Wire wheel machine,

[quickchange]

Anyone built a stand to straighten Ford wire wheels ? Thinking of mounting a hub on a strong stand to bolt wheel too then mount bottle jacks to push & pull minor run outs , So any pictures ? ideas ? who has done it ?
Pictures & ideas appreciated, Thanks , Winter time BUT can smell the salt, only 41 days to go ,Seen the list & Lickety Split is on it, with a KIWI driver,

[SAJ]

Dave Gerold has done it and published a great summary. DAVE in MN. Sorry I can't look it up while on holiday. See www.durableperformance.net. can't seem to post a proper link from here try http://www.durableperformance.net
SAJ in HAWAII ( Temporarily!)
Go to DIY help and download the file from MAFCA (hopefully if I did this right!)

[quickchange]

SAJ , Thank for the info, lots of pictures & reading ,Great article, Far more involved than 1st thought, I Shall proceed slowly on this , I did see one years ago somewhere in the states, far less complicated, ON holiday again ? few A,s in Hawaii, How many have you found ? Thanks.

[Chris Haynes]

I had Pico Wheel in Santa Clarita, CA straighten my rims.

[SAJ]

Have not seen a single one Quickchange. We are on Kona Island. Back to Oahu tomorrow for 2 days then "She's all over Rover" until next time.
SAJ in Hawaii

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

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Originally Posted by quickchange

SAJ , Thank for the info, lots of pictures & reading ,Great article, Far more involved than 1st thought, I Shall proceed slowly on this , I did see one years ago somewhere in the states, far less complicated, ON holiday again ? few A,s in Hawaii, How many have you found ? Thanks.

Derek, before I purchased a Bear Wheel Straightening Press, I just used a front axle on a Model-A. Even with my press that has all the different attachments and press features, we really do not use those because the press does not do the best job IMO.


Several years ago I shared this with Dave and here is my findings/experience. The rim and the spokes were in the same tension in all areas when it was originally manufactured and assembled. The 'X' of the spokes is what controls the concentric shape (-i.e.: egg-shape) form of the rim. The angled spokes control the lateral shape (-i.e.: run-out) of the rim. The Ford print shows that spec for run-out in either direction at 0.125" or less. The reason we find rims today that have numbers greater than that is because 'trauma' has been introduced somewhere like hitting a curb too hard or a pothole which bent the wheel. Anytime the wheel is bent, we have found something to stretched. That something is typically a spoke, and therefore no amount of putting it into a press and pushing is going to shrink the metal back into tension. Yes, you can use a press to make the rim spin true for the moment however as soon as any type pressure is placed on the rim, without the spoke(s) being in tension, the rim is going to move defeating the effort of straightening.


It is my opinion that the only way to properly straighten the rim is to shrink all the spokes where they are in equal tension. Some form of heat and cooling is required to make this occur. Using a press to assist moving the rim into the correct alignment speeds the process but ultimately heat is needed to add longevity to the job. In Dave's article, it expounds on the process and instead of using a dedicated fixture to spin the wheel, the front hub n an axle can alternately be used. Just tighten the front wheel bearings almost to the point of overtightening to remove all bearing play or looseness. Then set up an indicator to check your run-out. PM me here or send me a Facebook message if you have additional questions and I will walk you thru this in greater detail, but knowing your talents, you now have this figured out. Good luck and safe speeds for you & your team, -and praying for good salt this year!

[Dave in MN]

I wrote the press article referred to in the posts above but changed my methods of eliminating "wheel wobble" by going to the spoke shrink method after Brent and I spoke a few years ago. The second write-up on my website describes the spoke shrinking method.
I use this heat method almost exclusively now for wobble reduction. I still use the press to correct damaged areas to the outer rim when the condition is extreme but still finish the process with the spoke shrink method.
Good Day!
Dave Gerold