The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Swapin' out those split rims for one piece rims?

I just can’t get anything out of the search page, kind of frustrates me cuz I know half the guys here have had to deal with this.
I obviously can’t mount 15” tubeless radials up on my split rims besides, I want to keep the stock US Royal rayon bias ply, 6 ply tires mounted in them incase the next guy that gets the truck wants it to wander all over the road. What newer steel 8 bolt 15” rims will fit the register on my 50’ 3600 Chevy? The center hole is 4 5/8”, I looked at the rims on my nephews late 60’s ¾ ton Chevy and the center hole is smaller, it looks like about 4 ½” measured with a rule. I would like it to appear stock but I want it to be a little more drivable while I have it.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

denny,

you can use most (non split) rims from any 3/4 ton chevy and they should fit. you will have to use some kind of spacer between the drum and the back of the rim as the wider rims will contact the tie rod ends. just doesn't want to drive the same when you can't steer (lol). the spacer will reduce the amount of threads the lug nut will spin on to, but most of these trucks don't see the same level of work they did in their hayday.

i am curious about the 15" rims you are referencing. i have to assume that 15" inch rims are what you want to mount and not what was on the truck originally.

my 50 3/4 ton has the original rims which are 17" split (lock ring actually). i am running 6 plys on the front and 8's, mud and snow, on the back. once i had gone through the steering (tie rod ends, drag link ends, king pins, bearings, etc. it runs straight down the road barring the occasional pavement irregularity.

if you want to go for as much stock appearance as possible, you can drill and rivet or even weld tabs to hold the original hub caps on modern rims.

Denny,
I have heard of people mounting radials on split rims with inner tubes before. I think a few on this forum have written about it.
I found modern steel wheels off a 1 ton van that
fit the front axle on my '52 3600 without tie rod
interference. You'll have to scan some junkyards.
p.j.,
I believe 3/4 tons came standard with 15" wheels
(mine did) and 17" was an option.

Don't know what your name is Ghostrider, I’m new here just had the truck a week now. Your correct, the std. rims were 15" from what I have been able to dig up, and that's the first I've heard about 17" rims being an option. Are ya sure they weren't for the 1 ton or bigger and just swapped over by some users?
Mine measure 15" to the inside of the tire bead or the mounting surface on the rim and I believe the rim is 6" wide, although I don’t have one un-mounted. I need another for a spare but have been unable to find one. The front tires now are US Royal, Fleetway-15 (no size or rating) and the rears are Mohawk 700-15 m/s (no rating). I see no reason to run an 8ply, 6ply is more than adequate for anything I will be hauling, like, my Big Old Wife and me. All four show signs of sidewall cracking and my bet is the tubes are cracking or dry rotting also. These tires have probably been on the truck for 25 or 30 years and I am a little leery about driving it more than a few blocks from home, especially without a spare. I sure would like to get some newer ones on it.
p.j. What did you do about reaming the kin pin bushings when you did yours? I want to find a long enough reamer to catch both bushings even if I had to spend a few bucks extra. Someone posted that they had a machine shop do theirs for $90, I figure if I spend that on a hand reamer I’ll have it if I ever need it again. I have everything ordered from Chevy Duty to do the same thing that you did. I’m also doing the wheel and master cylinder while I have it apart but I can’t find brake shoes for the 50’ ¾ ton anywhere, any ideas?
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Denny-
If you already have 15" wheels on your truck and want to run 15" radials all you need is radial tubes.
Any good tire store will be able to supply a radial tube. Do NOT let them sell you a regular tube!
Make sure the wheels are good and clean so as not to chafe the tube - you may want to run a liner under the tube...
Good Luck!

Denny,
17's were definitely an option on 3/4 tons and
I believe were standard on 1 tons with single
rear wheels. I am trying to find some 17" wheels for mine to help a little with my top speed mph over the 15's.
Jim Carter has 3/4 ton Huck brake shoes listed in his catalog. http://www.oldchevytrucks.biz/catalog1/0079.html
Steve

Thanks Steve, I ordered a catalog from Jim Carter the second day I got the truck but haven't got it yet, I'll take a look.
Keep my name handy will ya, if you find the 17" rims and want to dump the 15" I might be interested, only problem would be the distance to ship them.
'78', Never heard of "radial tubes". I need to check with our local truck/tractor tire fixer-upper guy and see what he knows about using tubes with radials.
I still need a spare wheel.

I'd suggest that you find 16" rims for an '81-'87 3/4 or 1 ton 4 wheel drive, they will fit without rubbing. The reason I suggest 16s is that there aren't any 15" radial tires with the rating for the weight of your truck, but there are plenty of 16s that will work. As far as a "radial tube" goes, most modern radial tires are made to run tubeless, only a few European heavy trucks (20" rim) still use tubes with radials. Most tire shops I know of, including the one I work at, don't carry tubes for radials. Even tubes for bias tires are hard to get in my area, as most shops don't stock bias tires anymore. I wouldn't run a tube in a tubless radial, seen too many blow out from having a tube in them, too much internal friction.

my grandfather bought the truck brand new so i know the 17" wheels are original. i run the 8 ply tires on the rear because that's the only thing i could find in that tire size and are mud and snow. anything heavier than 6 ply on the front makes it do weird things (balance wise). i still use the truck to haul some heavy loads on occasion, but i don't push it too hard.

i was one of the people who had the machine shop ream the bushings when i replaced the king pins. they had the long type reamer so the bushings lined up perfectly. king pins slid right in.

as strange as it sounds there is such a thing as a "radial" tube. it's supposed to interact better with the greater flexibility you get out of radial tires. cheaper tubes apparently can't handle the heat and deflection.

unless your brake shoes are damaged you can take the brake shoes you have and get new linings put on them. just did the rear brakes and i think it was around $30.00-35.00.

good luck with your project(s)

Perhaps I mis-spoke about radial tubes, I never meant to say that they don't exist, only that they shouldn't be used in tubeless tires. Every major tire manufacturer states that tubes should not be used in tubeless tires. I've seen many blowouts of tubless tire caused by friction caused by installation of tubes in tubeless tires. And yes, most were radials with "radial approved" tubes.

So what your saying Bill, is that I can forget radials w/tubes on the split rims and that I should find a set of the 16” rims you mentioned. I’ll just store the split rim set in the barn.
If I ever decide I want to put the bias ply tires back on I’ll go to someone like Coker Tire, I’m sure he has tubes for them.
Yep, you’re the guy I was thinking about that had the shop ream your bushing, I’m new here so I don’t know all the guys names/handles yet.
I ordered shoes from Jim Carter and Auto-Zone even listed them as an Online order.
Now, all I have to do is scour the junk yards for five '81-'87 3/4 or 1 ton 4 wheel drive rims. What do ya think, $30-$35 per???
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

I agree with Bill - 16" Tires are a much better choice. Detroit is moving away from 15" light truck wheels and going to 16" and 17"

Scrounge up a set of 16" wheels for modern tires and you are set. In the long run you will be much happier.

Watch out for offset or set-back on your new rims. If the distance from the back bead to the bolt surface is more than about 3 1/2", the rim will rub the tie rod. You will need spacers. Or, do what I did. Get some 8-bolt trailer rims. Mine are 16x6, zero offset (3" set-back) from Hayes-Lemmurz. I posted a link to some pics on another thread.

I'm new here Highflyer, so I missed that subject, where might that thread be at or what was it entitled, got a link or post date? I've done some searches but always seem to come up empty. The radio forum I belong to has the same problem with the search function, it never finds anything in the 350,000+ thread archives.
Is Hayes-Lemmurz a Canadian outfit?
There seems to be a few problems with replacing these rims, such as;
A) The center hole is 4 5/8" to fit the hub register properly?
B) My studs are 1/2"-20 on 6.5" BC, standard BC but it looks like the newer studs are 5/8”.
C) And then there is the offset, mine are, as you noted, 3.5”.
D) Also on trailer rims, almost all the trailer rims I have found in my half hour of Googling are those white spooked rims, sound familiar? Now that I think of it, I do see an awful lot of older pickups with those White spoked rims running round town.
Bill Longbed says that the 16" rims for an '81-'87, 3/4 or 1 ton 4 wheeler will fit. Anyone have any experience with this or have any numbers I could use to match up with my 3600? What ever I settle on I want them to be steel and would like to maintain the original look as close as possible. I’m kind of picky as far as originality goes, but am a little flexible where safety and drivability enter the picture. First and for most in my mind when it comes to restoration is the often misquoted Hippocratic Oath, i.e. “First Do No Harm”
The header says there are 12,130 registered members on this forum so, I’m sure that at least 25% have run into this problem. Then probably 20% of those have early 50’s iron, which leaves maybe 80% of them that have settled for just any wheel that would fit the bolt pattern. That still leaves roughly 150 or 200 that get it right . Man, now I’m lost in the statistics, but I’m hoping to hear how you guys solved the problem.
I’m also beginning to get a little inkling of the old saying “that if you throw enough money at the problem you can fix anything”. Now that I’m retired, that will probably be the biggest challenge I’m gonna face restoring this truck! That and the house work!
Old longwinded,
Denny Graham
Sandwich

I found a set of centers that matched mine. Sent them to Stockton Wheel and had them weld new 16" outers. About $500.00. Had to have them reverse offset so to clear the tie rods.(What was once the inside is now the outside - just the outers) They took a LOT longer than they originally told me, but the wheels turned out fine. The old wheels and tires are in my garage in case I (or the next owner)ever want the truck to be truly original again. I'm using my original hubcaps and 16" Continental SUV radials. The truck handles SO much better. Good luck in your quest.

Hope this works:

http://www.stovebolt.com/bboard/cgi-bin//ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=22;t=006170;p=1#000014

That is the thread with the link to my pics. Also more info. My wheels are steelies, look like '72 van wheels. Search "8 lug wheels" and see what you get, also Google "8 lug wheels". Worth a try.

Good luck

Highflyer, I like the way those wheels look, I think I’d be happy with them. What about the lug bolt holes and center hole that I was asking about. Also, is Hayes-Lemmurz a Canadian outfit? I’ve spent quite a bit of time looking a 8 bolt wheels and taint had much luck, lots of sales hype but no details such as hole sizes, etc.
Looked at the pics of your Jimmy, looking real good. That looks just about the same as the original blue that’s on the cowl of mine. That color is what I want to repaint it with. Did you paint it your self and if so what brand and color did you use?
Bigmac, that’s what I was referring to when I was talking about throwing enough money at it! Your talking bout $500 plus the original cost of the rim centers.
What I’m really looking for is an off the shelf or junkyard set of rims that will fit. So far the Highflyer’s setup seems to be the best option. A plain steel rim shouldn’t run that much. Ya know besides the rims I gotta sink another five or six hundred into tires and tubes, if I don’t watch out I’ll have more in tires than I do in the truck itself!
Still lookin’ for ideas.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Regarding hole sizes, don't know, but everything fits like it should on my 3600. I've probably spelled Hayes-Lemmurz incorrectly, but they do supply north america. I got mine through Kal Tire in Edmonton, but I'm sure they are available anywhere. They were made in China. Tried their website, but no luck.

Try this link:

http://www.lowcosttrailersupplies.com/Trailer_Parts/a-17-153.html

Note: the pic is 5-lug, but the wheel is 8-lug. look around the site for more info.

Thanks. Flyer,
You have given me a lot of food for thought. I checked/bookmarked your link, all looks good, for that PN, the C/L offset is 0.00” so the offset on the 16”x 6” rim should be 3.00”. Only problem is the pilot diameter. It's 4.89" instead of 4.625", that means that wheel is being centered up by the studs and they will carry all the weight also. I suppose I could spin up a set of spacers on the lathe with a .1325” wall and the same width as the flange, I would have to tack them in a few places with the Heliarc.
The other thing that it didn’t mention was the hole size. They must be tapered holes with that big of a hole since that’s what’s doing the centering and all. I have seen spoked wheels for trailers with flat holes.
If the hole is bigger that’s no problem, it’s has been discussed earlier. If I couldn’t find an over size nut that would fill the taper then I could, using 13/16” hex stock, make my own ½-20 nuts on the lathe, might take a couple of evenings but once I was set up it should go fairly quick. Most nuts I have seen appear to be mild steel and they don’t seem to be heat treated.
Oh, by the way, my local tire guy, that I have been going to for 20 years, does a lot of truck and tractor work. He sees no problem with fitting up the split rims with radials and tubes, seems like it’s done by him on a regular basis.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL