21 inch wheels

springerpete

springerpete

Well-known member
I am tired of bumping down the road. I now have a collection of 11 wheels that are out of round. I am looking for recommendations of who sells perfect, new 21 inch for my Model A. I'd like opinions on Coker, Snyders, Mikes and Brattons. Ecklers is out. Maybe they all come from same source. Any experience ? No one local who straightens them. I've decided new is the only way. I do appreciate your help. Bill
 
I suspect what you really have are "runout" problems. I doubt the wheels you have are not really "out of round", as the spokes, if in decent condition will mostly prevent out of roundness. I suppose if your rims were really abused at some point, some of the rims could be out of round. Runout can be check by mounting a wheel on the front axle, with a tire on it or not and spin it to see if it has in/out problems. Use a block of wood and press a dowel or something like it against the outer part of the rim and spin the wheel to see if the rim has different gaps as the wheel turns. There are ways to fix runout, unless the wheels are really bad. You might go to Dave Gerold's website and see ways to fix runouts. He uses a torch to shrink spokes to take care of any runout. His website is: http://www.durableperformance.net/
Rusty Nelson
 
Are you in a local club and did you ask there about someone that straightens wheels? It might be cheaper to ship them somewhere to have them straightened than to buy new ones.

Charlie Stephens
 
Last edited:
I also have runout/roundness problems on some of my rims and it would be unfeasible for me to build a whole rig for just a couple of them.

My club VP swears by Snyder's products. I believe he's known the founders of the company for quite some time and has recommended them to me. He only gets their parts for the six or seven A's and T's he works on at any given time
 
Could it be that the tires are the problem? I have Lucas tires that are nylon and they bounce big time until they warm up. Also, what about having the wheels/tires professionally balanced. LRF
 
Wheels have been spun balanced on a pro machine. At the same time I noted which ones were straightest and the best 2 are on the front. Radial tires are at 35 lbs/ sq inch and front end is aligned I'm sure the problem is the wheels are not round and have run out. I noticed that on balancing I just never thought it would be this bad. Bill
 
Answering your original question, I have had very good experience with Snyders. Anything I have gotten from has seemed to be of good quality. I would assume their wheels to be the same.
 
so who makes Snyders wheels? Coker?


I think you are looking at around 2500. for a set of four. You can buy a heck of a lot of originals for that amount. Also, I am wondering about your roads and or the roads you are driving on. tell us more. How long have you had the car and how much driving do you do?


ps I agree with Charlie on having them straightened.
 
The roads here in Maine are like other roads. I am talking about performance on good, smooth roads. I expect bouncing and such on rough roads. I have tried to find good wheels for my car. I checked yesterday again and I have 12 wheels that are problems. Don't see much future in continuing to buy more. I will talk with Snyders, Mikes and Brattons today. I appreciate your thoughts. Bill
 
ronn said:
and tax and shipping.............
Click to expand...


Tax and shipping for two wheels to Arizona came to $146. (Two 19" wheels total cost = $1106.) This was last year. 21" wheels are the same price at $480 each which is what I paid for the 19" wheels last year. No change in price.
 
Last edited:
A person can Check any wheel by jacking it clear of the ground and setting up a pointer on the edge of the rim. Make sure the wheel bearing has no shake in it before checks are performed. Rotate the rim and see if there is more than 1/32 inch of axial runnout. The tire has to come off to check for radial runnout on the rotational axis. If no spokes are bent and runnout is 1/32 inch or less on either axis then the wheel is good to go.

If a tire is suspect then remove the whole wheel/tire assembly and roll it on a nice flat surface. If it will not roll straight then the tire has carcass deformation or a rubber delamination. A tire can look OK but looks can be deceiving.

I lace wire wheels on motorcycles and this is what was recommended by the manufacturers. If a person can get it better then they can keep playing with the spokes but a person will never feel that small a runnout on any wire wheel. Fixed spokes are not easy to adjust but a good wheel man can get them close enough.
 
Last edited:
Years ago there was a balancing machine that would grind a modern tire round before balancing. Out of round modern tires is not a problem these days so that technology has gone in the trash can. I was thinking it could be resurrected for Model A's with out of round wheels, but the correct thing to do is to fix the wheels and not grind the tires.
 
If a person looks up a video of how tires are made then they can see why the end of the wrap is marked as the heavy location on a motorcycle tire. I don't know if the reproduction
automotive tire manufacturers do this or not. All tires are formed in the same basic way. The cord, the bead wire, and rubber is all wound up together on a spindle then the finished cylinder is placed in the vulcanizing dies which forms the final shape by molding the rubber in the dies while heating it to proper temperature for vulcanization.

If a tire has any malformation of the rubber then it most likely is experiencing tread separation from the carcass cord. If even an almost imperceptible separation is forming then the tire won't roll right.
 
With so many of the 'newer' (and some older) Model A drivers switching to the 'de rigeur' 16" V-8 wire wheels from the 1935 Ford, it is realively easy to find good original Ford-Made 21" wheels. And they are significantly less costly than anything (mostly likely with less quality) made new. And then too, there are a number of Parts Houses like Bert's in Denver, CO. who carry used original parts. Bert's has a reputation of being 'selective' in what he keeps on hand. You might want to start there before you 'spend the BIG bucks'.

- Doug Vieyra, Eureka, California
 
Found right here, in the FORD BARN Classifieds for 5 August 2024:

28/29 Model A Wheels Set of 5,
City: La Verne * State: Ca.
Price: 200.00 for all 5 wheels, one may be questionable, others are good.
in LA


*( It is the shipping that drives the over-all cost up.)

- Doug Vieyra, Eureka, Calif.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top