Thanks to "Rustyproject" I purchased a set of American Racing 12 spoke magnesium wheels today at a local Pawn Shop. I've heard they were only made for Anglia or early Ford spindles, don't know if thats true. How do I tell the difference? They are marked "D300 series" on one spoke of each wheel and "American Racing" on another spoke. I've always heard these wheels could not be run with front brakes. Is that true or are there brakes now avaiable to run with these wheels? Any information appreciated.
I figured that was coming, it was a tough sell, I had to fork out $150 CASH, for both, with dry rotted tires. I DID have to clean out my shorts when I got home though. BOutlaw
Thanks dreracecar, you've helped me again. I THINK these are Ford spindle mounts. Seems the Anglias are visibly smaller. I'll mic tomorrow. Can you help me on the brake situation. CAN they be run with any kind of brake? BOutlaw
I have seen the center trued, drilled and tapped with rotors mounted on them. Sometimes it works, sometimes not a good idea. I would guess they would be worth more not messed with. Also in the back of my mind, they are not for street use, and need to be x-rayed (or better) for fast track use.
Looks like they have to be run with tubes too. I'll inspect for visible cracks when I remove the tires. Would the dye penetrant method of inspection we used on non ferrous metals in the aircraft industry be adequate? I don't have any experience with magnesium wheels. What about cleaning?
Some spindle mounts wheels had enough meat to machine for bolt on rotors but these do not! American also machined for early Chevy spindles. The castings were the same they were just machined for what was ordered.
Yes,you didn't buy them,you stole them...I have seen them as high as a 1,000 a pair. Sold a pr last yr,and have a pr this yr for sale as well. Rick
Nah, they weren't stolen, they came off an old T-bucket car in the area. He wanted front brakes, didn't pay much for the car I suppose. Pawn offered a hundred and he took it. Worked out for me. I thought I saw a set on an Anglia this past year at Beech Bend NHRA reunion with disc brakes, but like Hot Rod Willys said maybe the center hub was larger and able to accept machining for bolts.
some discussion about brakes and 12 spokes here http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=789965&highlight=12+spokes+brakes
Actually they were also set up for motor cycles. If a pair you will usually find a 15 x 4 paired with an 18x3. They will have both bearings the same size usually .625 ( 5/8) ID. But for the purposes of the HAMB they were only set up for Ford or Anglia, and Dreracecar gave good solid info on the bearing size. On a light car they can be drilled to accept a rotor. I would not oput much of a brake on them and on most cars a disc brake is only going to be a token brake but they can be drilled to accept a rotor and it can be used to stop with if your car is light enough.
We had a local guy about 20 years ago adapt front brakes to his 27 T Roadster. A local machinist made some magnesium pieces and they welded them to the 12 spokes. The rotors were bolted to them w/ Airheart calipers. Bill drove the T everywhere, so must have worked, how much stopping power did they have? There were some aircraft the had a rotor mounted off the OD of the wheel(caliper was inverted), this same style has been used on motorcycle applications. A large OD custom rotor could be fabricated and bolted to the wheel lip using an inverted caliper, as long as there is clearance to the spokes, but the load would be greater due to the diameter. Just thinking out of the box. John
Don't clean them, just get some Gibb's on them to keep the corrosion away. Good info at www.roadsters.com
Actually oxidation is what keeps magnesium from rusting away. The magnesium gets a coating of oxidation and then that protects the metal under it.
I was just thinking, haven't tried this or seen it done, but what about threading the wheel hub and the inside center hole of the rotor - left hand on the left and right hand on the right, screw them on. Just a thought, I'm not a machinist. Dave.
Thanks guys, good info, like the roadster pic Chevyafx...I'll ck out Gibbs, not familiar with it...thanks 29, thanks for the PM ******' and blowby...beers on me..TwinPeaks this Friday nite, be there.... I'm buying No decision yet, on drilling these wheels, certainly not till I know what components will work and even better talked with someone that has actually done it. I don't want to ruin a set of wheels that won't stop the car. It stops great now. BOutlaw