the rally and show us your Wee Wind.

I would really love to go but it is a busy time of the year for me and the only way the Wee Wind could make it is on a flatbed truck. I don't expect it to be roadworthy for a while. I would like to get 2 rims from you so I can get some cool moon hubcaps and fat white wall tires.
I am really looking forward to getting it done and on the road so I can attend some of these rally's.
I must get done with the boat.........
Cheers,
Baron

[vonkamp]

The story continues.....
Bought 2 tires & rims from local tire store, they said it would work. Well of course they did not fit. Returned them & got my $$$ back.
Now what I want is just a tire to go on my original rim. What I need is a 600 x 16 tire. They are having a hard time locating one for me.

The tire that needs to be replaced has a tube. Can you put a tubeless tire on that rim? Tire guy say's yes but they have not been right on much so far .
Thanks,
Baron

[scottanlily]

Hello vonkamp ,just went to the Coker Tire website for you ,they offer 6 or 7
600-16 tires ,tube type ,some white wall ,some blackwall .from 95 to 264 $$
depends on what you want .They are 4 ply polyester and 27 /28 inches in
diameter .Seems they are only 3 to 4 inches wide though ,but they have them .they mount on a 5.5 inch rim .coker is top notch in the custom car and
restoration arena .They will look for more choices as well if you ask them .


Scott

[safari57]

Coker are great people to deal with. You can also ask them about tube versus tubeless with the rims you have. Check the backside of the rims to see if there are any numbers on them - I can't remember if rims of that vintage had numbers stamped or not. Don't forget you will also need a spare so you'll want three wheels/tires the same I suspect.
Barry