FORD WIRE WHEELS, what was the process?

Rascal

Rascal

Member
:confused: Ford Wires are really tough old sons of Guns & i have rarely seen spokes broken or pulled away from the hubs or Rims.
But What was the process of manufacturing the Ford wire wheels? was it a type of Fusion welding ?.
the jigs used, to hold everything together; must have been a sight to behold. Ive often wondered & also been asked by others but really didnt know.:o Please explain Guys. thnx.
 
Wow, and what was the price of a replacement wheel back in the 30's?? And how many have been made just for ford production from 1928-1935?? And how many machines??
Paul in CT
 
It's interesting that the patent was granted in May of 1935, just before Ford dropped spoked wheels for the "wide five" design. Also, if earlier methods were as or more complex than this, it must have been a huge expense each time that Ford changed wheel sizes, every one or two years!
 
I bought a set of 16" dual bolt pattern wire wheels from Coker about 6 years ago and the powered coated version was over 400 bucks apiece. Add a Dunlap radial tire and you have an expensive pair of shoes fore your baby.
 
Note that the subject patent was for GM wheels, not Ford wheels whose manufacturer was Kelsey-Hayes in Detroit who presumably had their own patents.
 
I know they hung three cars off a single wire wheel at one of the auto shows. To demonstrate the strength of the wheel. Pretty effective demonstration.

Mart.
 
Thanks for posting Virgil. That's interesting that you can find and view those patents using a google search. I just plugged in the number of one of mine and all the info came right up in seconds. Amazing to me that so much info is available on the Internet.
 
Thanks Vergil, I did notice the GM connection on your First reply to my Query.
But Also, many thanks for the last two links, K-H & Ford.
they do provide an insight into the process of welding -fusion of the spokes to the Rim & Hub. Perhaps someone out there, may have an old photo of the proceedure underway, maybe that is asking too much, but we never know eh ?
 
Rascal said:
Thanks Vergil, I did notice the GM connection on your First reply to my Query.
But Also, many thanks for the last two links, K-H & Ford.
they do provide an insight into the process of welding -fusion of the spokes to the Rim & Hub. Perhaps someone out there, may have an old photo of the proceedure underway, maybe that is asking too much, but we never know eh ?
Click to expand...

Could be some pictures in the FoMoCo archives of that process at the Ford Benson Research Center in Dearborn, Michigan.
 
That machine is for riveted wheels, weaker and more flexy...
Ford used welded spoke wire wheels 1926-35, here are a couple more to supplement...

patent 1772481 shows a lot, though this is a crazy variant using wheel as brake drum




Machine (!!) patent 1816231
http://www.google.com/patents?id=hldTAAAAEBAJ&pg=PA7&lpg=PA7&dq=wheel+welded+inassignee:ford&source=bl&ots=uhjcL8bqqS&sig=ut6c_br2V9xvUWMf6HRQG9gjQ1I&hl=en&sa=X&ei=OmwJUP-XMrK80QHwpeGTBA&ved=0CDoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=wheel%20welded%20inassignee%3Aford&f=false


I think there's yet another patent with more focus on the wheel construction but I need more search time on that...

In google advanced patent, put "Ford" or "Ford motor" as assignee, and often Henry himself is listed as the inventor.
MANY Ford patents list in years long after introduction. I guess if Ford had started a process, their policy "We have 10,000 lawyers and you don't" kept others at bay very effectively.
Ford was very innovative on stuff like this, Other wire wheel used adjustable nipples (LOTS of little parts, need adjustment, flex and wear and get wonky at joints) or riveted (cheaper, also move at joints until wonkiness is achieved)
Be thankful they did not adopt the idea of drum and wheel as one...we'd never find a usable one by now.
I've posted a bunch of the more interesting '32 and model A patents in lists on here and the HAMB. There are even a couple covering the deuce grill.
 
Hi Bruce, many thanks for your info.
had noticed that the nipple types, mostly from european & Uk patents -design , do suffer from that fast wear out & un-alignment Fatigue for sure.
Good on Ford for using the weld- fuse process, the lasting of which is evident, especially when you pull an old 33-35 wire wheel out of the junk Heap or long grass somewhere.
 
Ford's success in automating manufacturing processes was due to his willingness to spend money developing machine tools for specific operations.

He would study the assembly line, and analyze each step, and when he saw an opportunity to improve a process by substituting a tool he would call in an engineering company whom he had on retainer and put them to work on designing and building the tool. Of course he would contribute from his mechanical knowledge, but the development of the actual machine was done by a third party. The new tool would then be integrated on a test basis and when the bugs worked out, he would buy as many as he needed.

The key to this was his deep pockets and his relentless drive to lower the manufacturing time and cost.

The lessons learned came largely from the early Model T era when he was perfecting the moving assembly line. In 1913 they were making 1325 cars a day.

Allen Nevin's book "Ford - The Man, The times and the Company" which is a history of the early years is a fascinating read.
 
I wonder what Henry would have thought ,my Model A had a spoke crack around the weld last month,I tig welded it up ,no worries.
But it only lasted 84 yrs.
Lawrie
 
Looking at the patent drawings makes me think of the constipated mathematician; he worked it out with a pencil. The many genius tool and/or machine designers who did their work BC, before computers, are to be admired.
 
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