Trailer Wheels

[Cyclone Joe]

Howdy all,

A buddy has an old trailer and it has 15" split rims, 5x8" bolt pattern, 3/4" lug. He wants to dump the split rims but he's having a heck of a time finding anything with that lug spacing. My thought is to find some used wheels but I dont know where to look. Any suggestions? He's located in the Sacramento Area.

Did anything factory come with that lug spacing?

Thanks in advance
Joe

[NIsaacs]

That is a super rare size. The only thing that comes to mind is a vintage VW, maybe?  The 3/4 stud might not fit tho, even if the bolt circle is the same.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/PAIR-USED-ORIGINAL-GENUINE-VW-VOLKSWAGEN-BEETLE-4JX15-STEEL-WHEELS-SQUARE-STEM/371532757438?epid=1958086617&hash=item568113f9be:g:1EIAAOSwuYVWmD8z&vxp=mtr

Nick

[Cyclone Joe]

Here is some more info:

Its a 16K rated Hanner tilt trailer, dual axle with axles made by Hadco, and by the looks of it, pretty old. Tires are 7.5-15".

Here are a few photos of it.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4oYPR1A5qyablFzNVJ0eGVCWmNlVjJscGxQcktmM1ZLaUJV/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4oYPR1A5qyaRXRIMFFLaTVNcnlsSXJEc1Y0Um9ZSXRBRVBZ/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4oYPR1A5qyaSjE1ODBCb1BGX2VsQ3VfUjBWM2x6eUd1VnNN/view?usp=sharing

Joe

[Heo]

When i saw the BC i was thinking Dodge Weapon Carrier ....not much help. Split rims
and wrong offset
What i would do is find a "Heavyduty" 15 inch rim or 16 or whatewer size that easier
to get tires for.  Cut out the center of it 
and weld the old center to it .I have converted a lot of rims like that
http://www.wheelsofvictory.com/xx/Ron/USDODGE%2044%20a.jpg

[Cyclone Joe]

Thanks Heo,

He's going to hang onto the originals. They ended up not being a split rim, but that trim ring is what holds that bead in. Split rims I always though were a bit different.

He did talk with Stockton Wheel and is going that route. They'd also cut out and re-weld the centers to another size if he wanted. But for now, he's going to most likely go up to a size 16" wheel in the same pattern.

Joe

[NIsaacs]

That is a cool old trailer. Yes, a true split rim was just that, the rim was split and used a solid one piece bead ring. That trailer has a split ring wheel. Some wheels had a two piece snap ring. The worst wheel were the old Ford wheels that split in the center.

Here is a link/picture of one, they were scary to work on.

http://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrTHRNRsi9aImgAGlFXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTByM3V1YTVuBGNvbG8DZ3ExBHBvcwMzBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzcg--/RV=2/RE=1513104082/RO=10/RU=http%3a%2f%2fwww.fatfenderedtrucks.com%2fwidowmaker.html/RK=2/RS=JzDSAqGgl5EgyAzfc3u0KETyKfQ-

Nick

[Dan859]

I worked in truck/heavy equipment tire shops back in the early 70's.  I've had split rim tires blow up on me, while they were in a cage and I was inflating them.  If you weren't using a cage and it blew up, you ran a serious risk of not living to tell about it.   They are very dangerous and there's good reason why they're called widow makers.  I would absolutely look for another rim/tire combination to replace them.

[NIsaacs]

I worked in truck/heavy equipment tire shops back in the early 70's.  I've had split rim tires blow up on me, while they were in a cage and I was inflating them.  If you weren't using a cage and it blew up, you ran a serious risk of not living to tell about it.   They are very dangerous and there's good reason why they're called widow makers.  I would absolutely look for another rim/tire combination to replace them.

My guess is the one's that blew up were the Dayton type split wheels. The split rings were actually pretty safe, I used them for years on my log trucks, mostly one piece but some two piece lock rings.

The wheels on that trailer are rare for the era,  in the fact they are both hub centric and lug centric. It is hard to find 15"-16" tires with a 4k capacity to match the 16k of the trailer. It is quite possible the owner doesn't need that much tho.

It might be easier and cheaper to replace the axles with a modern set v/s custom built wheels.

Nick