What is the best method for installing TIGHT beauty rings?

It keeps feeling like I'm going to twist, tweak, bend these beauty rings when I go to push them on. These are new Wheel Vintiques wheels and new beauty rings, so I know they'll be tight, but is there any way to apply even pressure all the way around the ring? What's the trick?

And so you all don't have to guess, I know these are the correct rings for these wheel. 15" wheels and 15" x 2" rings.

 

I'Ve been known to sit on the ground and use both
Feet to push on opposite sides,

 

X2 ^
sit on the ground put the wheel against a wall and use your feet to push it on!

 

Rubber hammer,,and curse a lot! HRP

 

These methods seem like you're asking for damage. I guess you guys must be protecting them with towels are something else while your pushing with your feet or banging on them?...

I'm also planning on safety wiring them from behind, to prevent thievery and road loss.

 

yes, a towel doubled up

 

Seriously,I install them with a rubber mallet,,I never mess them up or dent them.

I don't use a hard rubber or a dead blow hammer,,it is kind of a soft rubber. HRP

 

I use a block of 3" wide 12" long piece of pine wood and a rubber mallet. Tap around the perimeter working it down on the wheel. To get them off I use my bare hands or a paint stick.

 

It's just a beauty ring.. I believe the traditional way to install is with a RUBBER MALLET...

 

Mallets will dent them. The right way has been posted here. Use a pair of soft soled shoes, sneakers or even foam soled slippers

Sit down and put the ring into place. Hold with both feet on the ring and gently tap one side till it grabs.

Then use both feet to tap one side and then the other till it snaps into place.

Doing this you use the soles of the shoes, and no damage to the rings.

 

They may do it that way in Canada, but I've never seen that technique illustrated in the shop manuals....

 

Bump for the night crowd...

 

Is it the kind with the metal "fingers" all around? I have had loose fitting ones that I took pliers and bents the fingers out to grab better... I ***ume you can do the opposite.

 

I used a rubber mallet as well, they dont seem to dent very easily. As far as them coming off, I had to pry mine off when I got my new rubbers installed. They seem to grab very well.

 

Blue one,
I tried it your way and hit my foot! Nice instructions!

 

Lay the wheel on the floor, put the beauty ring in place, and get the fat lady down the street to sit on them ......sorry, could't help it

 

^^^ while singing ^^^

 

When I worked in a tires store and then did fro.nt end work in a dealership I would set the bottom of the ring on the rim and put one knee against the ring and then use both hands or one hand and my rubber mallet to pop them on the rim the rest of the way. I probably did a couple thousand Pontiac Rally wheel beauty rings that way

 

Adjust the tabs for a good fit then center the hole for the valve stem an use a soft hammer and towels.

 

And you never will It's too smart

It isn't idiot proof You are not supposed to hit your foot, in fact you use your feet to hold it in place and then a small push or tap from one foot gets it grabbing ,then the rest is easy.

An alternative method is to put the ring in place by hand, then use the heel pf your hand to bump one side getting it to grab and hold in place.

Then use the soles of your feet to bump it the rest of the way.

Remember the OP said they were very tight and when new they can be.

I'm not going to make and post an instructional video either

 

I'm with Mr48chev on this. Way back in the day prepping out new cars you had to put trim rings on, a lot of them. I would push the ring down into the rim on the bottom and hold in place with my knees on both sides, then wack it down and in on the top with a rubber mallet. Worked every time. Then again this was in the late 60's early 70's and the rings weren't made from recycled beer cans like today. Ken

 

These are made in Taiwan. I will say though, that considering the absolute CHINA **** I got from the first order (and promptly returned), the Taiwan pieces are really very decent. And since I work at a tire and auto service center, my cost was really reasonable. These are every bit as good as any of the better quality reproductions I've seen out there.

 

So you are telling us you are now turning your cl***ic into an import? tisk tisk Yeah, use a towel and feet, the rubber mallet also works well by itself as long as you have some finesse. I don't have finesse and was able to easily install them and they stuck in place for a long time huntil I have to change to new tires, so I take them off and repeat.

 

Thank goodness I installed mine before I saw this thread, I not only installed them incorrectly I avoided a huge leg cramp....

 

Yeah, unfortunately not too much is labelled "Made in U.S.A." anymore. I have two older beauty rings that could possibly be straightened and then polished, but having straightened stainless before and knowing how much time it would take me, I'd rather save the 3 to 4 hours each and have a set that I know look nice already.

Don't want to get political here, especially since it is forbidden, but what happened to the America I grew up in? Obama's slogan is "Forward" (Hitler also said the same thing "Vervalt") and here we continue to go...not only can we not afford to live here anymore, nothing is made here...and hasn't been for decades.

 

Unfortunately, any president gets blamed for everything, even though the people that actually make the laws, p*** the laws, and whom actually evoke change don't do their jobs. I am still hoping they start bringing some of this stuff back from overseas. I know that since all of this stuff isn't either being manufactured here or at all someone somewhere has to have the machinery to make quality parts that we need. It is just another chance for someone to start up their own small company and sell a ton of parts. I would totally quit my job to do that if there was enough money to live comfortably off of and I had the machinery and support from guys like us in the US. Hell even doing stuff like rubber molds and stuff for components on our trucks would be cool.

 

On that same subject, I have a couple parts I'd be willing to make if it didn't cost me and I could actually turn any sort of profit. 1) Sway bar bushings for the stock set-up as well as reproduction stock swaybar mounts and stock swaybars and 2) a reproduction stock looking 15" radius steering wheel 2.5" dish. I'd also make a kit to be able to use your front park lamps as running lights during the day and in tandem as marker light with your headlights at night. I also have an idea for a third brake light that uses red LED's that piggy backs off your dome light (sits right below it) and shines through the rear window on a big window pickup...it would be barely visible until you hit the brakes.

Those are just a few. I probably have 50 product ideas...but no funding to do any of them.

 

http://www.sorbothane.com/blog/sorbothane%C2%AE-soft-blow-mallet/

These work great. I have a few in the shop and we use them all the time.

 

Wheel off of the vehicle?
Get a rubber floor mat, and a 1/2 thick or better piece of plywood.
Deflate the tire so the floor mat / plywood combo can bear on the beauty ring,place the floor mat over a squarely positioned beauty ring, ( valve stem cutout lined up!), and lay the plywood over all.
Sit in the middle , whilst maneuvering your *** to start the ring in as squarely as possible.
After it's started, step up onto it with one foot, and walk around the perimeter of the ring.
Stop and inspect.
Just make sure you're valves stem is not too long to be damaged by the plywood.

Same principle as mentioned by some as placing against a wall, ( with some protection for the trim ring).

 

tools youll need to install a beauty ring
-rubber mallet
-beauty ring
-wheel
-beer
-tape measure
first things first, prepare the area in which the beauty ring will be placed. make sure it is indeed a wheel and it is indeed not beautiful.

next take your tape measure and measure the wheel flat across making sure it is is the same measurement as the beauty ring

once it is ***ured that the ring and the wheel are the same sized proceed to place the ring flat faced onto the wheel. make sure the ring is not a rally wheel ring because those rings are deeper and because you accidentally put rally wheels on your car

here comes the tricky part, using both hands push the ring in on both sides till afew of the teeth are grabbing on, once done let go and reach for your rubber hammer.

as you grab your rubber hammer make sure the ring falls off and scratches as it hits the cement or dirt below.

repeat all steps up until now except with a rubber hammer in closer range.

once you have the hammer in your hands and the ring semi secure begin to evenly tap around the ring (ahh how beautified your car looks now) as you come to the lower half of your ring realize that the notch for the valve is not even close.

repeat all previous steps (dont worry your car will be beautified once its done)

now that you have the notch and valve in place begin to tap the ring in place, making sure the valve is still a little off and that it not only isnt close, but is not slabbing the valve.

remove rings violently, scratch your wheels and blame the hammer for all its evil has done. get in car and drive to a quiet place where you can drink the pain and frustration away of trying to beautify your car, because **** it its an old car and it doesnt need to be beautiful