The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline what late model wheels will fit a 8 lug 53 chevy

trying to get away from the split rims, are there any late model wheels that will fit a 53- 8 lug. thanks

From our very own Tech Tips:
http://www.stovebolt.com/techtips/wheels/

Some folks also use a certain 16" (or is it 16.5"?) trailer wheel, they should be along to comment shortly, or you could do a search, as it has been discussed before. ...single wheels only...

Personally I like the 19.5" wheels best for the 1 ton.

Wait a minute.... do you have single or dual wheels???
If dual then 19.5" may be the only option that fits over the drums?

Also, the "split rims" you mention may be perfectly acceptable, as there are only a few of the multi piece rims that are now considered unsafe, to bad they give the rest of the multi piece wheels a bad name... Read about it in the same Tech Tip.

Grigg

single wheels

There have been a number of posts on this subject. To buy new, there are 16" x 6" wheels sold for trailers that are a good fit. I used two of these on my 1951 1 Ton. I think that this site will give you the information:

http://www.lowcosttrailersupplies.com/trailer-parts-wheels.html

They are called OEM style wheels. If you don't mind the look, the spoked ones will do the job also.

There are some wheels from the 80s, GM, Ford and Dodge that are 8 lug and 16" x 6". The issue here is clearance at the front for the tie rod ends and clearance for the drums at the rear.

i found some 16 " 8 lug wheels that came off of a ford f250,2002 year, will these fit my 53. thanks

Somewhere around 2000, the big three went to a metric pattern and it is my understanding that they will not fit.

That's not really the case, or at least not on 8 lug trucks. Where the real problem comes up is that the later trucks (GM and Dodge especially) are using a much deeper backspace than the older trucks used. The ford wheels should be fine.
I have a spec manual at the shop, but I won't be back to work until Monday. I can bring it home and get the bolt pattern and backspace specs for you from there.

I've found on my 54 that 16X6 or 16X6.5 Dodge Van rims are about the best fit.

Ditto on the Dodge van rims. 16"x6" will fit on my '52 3/4 ton without hitting the tie rod end. It leaves about a quarter inch of clearance. Rims are from late 80's Dodge 1 ton Van.

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that would be good igf you could get that for me

i checked on 16.5 prices for tires and they are reallly high plus they will be 8-10 bi-ply rough ride, so i think the 16 inch would be better

I purchased 1991 8-lug Chevy Suburban wheels in 16" for my truck be warned they will not clear the old style tie-rod ends (I have built my own pitman arm and modified my suspension to clear). In Salt Lake City there is a guy that deals in only used wheels and was really helpful in locating a matched set and in fitting applications. Don't know if you have that type of service available where you live but he was out near a large number of junkyards and knew wheels! He had also suggested and knew of the Dodge/Ford wheels that fit there just wasn't any available at the time I needed to get my truck moving. I think there is also a thread on the difficulty some people have had with the 16.5 applications sounds like in some areas they are difficult to find and expensive.

i found some 2000 dodge ram 2500 wheels with the following specs,
Lug Pattern - 8 on 6.5", 9/16" bolt
Rim Size - 16x6.5"
Offset - 4.75"
is the bolt size and offset ok?

Do you have one of your original wheels?
What do they measure?
How to they compare to the new wheels you are looking at?

Even with measuring it would be best to test fit the actual wheel before you commit to buy.

Grigg

It's not likely those 6.5" wide rims will fit without a spacer.
You need to get under the front of your truck with a tape measure to see what you've got to work with.

well you were right. the rear wheel fit okay, the front, the tie rod end is hitting, these are inset about 1" to much, I just need to get a pair of spacers or adapters., the wheels are gona look really good. i polished them and they look like new money.

I found 16x6 8 lug rims of a Dodge Van, just not sure of the offset. The listing was for 16x6, 8 lug, 6 1/2, what's the 6 1/2?

The 6 1/2 is the size of the bolt pattern.

I went with new steel wheels. They are made by dexstar and even powder coated on BOTH sides. Less then $50 each. I thought that was a great deal. They are well made, balanced out great and made in USA!

wheels

I've been through this ordeal with my 53, found lots of rims that bolted on but there were several issues that made this swap a bit complicated. I had a few modern 8 lug rims in the shop that would bolt on but only one had a large enough center that would allow my big 3/4 ton caps to fit and those were 16" off a Ford Econoline (these Ford rims have a really small Ford oval logo stamped on the rim hard to see). All makes seamed to hit the tie rod, then I learned that the 1 ton tie rod had modern ends and it's a bolt-on swap. A better fit but still needed to do a bit of grinding on this new end to make it clear the rim. Once the Fords were mounted and fitting fine I added aftermarket hub cap clips from Chevs of the 40s, holds the big caps just fine. Another problem when fitting the original caps is on the back where the large hub sticks out to far to let the caps fit, cured this with a spacer, moving the rim out just enough.

Are the one ton tie rod ends a tapered bolt?

Thanks

With the new wheels and a zero offset you will not have to modifiy anything.

So, i know this is an old conversation, however in the last 10 years with all of the vehicles that have been scraped it is harder to find wheels that fit 3/4 ton trucks and original chrome hub caps. I called a lot of salvage yards and friends with different brands of trucks with no luck finding rims that would not hit tie rods ends when turning. The rim I found is from Dexster trailer axles, 16x6, #865 17-153. with a little work i can weld some tabs onto rim to fit center caps. Hopefully helpful for someone down the road.

Why not have a set of wheels made by Wheelsmith or Wheel Vintique?

I had Wheelsmith make a set of rims for my truck and purchased a set of their hubcaps. If you want to use original caps, Wheelsmith will install the necessary clips for you. They'll make them to your specifications regarding backspace, offset, etc.

http://thewheelsmith.net/

https://www.wheelvintiques.com/all-wheels/truck.html

https://www.wheelvintiques.com/amfinder/index/index?finder_id=14119232

Why is this thread in the engine forum?


Moderator moved it to Driveline.

When you see something like this, just "flag" it and the Moderator will respond.

Didn't want to hijack but wanted to give you a response. Good call! -- Peggy M

These even look original:

https://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Tires-and-Wheels/Dexstar/AM20766.html

I have them on my 51 GMC one ton.

Fox, Did you find any suitable hub caps for these Dexter whls.? Short of having them built, I'm looking for one piece replacements for my '48 Chev 1ton that I can use the OE caps on.