Last year we painted the roof with PPG blue candy over silver metalflake and black lace at Cambra Speed Shop. That gave the car a new look after having the car for 14 years with the same Corvette Cloisonette blue top. Once I saw the metalflake, I knew the wheels would have to be changed out. For the longest time, I was thinking of some Radir-like 5 spokes and white walls. Yet, after seeing the flake sparkle in the southern California sun, I knew chrome wires were going to do the trick. They are the only wheels that I thought would compliment that bitchen top.
So I asked around and studied all kinds of wires. From 40-100 spokes, Cadillac, Buick, Thunderbird and finally set on Ford wires. I am transforming the car from a street rod to a ’60’s mild custom and thought; “What would a kid do in the mid ’60’s with his dad’s old commuter of a Fairlane. The Ford wire wheels were easy enough to get a hold of at a reasonable price for a college bound guy.
What brand of wires would I go with? There are plenty of them out there. Ron Cambra introduced me to Chris Sage at The Wheelsmith. Chris and his dad Bob, started Wheelsmith nearly 26 years ago as the go-to builder for many of the wheels out there. Today, they make the wheels you see for most every brand out there. It’s an incredible place with cool old-school machinery. Watch for a Shop Tour article soon. I ordered up a set of 15″ x 6″ Ford wires. There is a difference between the Ford wires and the Thunderbird wires. Thunderbird wheels have the outer spokes going from the lip to the hub, where the Ford wires go from the middle of the hoop to the hub. I like the exposed clean lines on the lip, and may be easier to clean.
Here’s a video from our tour at The Wheelsmith:
That’s what I kept hearing from my friends. These are going to be a bear to clean. Well, I have two comments on that. First – although he may not know it – my Nephew Marcus will help to keep them clean, you see, because he is getting my old set of Torque Thrust II’s for his Mustang. And the second is, that there are some great products from Meguiar’s that you spray on and hose off, then just towel dry them. Gotta be easier than breaking out the aluminum polish every time I want the old Torques to shine. Maybe just more time consuming. But isn’t this part of the fun of having a bitchen car? I’m sure the new Detailing Rig from MYCHANIC will be of good help too.
Got the rims now for the tires.
So now that the wheels are set, what brand of rubber will I wrap these beauties. Chris at Wheelsmith suggested Diamond Back Tires. I took a look at their website and found they have a crazy huge variety of tires. Wide and skinny whites, gold line, red line, and even blue lines! I called on my friends too, to get their thoughts. Albert Traille has them on his roadster and said the ride is incredible.
Similar to working with The Wheelsmith, Diamond Back Classic Radials is a family run business. Fourth Generation! They are out of South Carolina and just the coolest people around. I called the Patriarch Bill Chapman and told him about our project. He suggested the wide whites because that was available on ’50’s era cars. He is a stickler for authenticity and thought we were restoring the Fairlane. However, I told him I am making a ’60’s era mild custom and he agreed that a one-inch white wall would be appropriate in this case.
Bill’s son Tab contacted me to get the specifics. He suggested their house brand Auburn for the project. I ordered a set of 215/75-R15’s. At Diamond Back Classics they don’t have a stockload of tires that go bad sitting on the shelf. They build your order as they get it. You may have to wait a bit, but it’s worth it to not get a set of tires that are already years old! Within about 2 weeks the tires were at my doorstep!
I was really nervous at first glance. The tires looked tall and skinny, something I’m not used to with the street rod look I have had. I thought they might lift the car too much and then I’d have to re-order a new set of rubber. I called Tab and he said to mount them and you will see, they will fit nicely. Such great service and again, super cool dude to talk to. He’s one of those guys who you’d hang out with if we were closer.
Now to get them mounted and balanced.
Wheels in, tires in, now to get them mounted and balanced. I turned to my buddy Ron again. The last time I had tires put on Riff-Raff, the shop tore the shit out of my rocker panel on their lift. I definitely won’t be going back to America’s Tire for that one. Ron said to call Michael over at Allen Tire on Tustin Ave. Michael said to come on in anytime and we will take care of you. They sure did. He put Mauro on the project who was cool enough to let me shoot some pics as he mounted and balanced the tires. Telling me all the steps and being very careful with the new rims and tires.
Allen Tire looks small from the street, but they have a big garage in back and can service anything from a hot rod to a motorhome! Their wheel alignment tools can handle a motorhome at a reasonable price than taking it to an RV shop who will gouge you like crazy.
Back to the mounting. His tire mounting tool was set about a 1/4 of an inch away from the rim, so there was no marring or scratches. When he balanced them he was careful to install the weights on the inside. Each tire balanced out nicely.
But wait, there’s more!
Mauro cleaned up the blue protective ink on the white walls too! That’s awesome. He made sure the wheels were clear of any water spots and just did a great service. Within about an hour I was out. Now time to mount them on my car.
I brought them home ’cause I want to do some of the work… Whew! The rear tires had to be deflated in order to get them up between the 9″ rear end and the fender well. What a job. The Torque Thrusts weigh about half of the wires. Spin 20 lug nuts and the car was sitting on the road. I have drop spindles in front and 2″ lowering block in back. With the new wheels it appears the rear sits about the same, but the front went up a bit essentially leveling off the car. I’m liking this stance. Especially how much I drive the car, no more scraping on driveways or train tracks.
And the ride.
Albert wasn’t kidding when he said the ride would be smooth. It was noticeably smoother! Maybe the taller sidewall? The tread though too was quieter. I would hear and feel every little crack in the road. These babies roll right over and feels really good.
