Wheels + cracks = Bad Ju Ju ....

[Bob-A]

Rotated some tires today on my '29 roadster. Took the brand new Firestones out of each sidemount well and swapped them with the rear 21" wheels. Found one rim with 2 cracks in the outer hub area! I was aware that on the same wheel. One earlier crack had been repaired. And it looked like a good weld. But, I also heard that once an "A" wheel starts to crack: forget 'about it! You just can't repair the old original wheels once they start giving way. Fortunately I found the cracks before something catastrohpic!

When was the last time you checked your wheels, let alone your lug nuts..

Bob-A

[Charlie Stephens]

Bob,

May not apply but are you running hydraulic brakes? If so, did you use the adapters? Any chance the wheels were run in the past on a car with hydraulic brakes and without the adapters? Does anyone have any other ideas why the wheels would crack?

Charlie Stephens

[gweilbaker]

A lot has to do with the over all condition of the wheel if it can be repaired, someone experienced with time for a challenge maybe.

[Bob-A]

Charlie,

I have no idea if the wheel was ever used in a "juice" brake set-up. I bought the car restored and know little of its history. Other then it was
under restoration for many years and originally came from Oklahoma. The prior welded crack goes from a lug nut hole all the way to the outer edge of the wheel's hub. The two new cracks have started on the outer edge
of the hub, at different locations. And then go next to and past a respective wheel spoke. The offending wheel is now going to only be a
spare until I can replace it altogether.

Bob-A

[Roadster62]

I'd drill a small hole at the end of the crack and clean the area around the crack then give the wheel to a good TIG welder. You can grind and file things back to normal and repaint it. Bob

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

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Yes, a good knowledgeable welder can make a lasting repair on wheels. Think about it this way, the spokes were welded on once. No reason a crack can't be welded closed either!!

[juke joint johnny]

Originally Posted by Charlie Stephens

Bob,

May not apply but are you running hydraulic brakes? If so, did you use the adapters? Any chance the wheels were run in the past on a car with hydraulic brakes and without the adapters? Does anyone have any other ideas why the wheels would crack?

Charlie Stephens

Another reason I think the 21"wheels crack is because people mount AR type wheels on the later hubs , and the later wheels on the early AR hubs.

This forms a miss match and puts extra strain on it . There is a warning in the Ford Service Bulletins about doing this. I have seen a lot of cars with a mixture of the 2 types of 21" wheels on them.




John Cochran

[dave in australia]

I have welded wheels on my 29 tudor. They have been that way for over 30 years, and still going without further cracking. As other have said, stop drill the end of the crack, v out the crack and then weld from the outside. Don't grind the outside, and clean up the inside only. If you want the car to be judged, you might have to shop around for crack free wheels at swaps as grinding down the outside weld bead will weaken the weld.

[Dave in MN]

Originally Posted by dave in australia

I have welded wheels on my 29 tudor. They have been that way for over 30 years, and still going without further cracking. As other have said, stop drill the end of the crack, v out the crack and then weld from the outside. Don't grind the outside, and clean up the inside only. If you want the car to be judged, you might have to shop around for crack free wheels at swaps as grinding down the outside weld bead will weaken the weld.

I have a set of 4 wheels that have run over 40,000 miles after being repaired as Dave said but with a slight twist to the method.
The crack was drilled at the visible end, the inside was v'd to about 1/3 the thickness and then welded just short of the drilled hole. Two additional beads were applied to each side of the first (primary) weld. The welds were ground just enough to provide clearance to the drum. The wheels were primed, the outside crack and drilled hole were filled with auto body seam filler over the primer and the final coats of paint were applied. You really have to study the wheel to see any evidence of the repair with the wheels mounted. Note: I welded the wheels with a MIG welder as I did not have a TIG welder yet. I switched to a TIG for repairs like this about 3 years ago.
If you want to see some pictures and learn a little about taking the wobble out of your wheels before re-painting them...The link below takes you to my website...look on the DYI Help page and Click on "Wheel Wobble Reduction by Spoke shrinking"

www.durableperformance.net

Good Day!

[jkeesey]

I wonder if wheels are cracking due to the same vibration issues that make the front crossmembers crack?

[1931 flamingo]

The wheels and frames are 80+ years old and no one knows the history of how/where they were driven. FWIW
Paul in CT

[Bob-A]

Thanks everyone for your commets! I don't plan on throwing the wheel away and maybe I'll look in to repairing it some day. I feel that seeing how the wheel already has one old crack {repaired} and now two new ones. It would be my luck to fix the wheel and repaint it just to see some more new cracks develope. Anyway, I have a spare set {6} of 21" wheels. Collecting dust n' rust that I was saving to paint black and put on the car. The wheels on it now {see avatar} are a cream color to match the stripping. And the color has now kind of grown on me too. So
I think I'll find the best one of the extra wheels and get it restored to match the cream color.

Bob-A

[Fred K-OR]

Originally Posted by Bob-A

Thanks everyone for your commets! I don't plan on throwing the wheel away and maybe I'll look in to repairing it some day. I feel that seeing how the wheel already has one old crack {repaired} and now two new ones. It would be my luck to fix the wheel and repaint it just to see some more new cracks develope. Anyway, I have a spare set {6} of 21" wheels. Collecting dust n' rust that I was saving to paint black and put on the car. The wheels on it now {see avatar} are a cream color to match the stripping. And the color has now kind of grown on me too. So
I think I'll find the best one of the extra wheels and get it restored to match the cream color.

Bob-A

Bob- A, I have a neat "fixture" I made to paint wheels. If you PM me with your email, I will try to get some pictures and send them to you.

[28ACoupe]

I have welded up a bunch of A wheels in the past. Hub area only though. The biggest thing is to drill a small hole at the end of the crack, V the crack out a bit and weld both inside and out. Finally, grind the inside as flat as you can.

It is a good idea to put the wheel on a front hub and give it a good spin to see if it is noticeably bent when you are done as well

[oldwoodsman]

Originally Posted by juke joint johnny

Another reason I think the 21"wheels crack is because people mount AR type wheels on the later hubs , and the later wheels on the early AR hubs.

This forms a miss match and puts extra strain on it . There is a warning in the Ford Service Bulletins about doing this. I have seen a lot of cars with a mixture of the 2 types of 21" wheels on them.




John Cochran

found this picture

[juke joint johnny]

Thanks Woodsman for posting that picture .
People should know the difference as it can be dangerous if the wheels not fitted properly .
I imagine that years ago people went to a junkyard and picked up any 21" Ford wheel and as long as the spokes were straight and the tire was good they bought it not realising that the wheel hub might be different.

John Cochran