Sooo dropped the front of my 55 Merc last weekend using the aerostar springs, which im happy to report worked out great. Car had been sitting on stands for about 6 months, i guess i forgot one of the back tires had been taken of at some point, and i had only half finger tightened the lugs Drove a few blocks and started hearing a clank got home and found the source. Could have ended up a lot worse. Going to have to replace the wheel studs and lug nuts for sure, the question is, is this rim salvagable? Will it be fine once i seat the lugs in real tight?
Think i already knew the answer to that question, just hoping the community would jump in and say ITS FINE! Oh well. Time to start the search, anyone holding 1 x 15' 1955ish ford rim? Hopefully Houston area?
Ive always wondered if you could put washers on before the lug nuts, true the rim on the hub, torque the nuts, deform the washers,tack weld the washers, then add weld on the back of the washers to restore the metal that had been lost, remove the washer on the front. Extreme? No more than making a four door car into a two door
The Mercs used a 5 x 5" bolt circle beginning in 1955. However only the '55/'56 used 15" wheels with that bolt pattern....'57 thru '60 were 14". (also 14" in 61 thru '64 but used the 4.5" bolt pattern shared with Ford). So, I think you need a '55/'56 Merc wheel for a direct match. But, if you just want a 15" x 5" bolt circle, A '50s (thru '56) Pontiac or Olds wheel will fit. So will a Buick, but the cener hole and appearance is quite a bit different. Ray
I can give you a 5 on 5 x15 Buick wheel, if you're running full caps the appearance won't be noticed.. can give two if you need one for your spare
I have welded washers over the chewed holes and had them work out OK. But I was poor and had washers and a welder. I can't suggest that you do that for a driver wheel, maybe be OK for a spare.
^^^^^^^^^to the OP......if you have a matching spare wheel now, put that on the ground and use the donated Buick (or other suitable wheel) as the spare......OR, use both donated Buick wheels on the ground and the opposite side Merc wheel as a spare. Ray
In any thing but an out and out emergency, which this is not by all indications, welding washers on a wheel is bad ju ju! Ray
Poor people have poor ways. LOL I can remember a time when I had to make friends with the local Vicker's station owner just to keep used tires on my old heaps. Those times probably fall under "They were the best of times they were the worst of times."
My first Mother in Law used to say that...."poor people have poor ways"...she, and you, are correct..... and I have been known to employ those makeshift type of 'fixes' myself ......in my youth.....of course (there is a lot of satisfaction in 'improvisation' ) Ray
I caught a ride in a desert racer as a mechanic/navigator once not because I was really the absolute best at either but because I was real good at making friends and could Gerry Rig anything. I think we learned the cheap way around things when we were kids because we didn't start out with much and still wanted to live. Its like carrying a kid on you lap in an old beat up pickup truck, by todays standards we should be jailed in most states, but it was how we lived.
Texasred did some measurements for me on his Buick rims and it looks like we have a match, the HAMB community never ceases to amaze me! gotta meet up and snag them since my whitewalls arrive today!!!! now to finish up replacing my chewed up wheel studs SMH. 2 out of 5 done
The most important thing is the wheel center. It should fit on the axle purchase just like the brake drum. This is what centers the wheel, lug nuts are what hold it on. I would take the time to search for the correct wheel even if you find one you can use temporary. I've never liked after market rims even tho I use them. Good luck
Thanks Jimmy definitely going to continue to seek out a FOMOCO rim, for now, i need to get on the road!
Slow to update, but @texasred came through with his generous offer, gotta love HAMB folks! Sand blasted and painted them, cokers mounted, im rolling again! Next ill need to find some lancer or sombrero caps
In my mis-spent youth I hauled a ditch witch about 40 miles with loose lugs. Rims, studs, nuts, 1 hub, wrecked. The boss was soooo pissed. He said it wasnt my fault, I was 17, Then he went to the other side of the warehouse and threw stuff. I learned a lot about lug torque that day. Mostly though, the patience of being the boss.
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