Has anyone welded trim rings on 48-52 Sombreros? If so, what did you weld them with? Mig, tig, oxy/act??? I am worried about heat from the weld, shrinking the face of the hubcap. I am planning on rechroming them after welding on them. I want the Sombreros really nice. I read the post on using J.B. Weld, but it doesn't seem like it would hold to me. Thanks!
TIG 'em. The rings are stainless and the caps are chrome? Grind the chrome off for the best weld. Make sure the two are nice and tight before you strike your arc, and they'll pop right together. Just fuse 'em and don't add filler. They HAVE to fit tight... If you have a gap, both will burn back. I'd stitch weld 'em, too.... Maybe 1/2" every 3"...? JOE
When I made mine, I trimmed off the cap on the back to within about 1" or 2" of the edge. Then I went and found a ford truck trim ring that was about 1/4" larger than the OD of the sombrero. I cut slits in the trim ring and pop rivited the piss out of it to the back of the sombrero. I can take pics of the one I have left (I turned it into my air cleaner top) if you want.
also, if you do indeed have the chrome ones, not the stainless ones, make sure the chrome shop can promise they'll come out right b/c the chrome doesn't 'throw' into the deep part of those caps well.
I did some for a friend of mine and did it a little differently. Instead of using a trim ring I welded a common baby moon to the (cut down) original mounting ring on the sombrero. I had to use a extra steel wheel (with the lug area cut out) as a jig. One other way I looked at was removing the mounting ring from a trim ring and crimping over the edge of the sombrero to hold it in. The problem I had with doing it that way was. I was afraid of damaging the face of the (new repo) sombrero.
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