'57 T-Bird wheel covers

G

Grumpy Rick

Senior Member
When I bought my '55 T-Bird, it came with a set of 14" wheels and '57 T-Bird wheel covers, which I will be selling.

The covers are definitely '57 T-Bird style, and seem sturdy enough. Is there any way to tell if they are real originals, or repops?

Same with the wheels. Are they different from standard 14" Ford wheels? Any markings I can check for?

In the meantime, I am putting 1956 Ford dog dish hubcaps on the wheels and running them until I get some nice American mags.

Thanks,
Rick

PS: Stealth gloat..........I just picked up 4 of those dog dish caps at a garage sale for $10. Perfect shape.
 
Original or re-pop '57 wheel covers? ...... Post some photos.
If they don't have ROC stamped on them (haha) and you don't have a known original to compare to..... I'm not sure. You might luck out and find a FoMoCo oval on them?

'57 T-Bird steel wheels?
Don't know if it helps but here's some photos of one of the wheels off my '55 T-Bird.
I wouldn't bet 25¢ they're original to the car, or even the 50's, but I think they're passingly correct.
Yes, one of the wheel cover spring clips is missing

They're 15 x 5's (overall width 6 inch) and have 3 & 1/2 inch backspace.
The center hub hole looks to be 2 & 5/8ths.
There are 12 rivets holding the wheel center & rim together.
It has a "K-H" stamp between two of the lug nut holes and no other markings I noticed.
Kelsey Hayes made lots of wheels.
I'm not aware that wheels for '55/'57 T-Birds had special/different markings or were built differently from wheels on other models in those years.
Over time there were differences in the wheel center shape & how they were attached to the rim.
Example: Increased backside clearance for disc brakes on '65 T-Birds.

Grumpy Rick said:
.... until I get some nice American mags.
Click to expand...

If you have a Discount Tire store near you their wheel prices are less than Summit.
I'm thinking about getting a set of these...

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/are-vn1055665b

http://www.summitracing.com/search/product-line/american-racing-vn105d-torq-thrust-d-gray-wheels?N=300090%2B4294920795%2B4294920320%2B4294947558

.
 

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Thanks dmsfrr,

Your wheel choice is almost the same as mine. I am thinking of torq thrust dark grey with polished edge.

On the American Wheels website you can pick a wheel and see what it looks like on your car....even change colors of the car.

I am thinking of a 17" wheel, which they say will have the proper fit and backspacing.

Rick
 
Grumpy Rick said:
I am thinking of a 17" wheel, which they say will have the proper fit and backspacing.
Rick
Click to expand...
And probably more room for a future disc brake conversion? :rolleyes:

As you're shopping for wheels and tires keep in mind the overall diameter of the tires, the max tire width that will fit under the car and the recommended fit of tire width to wheel width.
It's probably worth your time to carefully measure the existing tire clearance around your front & rear suspension and fenders, so you'll have a better idea of what will fit.

The original tire (670-15) was approx 27.5 inches tall. A current replacement tire for that is often a 205-75R15, at 26.5 to 27 inches tall.
If you go with a shorter tire, for 'good looks', the car will be traveling slower than the speedometer indicates.
This usually isn't a problem unless you do a lot of highway driving (and don't have an overdrive transmission). The engine rpm will be higher at highway speeds, depending on how much you reduce the tire diameter.

http://automotivemileposts.com/tbird/prod1955tbird.html

https://www.dbtires.com/crossreference.html
 
mercman from oz said:
Are those Clips in the picture that DMSFRR posted the ones that hold the Wire Trims on, like the one pictured above?
Click to expand...
Yes. Here's a shot of the two piece wheel covers that came on the car, like the one in your photo.
IIRC, there should be 5 spring clips per wheel. The inboard end of each clip fits into a lip on the back side of the outer ring.
Replacement clips are available from the T-Bird resto houses. The clips can sometimes be a pain to keep seated on the outer lip of the wheel. The wire rings don't seem terribly heavy and the little bit I drove the car (before pulling the engine & trans) hadn't created any major complaints about them, yet.
.
 

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271368

Thanks for your reply. They sure look nice. I don't have a 1955 or 1956 Ford or Thunderbird, but was interested in seeing how these attractive Wire Wheel Covers attached to the Wheel. It seems to me that it would be a nuisance to check the Air Pressure in the Tyres, seeing as there is no provision for the Valve to poke through.
Reminds me of a fellow that I knew who owned a 1956 Customline Sedan. He located a full set of these Wire Wheel Covers for his Ford. He decided to drill a Hole for the Valve, so that he didn't have to remove them every time he wanted to check the Air.
He refitted them and was very happy with his effort. After taking the car for a short drive, he discovered that all four Wire Wheel Covers had moved, and no Valve was protruding. One set of NOS Wire Wheel Covers ruined.
I notice that Oldsmobile Full Wheel Covers from the late Fifties, early Sixties also lacked a Hole for the Valve. It would be an absolute inconvenience to have to remove the Wheel Cover every time you wanted to check the Air?
 
Now that we've thoroughly hijacked Grumpy Rick's original thread.... might as well keep going. :rolleyes:

mercman from oz said:
... It would be an absolute inconvenience to have to remove the Wheel Cover every time you wanted to check the Air?
Click to expand...

It's actually not that bad.
Because they're spring-loaded you can pull just one side, or the whole thing, away from the wheel while they're still attached. They just pop out when you pull on them and pop back in when you push.
If you look closely at the lower near side of the rim you can see the valve stem.
.
 

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The hub cap pictured with the wire wheel is the one I just picked up for $10 for the set.

I am running them on my 56 Victoria also, and replaced the wire baskets with beauty rims.

Rick

PS: Yup, disc brakes are a definite possibility on the 55 Bird.
 
The 55 and 56 Fords both had these small hubcaps, the only difference is that the 55 models had the centres painted Red, while the 56 models had the centres painted White.
 
Mine must be repops, as they have no color on the centers. I see them listed at Larry's T-Birds for $39 each.

My computer is still resisting all attempts to get it running. Fortunately, I have equipment coverage for them from Direct TV. They are sending me a box to ship it to a repair center, and say it will be fixed or replaced within a couple weeks.

Meanwhile, I got my 10" notebook running again.
 
I was just looking at ford hubcaps last night and stumbled upon the center hubs for a 55 t-bird on Macs auto parts. I have the old steel Ford 16" wheels on my 55 F100 and am in the process of adding a side mounted spare. I liked the look of the t-bird center hubcap and was wondering if I could pop that on to my 16" spare. Thanks - John
 
271190

John, as long as your wheel centres are like this one, (disregard the Clips around the outside) the 55/56 Ford Hubcaps will fit. These Hubcaps fit over the outside of the 3 Centre extensions. However I believe that the Hubcaps on your F100 are attached on the Inside of these similar raised extensions?
 
Thanks. My wheels are similar. There are raised triangle shapes between all the lug holes. I will check closer later on this morning. You are right about my truck hubcaps squeezing on the inside of the wheel. I am headed off to a tire shop to buy the spare tire and then going to get some better stainless mounting bolts after looking at the kit offered by Mid Fifties. I'm still a little unsure as where exactly to drill the holes for the carrying bracket. The legs or bars on this thing are slanted dramatically towards the cab. As I research these brackets I'm finding all sorts of variations. Thanks again and hope I'm not upsetting any T-birders by using a T-bird cap, I just think the 55 cap will look good on a 55 red truck
 
A closer look at my wheels showed there are not those three raised areas to grab an outside cap. Oh well I should stay true to the truck equipment. Thanks again. Got to get back to the more important business of making sure I don't drill holes in the wrong places on the truck body. - John
 
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Back to one of my original questions.........

Close examination of the wheel covers indicates they must also be repops.

They seem a bit lightweight, the clip thingies are simple claw type, and not as substantial as I think originals would be, and I can find no markings whatever on them.

Haven't had a chance to pull off the wheels to see what width they are yet.

Rick
 
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