slots wheel experts... what can you tell me about these. whos running them? Pics

Could be Ansen pre-unilug, US mags (my guess, too) or ET's. All are similar quality, in my opinion and will pilish very well, shuold you decide to do so.

 

Going by at 90 who can tell? I have a stack of 70's slots....

 

I'm with wagonmaster...US Indy, Superior, heck I wouldn't be suprised if they were a Sears or Monkey Wards brand. They are cool just the way they are! I like the weathered look on anything not "shiny". Once you paint it, then polish them out or scuff them up to a "new" machined or brushed finish.

SEVERAL years ago, Hot Rod (or was it Street Rodder?) did a tech on taking a set of these and doing a little die grinding around the slots to get the Halibrand "look". Radius the hard edge around teh "window" and smooth out the inside of the slot for that "expensive" appearance. I have a set of 14x7 and 14x9 that I have always wanted to try this on. Also have a set of 15x5 and 15x10 for my next project.

Cool wheels!

 

On older cars, I don't think slots ever go out of style. They just look cool! They look like they could be 10" wide out back. I think 7" up front, but could be 8" (though it doesn't bulge like and 8" would). Now you know you're going to have to dismount the crappy tires and measure the width of the rims, right? We need to know who got it correct!

Either way, for $100, you can't really go wrong. It sounds like you want something to put on the truck until you can afford something else. The slots are inexpensive and timeless. Throw them on. Who knows, maybe you'll grow to love them.

Oh, and for the debate, I like them as cast OR polished.

 

By the way, Fif-t-3- that car looks KILLER!

 

Yes, I meant machined. Thanks for the catch.

LikeClassicRides, thanks! I was thinking of trying a new wheel and tire combo, but the more I look at the pictures, the more I like what I have.

Tony

 

I alwas thought those were the coolest of all wheels.

 

here's a set of 8 1/2 wide US Indy's in the same bolt pattern, they look just like them

 

I think I have at least 6 different makes of aluminum slots, the only ones that look noticeably different from the front, are the Fenton Gyros.

 

Got the wheels... here are some pics..





on each of the deep dish wheels there are two marks seen in the photo.. both in the same place . . . the guy went to telling me that meant something special?? dunno.

$100 not to bad a deal? the guy did tell me that the front wheels were out of balance.. but on inspection.. looks like he slung the balancers off. or.. never any on.

 

I had a set of those on my '66 Chevelle SS396. Always liked the looks of them but for awhile it seemed like every car on the road that wasn't owned by an old duffer had them. Right after I joined the HAMB someone in Detroit offered 4 with almost new tires for $80 as they had the 5 1/2 in. bolt pattern and wouldn't fit his car. I had just bought my '48 F1 so I scarfed them up and plan to use them on the rebuild after they get a polish job.

Frank

 

If they don't have any info (like the name of the company who made them) cast in the back of the wheel, it's kind of hard to tell what brand they are.

Not that it matters...neat wheels, clean them up and run em

 

Yeah hard to tell about the info... they are cruddy behind the wheels. you guys have any cleaning tips.. Im going to have to do something to get rid of fine scrathes.. the guy thought it was a good idea to clean them with a fine wire wheel... so full of swirls. the little bit of buffing I did with some no.1 aluminum compound stick seemed to cut. but wasnt sure if it was the best thing for the job.

 

I recently re polished a set of slots for my 55. I sanded them first, starting with relatively coarse paper, and working to finer paper before buffing (I think I finished with 600 or 1000). If you want them to really shine, you need to get rid of all the scratches, which means you'll be doing a lot of work. I used a stationary buffer, if you have to do it by hand it's even more work.

 

so went and measured inside bead to inside bead.. the fronts are 8" the rear measured in at 10.5"!?! im no wheel expert.. but been around wheels alot.. not familiar with a 10.5" width? whats the advantage of a 10.5 over a 10?

 

I bought a set for my project and one was pretty corroded. I had to sand it with some 240 to start and eventually worked down to 600 grit, and finally polished all of them to match. I think slots look really good on the right vintage vehicles.
I'm running 8.5" on the rear and 4.5" on the front.

 

They might have been advertised as 11 inch wheels measured bead center to bead center. When these wheels were in their heyday, tires for wheels that wide were mostly drag slicks.

 

N50 tires were pretty common in the 70s

 

Those two marks look like finger marks from the tire machine, how it holds it in place, I don't think those marks are anything of importance.
In the aluminum slot thread someone shows a good way to buff these rims out to an even finish.

 

I kinda figured this much.. although after measuring, I wondered if it wasnt a stamp of the width of the wheel. . . but what you say makes better sense.

 

The 15x10's look exactly like the Appliance brand slots on the back of my car. They have a recessed area for the lug/washer and have a very thick wheel center.

 

you guys have any recommendations for cleaning.. i've read that gibbs is good for them. and came across this thread..

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...inum-slotted-mag-wheels-extreme-makeover.html

 

I used a place in Tampa to restore the original machined finish on a lathe. They cleaned the backside, inside the slots, beads, then machined the fronts back to as new. Wasn't super expensive.

http://www.glennswheelpolishing.com/

 

Lots of hand work! If you want them shiny, just like squirrel said, sand. Start with something in the 180 or 240 range and work your way up to 1500 or so. The first couple of grits that you use will be the most work, the last your just starting the polish process. After the sanding is done, I like good old Mothers brand polish and a soft rag. I have a set of U.S. Indys on my O/T '71 Maverick, but I just realized that I don't have a good picture to post right now. It took about half a day apiece to do these wheels, and your back and arms will hurt for weeks, but man it's worth it!

 

I thought I would chime in.


As far as polishing...
Here is a fellow that does an excellent job on polishing aluminum rims, and... at a great price. I had a set done 20.00 per wheel. He is in PA, from Detroit area it costs about 50 bucks a pair to ship. I know that quite of few folks had him polish their wheels.
( http://polishmywheels.com/ )

For shipping boxes, just go to a local Wheel house (discount tire etc..) and ask for some boxes, they will give em to you.

I am in need of a ford 15" 5 x5.5 with a 3" back spacing if anyone happens to have an extra one. Would also consider a pair. PM me if you have something for sale.

Thanks,

 

late update.. but an update none the less..

Got the wheels mounted up to test for fit.. here are some pics of the results..
you be the judge too much offset on the rears??



obviously these tires are neither good looking or the right size.. but they give a starting point... So what do you think.. too wide.. sell them and get something that tucks in better.. or find a tire that works..

 

U,S. INDY
would have a plastic cap
newer american caps may work
careful on lug nut length!

 

lugs are long enough.. the lugnut goes inside the wheel holes.
Thanks

 

Check out this link on how I re-finish these wheels. The slots are at the bottom of the thread:

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=437533&highlight=sander+wheel