SS rims VS plain 1982 rims

Roy Ale

Member
Oct 20, 2020
62
13
8
Victoria BC
I have 6 / 15 x 7 SS rims . Before i put more money into the SS rims i had them all tested at a tire shop . All 6 had a slight hop. A bit out of round / not true . Tire shop said this was normal for rims of that vintage . I then had them all sand blasted. Part of the reason i purchased the SS rims was i could not find a plain 1982 rim . local Tire shop said the 15 x7 original rims are now rare and hard to find . My original 1982 rims were all leaking air in the winter time . So decided to put the SS rims on the car while i get the original rims sand blasted and painted . Had all 4 original plain rims tested for run out , they all checked out to be true / no hop . Question , for long road trips , would the original rims be better ?

Next observation .
The centre hub shape of the SS rims are different than the centre hub circle of the original plain rims.
Question , does the weight of the car sit on centre hub circle of the original rim ?
Now have the SS rims on my 1982 Delta 88 , Q ? is all the weight of the car now on the wheel studs ?
 

Olds 307 and 403

Well-known member
Oct 4, 2018
996
265
63
Melville, Saskatchewan
It seems to me they do sit on the center for the original rims. Yeah, it seems the SS rims can be a bit out of round. As long they balance, they should be fine.
 

Olds 307 and 403

Well-known member
Oct 4, 2018
996
265
63
Melville, Saskatchewan
I believe so.
 

Roy Ale

Member
Thread starter
Oct 20, 2020
62
13
8
Victoria BC
Had an SS rim and a plain 1982 original rim to a tire shop . They say the SS rim only sit on the wheel studs . They say when mounting the SS rim that only sits on the wheel studs the wheel can be a bit off true . The SS rims are already off true from the factory , now one more off true when mounting ! The original rim sits on the centre hole but also it keeps the rim centre/ true . Shop said original plain rims are stronger as the whole inner face touches vehicle so no flex or possible bending . So sounds like the plain original rims are better for long road trips.
 

Rocketman269V

Member
Feb 26, 2020
61
16
8
South Central Florida
You might ask them to "index" the wheels, one wheel stud at a time, to see if it takes some of the out of round out. By that I mean to remove the wheel, rotate it one wheel stud and put it back on. Sometimes that helps.
 

Roy Ale

Member
Thread starter
Oct 20, 2020
62
13
8
Victoria BC
Index the wheels , that's interesting thanks .
SS rim VS plain rim , so far the original plain rim seems to be the better rim .
So are there any advantages of the SS rims other than appearance. Maybe more cooling of the brakes do to the 5 bezel opening's / more air flow .
 

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