So my son brought home some rims from a swap meet. Sellers says they are from a 53 chevy. Sounds about right based on the looks. My question is can a set of radial tires fit on the rims and will the rims leak without tubes. Thanks.
So far, my '51 Dodge rims are doing fine with radials, though I haven't put too many miles on just yet. 215/75 rear, 205's front. The rims are slightly narrow for these though.
Never had any problems on any of my old Studebakers.... and the ride was sure smoother than bias-plies.
Dad ran radials on a set of '48 Merc wheels for 20 years or so before I talked him into the more attractive bias-plys.
You'll be fine. They say that because radials put more stress on the rims that bias plies. The old rims weren't hardened like the newer ones are, so they will flex a little more but not enough to cause any problems. I've had countless old cars with old rims with radials and the only issue that I've ever had was the front hubcaps would sometimes pop off of my 50 chevy when turing sharp in a parking lot due to the rims flexing.
Two safety factors I have observed. Early wheels designed to be used with tubes do not have the safety bead built into the wheel (this is a raised bead about 1/2" inside the lip of the wheel. If this bead is not present you run the risk of the tire bead moving inward on the wheel and causing failure. Observed an original Kelsey-Hayes wire wheel on Corky Coker's 32 Brookville at SEMA in 2010. He had driven the car to Las Vegas and on the way out the rim exploded at the bead. Tire wasn't hurt but rim was destroyed. I was told the radial flexes so much it twists the wheel and if the wheel is not designed for a radial it can fail.
You will be fine. We have all done it for years. Corkys deal was a fluke.We all expect his tires to go before the rim.
They work just fine for me,the only fail I find that can happen is the very same fail that can happen on a very new rim as well,but for if old rim is rusty don't use . Blue wheel fail looks more like someone did something stupid and had nothing to do with type of tire.
65K miles on stock tubeless rims 215 85R 16 '49 Chevy 1/2 T, daily driver only vehicle. Check air pressure maybe a couple times a month, rarely add more than a few pounds of air.
Never had any serious problems and even ran them as tubeless on the old rims too,had to replace one since the full hub cap would not stay on but thats it.
Sometimes my old 50s wheels will loose air around the bead if they are not driven much. A little fix a flat in each tire usually seals the leaky beads. I have to put some in my 54 Buick every 4 years.
Roger that on the hubcaps coming off! Ran radials on a 55 Merc with stock wheels and moons, had to check them every time I left home and before coming home from a cruise. Screwed up a fender skirt one time when one come off on I70 at about 80MPH!
My 55 Pontiac has run radial tires since 1995(I think I'm on my 4th set) and I have never had a problem with them losing air or anything else.I do have occasional problems with hubcaps either flying off or rotating around and bending the valve stem but that is the fault of the caps.The little teeth that grip the rim wear down or bend and lose their grip. A little bending with a pair of pliers and some filing with a triangular file usually cure the problem.
I have radials (a better looking tire then bias plys) on my '52 stock wheel with no problems. Most hub caps coming off is a problem with the hub cap and not the wheel. CRUISER
No problems with radials on older rims. Just avoid corkys mishap by always using tubes. Older rims can be porous as well as having no safety bead.
I've had radials (Diamond Backs) on my '37 Chevy coupe's O.E. rims for 10-years now. I tour with the car and have around 25,000 miles on them with no issues. I check 'em over periodically for any signs of deterioration, but so far, they are fine.
My personal preference is to have a saftey rim if I am going to run radials. but it is a quirk of mine. I have run radials on old rims that are not saftey rims without a problem. Like I said it is just a quirk that I have.
I have stock 53 chevy wheels on my 53 Chevy Been running radials for 10 years..no problems , no tubes wheels are in good shape
I just ordered a set of Coker classic wide white radials for my 57 chevy, & will mount original 56 chevy 15" rims on them. I don't anticipate any problems or concerns about them. Good Luck!
Everybody bitches about radials looking ugly. I put a set of Coker bias wide whites on my car for a while but then I went back to my Runway Enduro 75 1.3 ww radials because I actually think the look better. I also solved that hubcap problem and started runnin' dog dish caps.
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