Good price on wheels?

[windtrader]

Found these for sale. $1000 for 6, so about $180 per wheel. Good shape but wouldn't it require all new wheel studs to put these on my MC8?

[RJ]

Don -

Yes, you'll need longer studs for the aluminum wheels.

IMHO, I'd hold out for 9"x 22.5" rims. That way you could mount the newer 315/80R22.5 tires w/o any issues if/when the time comes.

In the meantime, a rattle can of gloss white Rust-o-leum will help keep your stock steel wheels looking nice. . .

FWIW & HTH. . .

[luvrbus]

Those are hub pilot wheels do you have hub pilot wheels now ?

[buswarrior]

Are you planning to leave a steel inner on the drives? Sometimes a single aluminum will fit with a single steel on the drives.

If there's no solid thread showing proud, best to see 2 or three, change the studs. Call it good preventive maintenance and never let an air gun near them again...

IDK, shiny wheels just never looked right to me on the older stuff that always ran painted wheels, being a chewed up and spit out veteran of the bus industry, my jaded eye sees a rich girl pretending to be a street corner prostitute...

But, the busnut principle of "do it your way" over rides that.

Safely put the rims on YOUR bus, that YOU like!

Happy coaching!
Buswarrior

[luvrbus]

You can always buy the longer inner nut for the stud pilot rear wheels,the catch is the axle stud are sometimes to short with not enough threads inside the inner nut and they break off, I broke the inner nut with a 1/2 drive breaker bar before   

[windtrader]

Well - if painted steel wheels are the factory look, that excuse works for me to grab a couple rattle cans. Lots cheaper and original. Can't beat that combo! LOL

[dtcerrato]

Stainless steel beauty rim covers here with well maintained steel budd wheels under. We love the look on our 53 here.

[windtrader]

Covers are an option but it seems they get trashed a lot around here but it does seem if maintained then they don't cause issues with the steel rims. What options for picking up a set of them?

[luvrbus]

Covers are an option but it seems they get trashed a lot around here but it does seem if maintained then they don't cause issues with the steel rims. What options for picking up a set of them?

I have a set in the shop I will see what Mike wants for the 6 I know it will be cheap since he tossed them in corner of the shop.I don't why you want set they rattle and click like hell,hard to center and with oil bath wheel bearings it impossible to check the oil level or for leaks     

[dtcerrato]

Covers are an option but it seems they get trashed a lot around here but it does seem if maintained then they don't cause issues with the steel rims. What options for picking up a set of them?

You can order them at any big truck parts place. We used to have chrome on steel beauty covers but they rust in time. SS are the way to go, will last forever & can be polished if scratched. We also have the SS nut covers & center moons. Always liked polish chrome look - polished SS goes the test of time. Did the whole bus for what one AL rim would cost. The SS been on for over 15 years now & look like the day we purchased them.

[someguy]

315s won't go on 8.25" rims ?

What is the max width you can put on a 9" rim ?

[richard5933]

315s won't go on 8.25" rims ?

What is the max width you can put on a 9" rim ?

Depends.

We had Firestone FS400 tires in the 315 size on our 8.25 rims. As far as I know they are the only ones that actually put it in their tire data book that this is permissible, but it comes at a cost of a lowered max cold pressure. Of course the lowered cold pressure means a lowered max load capacity, but it was still far more than anything we could conceivably carry with a vintage bus.

The much more important question before you even consider putting 315s on your bus, regardless of which rims you choose, is will they fit?

On our 4108 they fit, but not exactly. The 315s are 1" wider than the 12R22.5 tires, meaning that they stick out on both sides. On a full-to-stops turn the inside edge of the tread rubbed against the air bag mounting plate on our bus as well as on the airbag itself. Hold this for too long and the tire could damage the airbag or be damaged rubbing on the mount.

Also, a wider tire is not always a better tire. The braking/steering traction is calculated based on a particular tread contact patch. Go too big and you might have less traction rather than more.

Do some really careful checking to be sure that you have clearance on full turns, especially when your suspension is at either top or bottom of travel.

The 315 is really more tire than most vintage buses need.

[chessie4905]

I'll  not use 315's. Won't sacrifice max speed.

[buswarrior]

Be a real shame when the 315 rubs on suspension parts at full lock on an older coach...

Depending on the profile between manufacturers, some 12R would rub, some wouldn't, if the steering stops were out as far as possible...

Bigger is NOT better.

Happy coaching!
Buswarrior

[RJ]

315s won't go on 8.25" rims? What is the max width you can put on a 9" rim?

Someguy -

The Tire & Rim Association came out with the 9" minimum recommendation for 315s several years ago after numerous reports of steer axle catastrophic bead failures on the narrower rims.

If you're converting an E or J, you should already have 9" rims.

I don't know what the maximum width is that can go on a 9" rim, but as Buswarrior says, bigger isn't always better.

FWIW & HTH. . .