I am making a trade for (7) Cadillac hub caps that I think are 1953 Sombrero's but am a bit confused. Are these full covers like the 1957's and are they 15" or 16" ? And are they the true Sombreros ? Thanks much,
They are definitely full size wheel covers. You will have to determine what size they are, since you can get your hands on them.
Those are true Cadillac Sombrero hubcaps that were used from the late 40s to early 50s on Caddy’s. They are full wheel covers and they are more than likely going to be 15”. They did come in 16” but they are pretty rare to find. Keep in mind that these hubcaps will only fit on a Cadillac wheel unless you modify them to fit a regular wheel. To get them to fit a standard wheel you will have to remove the center cap and drill out the spot welds and remove the inner cap, then you will need to weld or panel bond a 15” beauty ring on the back.
Thanks for all the comments and info. I am getting them on a trade, so not sure what I will do with them. Perhaps revise and use on the rear, as I have skirts for my car. Or may sell them, or trade for a pair of '57 Caddy's for my '49 shown here.
Modify and run those 53 Cad hubcaps, they'll look great! They are 15" the older sombreros came in 15 and 16 but not these.
I respectfully disagree with some of the earlier posts, what you have there are the true sombrero’s as used on the Hirohata Merc, Mantranga Merc, Jesse Lopez Ford,Marcia Campbell Ford The 15” ones measure 16” across and the rare 16” ones measure 17” across as they cover the complete lip of the wheel They will fit on a stock shoebox ford wheel by cutting the stock mounting ring out of the back and tack welding them to a 15” beauty ring I had them on my old shoebox coupe They really look great on a shoebox IMHO much classier than a 57 caddy cap would Here’s a pic of the examples I mentioned
This is my 1951 Merc with the true sombrero like the ones you are getting. Mine are stainless steel modified with a beauty ring welded to the back and then fully polished. I have stock 1951 Mercury wheels.
Got the deal done today... so now have (7) authentic Sombreros. Will clean up to be nice drivers, or can be refurbished. Thinking of adapting (4) of them for my '49 Ford Coupe, and probably will sell another four of them. Here is a picture of the back side as hotrodA requested You need to remove the inner part that looks like the old dog dish caps, then weld or fasten a trim ring to them. Then they will fit on normal rims. They snap on the original Cadillac wheels like the original dog dish caps back in the '40s. The rims back then had clips to hold them to the center, vs the newer nubs on the wheel centers.
Are yours reproductions? I thought all the originals were stainless steel, yours sure look rusty in the pictures.
I've got some I think are old aftermarket ones, they're stainless and attach to the edge of the rim like most wheel covers do. I don't think they're as deep as the originals either
What 50’s Oldsmobile full wheel covers are a more affordable version that sort of resemble Cad Sombrero caps? I believe they mount right on regular rims too.
I’m a wee bit confused... you got seven and you’re going to use four for your project and sell another four? Although I’m a retired Math teacher something seems to not add up! LOL They look a lot like the ‘49- early ‘50s Pontiac full wheel covers of which I’m looking for two....
I think possibly they’re a one year only type used in 1951. I had a pair of them on a ‘51 when I bought the car in the early 80s. It had the same Cadillac crests as the sombreros on them. There was an added page in owners manual that mentioned some materials used that were different because of the Korean War. It didn’t specifically mention any particular parts except for some of the bright work was only enameled polished steel so you had to be careful when using polishes. The hubcaps were definitely stainless steel though.
Well before I posted that I went back to see if he mentioned if he already had one, or more, but I didn’t see that info... which post # is it in? As you say he didn’t say how many he had but he did say how many he could get. And I never had a single student that that was stupid. Un-motivated, lazy at times,....maybe but I usually could repair that with a short after school chat in my “shop”! Sometimes you just have to figure out how a particular student learns or likes to learn. Humans are programmed to learn. I always hated those types of questions as did my students. When one came up I related this little gem, “When I die I want to go peacefully in my sleep like my grandfather and not yelling and screaming like his passengers!” LOL
Mine are 1949 Cadillac stainless steel. The sombrero came in chrome and stainless as well as in 16” and 15”. These hubcaps only fit on Cadillac wheels unless you modify them.
Found 2, 50-52 Olds (stainless) wheel covers that identify as hubcaps here in the Midwest, at Jefferson Swap Meet today…1/2 assed polished one of them when I got home.
If it covers only the lug nuts, you know, where the HUB is, it is a hub cap. If it covers the entire wheel, it is a wheel cover. Those two terms are not interchangeable. You can call a pig a duck, but you will go to your grave before you hear one quack.
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