Thanks for looking, guys. I have several of the original ‘48 to ‘56 catalogs too, and three OSI catalogs. The OSI of 1/51 I thought might be likely to show it obsoleted as it does the equally mysterious two piece wheel 7RC 1015 that’s listed in the Service Manual, but no such luck.
So often we get questions from new guys wanting to know if a 15” wheel was an option on these early trucks, and the standard answer is always no. Only 16” wheels prior to 1953. But the NWRA and K-H records of this 01AS 1015B make it an open question.
The 7RC 1015 I’ve had some success tracking down with the help of James K. Wagner and the good folks at the Benson Ford Research Library. It ultimately saw production in 1953 after two number changes to TAAA 1007A / K-H 36877.
Also this week, which brought all this back to mind, I came upon the below 1938 Firestone reference for their “Change Over” 15” wheels for both the 5 x 10.25” and 5 x 5.5” patterns. So there are examples of 15” wheels having been available for these early trucks. Stu
