The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline Wheel advice/size recommendations

I have a 51 3100 with a CPP 6 lug DIsc Brake conversion
The OEM stock wheels are the 15" and do not clear the calipers without a spacer, which I've been using for a while.
I'm ready to buy some new wheels and tires (most likely a simple smoothie) and looking for some recommendations on sizes and offset that will be good with no spacer.
I don't want the 'low-rider' look, or the wheels to look small in the wells - would like to fill them pretty much like the originals as far as rolling radius goes (or maybe just only slightly smaller)
And don't necessary want to go wide either, although certainly maybe a bit more than the stock 7.00-15 (but a radial of course)

What would be a good size to achieve the look I'm after while accommodating the disc calipers? And I'm really not sure about backspace?
Is a 16" going to work or think I need a 17"?

Any pictures on this series of truck would be most appreciated, along with the recommendations for size!

Oh and a p.s. - if you buy after-market smoothies, do the OEM hub-caps fit or do these need to be sourced to fit the new wheels?

certainly depends on the size of the discs you have. I'd only move up to a 16" with original offset if possible if it clears your discs. this will give the best oem height and stance it sounds like you are looking for. Then look for the tire size that matches the original tire size circumference for gearing and speedometer unless you want to tweek that slightly. remember the taller rim/lower profile tire combo you end up with, the stiffer the ride and less original stance and overall look.

Thank you

Working backwards from the 7.00 x 15 tire, it has about 29" diameter and 8" width

So looking at 16's a 225/75/16 has about the same tire outside diameter (~ 29.3") as the 7.00-15
Width of that tire would be about 8.9" vs about 8 for the 7.00, so just slightly wider, not overly so

And that would fit a 6-7" wide rim and be about the tallest sidewall at 75% vs some of the other 70 or 60 options

So I'm thinking 225/75/16 on a 6 or 7 x 16 wheel?

How does that sound?

again, if a 16 clears your discs great or move up to 17's then do your math again...unless you want to go up in circumference to gain a few revolutions for top end or correct or totally screw up your speedometer. Lol

I was hoping someone could comment on the 16 sizing over the CPP brake kit - there must be a good number with these brake kits I would think?
With the OEM 15" wheels, they only just interfere with the calipers, but 1/2" spacer is enough to make it clear;
so I would imagine the 16 should be adequate/
Going to 17 means a much lower profile tire and not sure I really want that

I would not use a 17" rim. If a 16" rim won't clear, use the spacer. Better yet, if you purchase a set of rims from Wheelsmith, they will build them to your specifications. They will also tell you how to measure your wheel/hub /brake assembly to determine whether or not a modified offset is necessary.

The 15" rims on your truck now are not the correct diameter in the first place.
According to the FSM, the original tire size for your truck is

6.00-16-6 on all four wheels
or
6.00-16-6 front and 6.5-16-6 rear.

Unless you've installed power steering on your truck, wider treads make it more difficult to steer.

To get a stock look, "bias-ply" appearance with radial tires, I use these. You get excellent stability and performance without the ugly radial tire bulge. In case you're wondering, I do not sell Diamondback tires. I've been driving with them on my Cadillac for 7 years and they are the best tires I've ever had on the car since I've owned it (20 years) I use it as a daily driver and have put over 30,000 miles on these tires.

I am putting these (blackwalls) on my 1950 3100 6.00x16-6 with 16x6 smoothies from Wheelsmith.

https://dbtires.com/product/auburn-deluxe-radial-15-16-sizes/


http://thewheelsmith.net/wheel-catalog/smoothie-wheels

I forgot to mention, Wheelsmith sells reproduction hubcaps that fit their smoothies. You can use original hubcaps with their wheels but you'll need to get special clips from them to use them on their wheels.

Thank you for that info

It turns out, I actually have 16's on the front and the 15's are on the back - go figure! So it is the stock 16's that actually interfere with the calipers.

On those dbtires - so is a, for example 700R15 equivalent size-wise to a 7.00 15 LT Ply tire? (as opposed to an out & out conventional radial sizing like 225/75/15?

I have already contacted wheelsmith last week, and they sent me their configurator to get the best match

Yes, the Diamondback Auburn radials are sized as the old bias ply tires and the dimensions are very close to the what the original tires would have been. In fact, the tires on my car are Yokohama 700R truck tires. DB vulcanizes the whitewall to them.

In the case of my Cadillac, I compared the dimensions (OD, section width, tread width, sidewall height, etc) to the dimensions of the original Firestone 820x15 and all of the dimensions were within fractions (10ths) of an inch.

I don't like the look of fat radial tires under the fenders of old cars.

Also, don't let the "non-aggressive" tread fool you. Those tires on my Cadillac stick to the road and handle very well. I drove home in the rain at night a couple weeks ago on I-75 at 70+ miles an hour and never felt like my tires weren't doing their job. It helps that the car weighs 5000 lbs too!

Find a pair (or three) of 1971 to ~1991 4x4 Blazer/K10 wheels. They are 6 lug, 15", with a 6" wide version (I have read 6.5") and an 8" wide version, and are made to clear the disc brakes that CPP's kit copies. They can be identified by having 4 hubcap nubs instead of 3, and do not have the bumps in between the lugnut holes. Otherwise they look the same as a 60s C10 wheel if you don't look too closely. I am running a pair of 6" wide (6.5"?) wheels on my '50 with the CPP disc kit, and have a third one mounted as a spare.

Maye this image link borrowed from another forum will work... http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/attachment.php?attachmentid=1109003&stc=1&d=1368956044

Thank you @EchoBravoSierra - good info

I'm ultimately going with WheelSmith I think, but I'm in the middle of a move (across several States) and just need to get new tires on it to move it arpund, and something like this (if I can find them) would be a good bridge where I could at least swap the tires onto new wheels

are those actually indeed 15" @EchoBravoSierra ?

And they still fit?
Of course the riveted flange of the early wheels and shape of the center piece is what is causing the issue so maybe the later wheels just have a quite different back plane, so even 15 fits?
I'm measuring about 7-1/4" from hub center to the outside of caliper - the problem with the wheels I have is the inner web of the wheels - just spacing the 16's out a little bit is enough to clear them

Yessir, fifteen inch wheels. The hoop diameter isn't where the interference with the caliper is, it's at the back of the center, or the curve where it transitions to the hoop, best I can remember, at least with these particular disc brakes (based on stock 70s-80s GM components). For grins (and science) I recently had a buddy bring one of his 15" artillery wheels over to test fit. It went on fine until the lug nuts got hand-tight, then the back of the wheel center hit the caliper.

Thank you!
I did find & committed to purchase a set of 4 reasonably locally.
Too bad the original hub caps don't swap - do you know what else fits beside the original K10's? Are C10's same size (they appear to be I think, except the K10's have openings for the 4x4 hubs on front)
What about plain dome caps like the originals - know of anything like that that clips on these?

I think anything in the style that fits over the nubs would work. I think they're 10 1/4" or something like that. I haven't really shopped around for options since I had my current setup in mind.

I'm not running caps, but have spider rings that fit over the nubs just like a hubcap, in addition to trim rings, bullet caps, and lug nuts.

https://media.fotki.com/2v2aUsTpbxDubp.jpg

These might work for you.

https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Baby-Moon-Hub-Caps-for-O-E-Style-Wheels-10-1-8-Inch-Diameter,73935.html

now THOSE are nice - not overstated
Where did you source those parts?
Thanks again for all your advice!

Ah speedway too I think

https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Speedway-Spider-Ring-for-O-E-Style-Wheels-10-1-8-Inch,54986.html

So given those fit your wheels and same size as the baby moons, then presumption is the baby moons fit too?
But I'm liking what you have there ........

https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Full-Moon-Style-15-Inch-Wheel-Covers-Set-4,36186.html

These are cool too ........

Yeah, my trim rings and spider rings came from Speedway, lug nuts and bullet caps came from two different eBay sellers. I was doing work on the brakes for a good portion of the summer and ended up leaving the bullets off last time I put the wheels on, and I'm currently liking the look of the front hub poking through and the hole in the rear instead of the chrome bullets.

https://media.fotki.com/2v2asgmqGxDubp.jpg

Yeah, I see that strategically placed block of wood

I actually prefer that look personally, the bullet caps a little busy against the original 'raw' look of the truck

I just got gazumped - had an agreed deal for set of K10 wheels and was going on 4 hr round trip later today to get them - I told him I was firm and seller said don't worry, they are yours
Just got a text saying he had an offer or 2x his asking price and was going with that
So much for a commitment.
I understand the higher price offer thing, but not something I would do personally once I had committed to an agreement

I like the look of your truck and those wheels work well. Those are the 4x4 blazer wheels you mentioned? I just got a 60 C10 with the stock narrow steel wheels (black) and need to get some new tires. I am thinking of going with different wheels in an attempt to fill up the front fender a little more but I am not sure if this is a good idea on a number of levels (wider footprint harder to steer with no power steering, rubbing or other fitment issues, etc). I don't want to lower the truck at all. I like the idea of using other stock chevy wheels or at least wheels with good compatibility.

I did find another set (4) locally (well if you call 5 hr round trip local) and delighted to prove you right.
Slipped one over the hub and fits like a glove.
The wheels I got are a bit rough, so will need a bit of work, but that's all more fun.
At least I can get decent rubber on there
Thanks for your great advice!

I am trying to determine what is the correct rim size for the 3100 1/ ton. The ebay seller of my truck put on a mix and match wheel/tire set, probably so that it could be a rolling vehicle. My only clue is that there is a side-mount rim attached with patchy blue paint to match the patchy blue of the truck. It measures 17 1/2" dia. by 6" wide and has 3 tabs for hub cap attachment. Could this be the correct original size for the truck?

Awesome! I'm glad you got something to work with.