A local guy wants $125 for this set of 21's. When I didn't buy them, he told me to make an offer. He's not a car guy, and he just found them in an old barn. I was thinking of offering $75, but I'm not sure what is fair. Maybe someone who has dealt in spoke wheels more than me has an idea?
I thought they were 19's too from the picture. They measured 20 1/4" (according to him over the phone) so I was ***uming they were 21" wheels. I haven't seen them in person yet. I wanted to see what they were really worth before I went to his house so I could make a real offer, and take them home if he accepted.
Im also going to suggest they are 19's hard to put a price on them without seeing the condition while holding them in your hands.. bent spokes, too much corrosion to use, wormed out lug holes, bent, or not true. hard to tell if he will take 75 than do it.. if not, make the deal as you hold them and see what it really is your buying. the correct diameter is not the outside dimension..its inside the first bead lip..(from bottom of bead lip to bottom of bead lip straight across) hope that makes sense good luck
19" is the hole in the tire...so if you hook a tape over the bare rim and measure to the other side you also add the height of the retaining lip into the measurement. Twice!
Thanks for the info. It will be a big help when I go see them. I was hoping they were 21's, but 19's are cool too. Are 21's typically harder to come by? What model years did each come from the factory with?
1928 and 1929 had 21 inch, 30 and 31 had 19 inch, 32 had 18 inch, 33 and 34 had 17 inch, 35 had 16 inch and then they stuck with the 16's for a while.
21's have a rolled outer rim that collects water and rusts out, NEVER spend a lot of money on 21's that have tires mounted on them. The ones in the original photo on top are 19's, if all the spokes are straight and not broken and rewelded, lug holes are not enlarged then the $125.00 is fair.
Thanks again for the info. You guys are a great resource. I still marvel at the wealth of information a guy can get here. I love the H.A.M.B. It's like going back to school, except this time, it doesn't ****!
The center hubs around the bolt holes and at the edge are prone to cracking. They can be weld repaired if so, but look for cracks and take that into consideration when you make an offer.
He also said one wheel has one broken spoke near the outer end of the spoke. Is a broken spoke a sign of flexing, or bending, etc.?
I just paid $50 yesterday for what I consider to be a good set. The only issues are minor spoke bends (fixed with heat and a spoke tool) and cracks on two of the hubs.
Lots of good an accurate info so far. The rim is 3" wide on the 30/31 and 2.75 inches on the older rims. The Hub on the 19" rims is 4.5".
I can never give the things away, but if the you-pull-it had a set they'd be $15 a shot tires or no, so that's probably a reasonable start and if they're really nice, go up from there.
If you go look at them find a solid/flat ground (concrete) and give them a roll. Its not a very high tech way to tell if they are bent but it will surly tell you if one is extremly bent.
I am going to build my 28 Tudor into a Speedster... do you guys think 19's would be better than the 21's I have on it now?? Better look and better acceleration? Is it easy to come by a good set of 19's?? Thanks!
Great question scaryfast and it's about Model A's bonus points! And lots of good answers too! this is great info on rims to refer back to....thanks fellas! good luck!
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