I'm looking at a pair of E-T rims that have an aluminum outside, but the inside part is steel - like the wheel barrel/shell is 2-piece. Is this how all E-T rims (5 spoke) were made, or was there a change (& why)? Thanks
ET made all aluminum versions...and cheaper models that were aluminum faced, steel backed. Any steel backed wheel like this was generally the least expensive, entry level wheel. Not ETs..but other makers made the same type wheel...many were sold at JC Penneys and Sears...etc.
Hello, When these wheels came out to the general public, it was the look that got to a lot of people. American racing 5 spoke wheels were the top of the line and expensive for most. But, they were something most wanted for their hot rods. For some reason, imitators came out of the woodworks to flood the market and try to sell their products. The little slots you see in each wheel lug nut area was a feature that was proposed and shown to all that once you buy an American racing 5 spoke wheel for your Chevy, that it has to stay with the Chevy bolt pattern cars. The E-T wheel had inserts the fit the oval and the holes were placed in various positions to fit any bolt pattern desired. So, a Chevy bolt pattern was purchased, but if your friend had a Ford, then all he needed was to get a set of oval Ford inserts and he could use your Chevy wheels on his Ford sedan. Jnaki It was a feature that caught a lot of people’s attention. Money saving, similar looks to the real thing worked for a lot of people. But then, problems started. Not only did people have 5 lug nuts for each wheel but now 5 more oval inserts along with the lug nuts that fit. 10 per wheel loose items that tend to go missing. Lost oval hole lug nuts got misplaced, lost forever or got mixed up in a box of other oval inserts. The more people used them, had to remove them, insert them again, they got worn and did not have a perfect fit in the oval hole. So, balancing was a problem. Other thing began to happen and soon, folks just got the “real” thing instead of copies. But, it was an interesting idea at the time… Imitation or similar ideas are a form of flattery, but there is nothing better than the original American Racing Equipment 5 spoke wheel...YRMV
I wanted American TorqThrusts on my Willys but couldn't afford the real thing. I found these Appliance rip-offs that are really close, solid aluminum wheels. Have been running the 8.3x15 rears for 50 years (had them polished), swapped the 5x14 fronts for Halibrand g***er reproduction front-runners several years ago.
Those are early-production ETs, and that aluminum center/steel rim design was common when multiple custom wheel manufacturers sprung up in the early '60s. ET moved on to full-alloy construction, but multiple manufactures stuck with this design as it was cheaper to build. Nothing wrong with them, they're just heavier than a full-cast wheel which is why that design fell out of favor. I'll disagree with Jnaki about any 'issues' with these. The Unilug design was very clever, and ET got a patent on the design. ET was very protective of their patent, and when Cragar tried to copy it for the SS wheel with minor changes (hoping to byp*** the patent), ET sued them and won. Any 'problems' with these were self-inflicted. When installed and torqued with the correct washers and lug nuts, it was a secure and accurate means. Two washers are available (yes, you can still get them and the correct nuts from ET and other vendors); one with the hole centered for all 4.75-on-5 patterns, and one offset washer that covers both the 4.5-on-5 pattern and the 5-on-5 pattern depending on which way it was oriented. Where guys got in trouble with these was using the wrong lug nuts. ET used a special tapered-seat nut (very similar to what everyone is now using on alloy wheels) with a matching seat in the washer. Where guys went wrong was using 'standard' shank-style nuts with flat washers instead of the ET nuts. They'd flip the washer over, presenting a flat surface, then use the shank-type nuts. The problem with those is it was critical that they be carefully torqued evenly or they were known to loosen, a common problem. The tapered-seat nut ET used was less sensitive to torque values (although best practice was to torque them) which is why those are commonly used today (my single-fit TT wheels on my avatar use identical nuts). If the nuts got loose and the washers started 'moving', it would damage the slots, ruining the wheels. You had the same issue with conventional wheels that used shank nuts, only there it would elongate the holes. But the worst method was guys that didn't use the ET washers at all, just the shank nuts and flat washers. The washers would 'fit' into the recess for the ET washers, if they fit tightly enough you could sometimes get away with it but not all of them did. If the fit was 'loose', they would come loose and chew up the wheels. It was guys doing this that gave the ETs that reputation. ET did have a porosity issue on their full-cast wheels in the late 60s. I had a couple of sets, and one of them leaked air right through the castings. Fixed by adding some 'goop' into them, never had a single flat after that... LOL. Powdercoating the inside of the wheel would probably fix that these days. But no issues with mounting them or keeping them on when using the correct parts. After Cragar lost their lawsuit with ET, they settled on a slotted lug hole using a conventional shank-style nut for unifit. These use round washers; the chevy-pattern washers have the hole centered, the 4.5/5-on-5 washers have the hole off-center and these are a PITA to mount. The washer is free to turn, and keeping it aligned so it doesn't gouge the wheel will drive you crazy. I've got a set of SS on my Ford convertible and I hate mounting them. ETs solution is superior in every way IMO...
I know yours are ET wheels...I meant to say that similar wheels, not made by ET, were sold at department stores.
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