corvette wire wheels

[58owner]

i have a set of wire wheels that have the corvette logo under the flags . it this a chevy item or aftermarket? i would think that with copyright laws it would be from chevy but not sure. any history would make my day.

 

[JohnZ]

No Corvette was ever built with wire wheels, but at some point I think they were available as a dealer-installed accessory item, probably from Dayton Wheel (they were also available as an accessory item for Corvairs).

 

[Tyler Townsley]

A picture would help. SebringBill uses 54/55 Buick wires with a corvette spinner center. Looks like they were made for the car. He had to have the hubs/rotors drilled to the Buick pattern but they look great.

http://www.sirgalahad.org/tyler/misc/Bridge1.jpg


Tyler

 

[Tom Bryant]

Welcome to the Corvette Action Center

Steve,

I remember seeing Daytons advertised with Corvette logos back in the '60s. They were popular on Corvettes back then. Enough so that I, in my uninformed youth, thought that they were an option.

Tom

 

[58owner]

picture of wire wheel

i dont want to get rid of them if they are important to the corvette but i also dont want to go to the expense of re-chroming if they are not.
here is a picture of the rim. hope someone recognizes it. steve

 

[Tom Bryant]

They look like the old Daytons I used to see. I would suggest contacting Dayton and include that picture with your email. They will surely know it they are an old Dayton. Dayton also does restoration if you decide to go that way.

Here's the link: Dayton Wire Wheels

BTW Daytons were used on a lot of the Corvette concept cars of the era. If they were put on your car when it was new I would want to keep them even if you get a set of stock wheels and caps for judging. Put radials on the wires and use them for drivers and non NCRS shows.


Tom

 

[SebringBill]

Those look like Tru-Spoke aftermarket wheels to me. Daytons had LOTSA skinny wires unlike the Kelsey-Hayes which had fewer but thicker ones. Just my $0.02

 

[Tom Bryant]

It seems to me that the Tru Spoke had very few spokes but were also very heavy, about twice as thick as you are used to seeing a spoke, and they were welded to the rim and hub. What I'm confused about in this wheel is the raised area where the nipples go through. Almost looks like a seperate piece welded inside the rim hoop. I know I've seen these years ago.

Tom

 

[iron cross]

Daytons are available both as a knock-off and also like the picture as bolt ons. These are probably not Daytons as the spokes are too heavy. True Spoke also had finer spokes. Old Buicks possibly. The wheels below are knock-off Daytons and a radial lace wheel instead of cross lace. 72 Spokes on this style.

 

[Tom Bryant]

You're right Wally. I was looking at some old pictures in a street rod magazine yesterday and Tru Spokes were almost a Buick copy. I wonder if they are Zeniths?

Tom

 

[iron cross]

You're right Wally. I was looking at some old pictures in a street rod magazine yesterday and Tru Spokes were almost a Buick copy. I wonder if they are Zeniths?

Tom

I think you right on the Tru Spokes, but I can`t recall if the Zeniths were similar. In the back of my mind I keep thinking the Zeniths were fine wire spokes. I wont bet on it however. It`s been too long ago and I never had any Zeniths or Tru Spokes to compare.

 

[iron cross]

hi all, i like them ..on the older vettes they really add depth .ive never seen them on a newer vette ..just wondering what they would look like on a 70's model?..sherry

Sherry, as long as you get the true knock-off wires instead of those bolt on`s it should look *****in {female dog in front of the IN} with black wall tires. Be prepared to work like crazy to keep them clean. I use a small paint brush and soap to get between the spokes. It takes 15 minutes to wash the Vette, and a hour to clean the wheels. Dont use sprays, as they leave a film. Plus about $1200.00 smackers. Daytons would be a excellent choice. :cool

 

[dueces]

I had a set that looked very similiar to these back in the early 80's on a '70 t-top Vette. They were Tru Spokes with Tru Spoke spinners. The centers I had were identical to the picture. At that time you could by different inserts for the spinner depending on your car (Corvette, Camaro, Mustang, etc.) from the wheel/tire store. They looked great when clean but where a totall pain trying to keep them that way.

Joe

 

[58owner]

Thanks to everyone. you have been a great help to me in my decision to dump the rims but hang the spinners on the wall in the garage. Thanks again.

 

[red59]

No Corvette was ever built with wire wheels

Not true!

In the beginning of 1956 GM built ONE special Corvette for the Swedish Prins Bertil as a gift..

Text says it had Dayton wire wheels, racing type gas filling behind the drivers seat?, exhaust through the rear quaters...

Picture is attached, -sorry for the Swedish text...

My 59 also has Dayton wire wheels, they look like the one 58owner has/had?

 

[wallyknoch]

GM has never offered Dayton wire wheels as an option on any car. There was some limited use of the Datyons on concept cars in Engineering and Styling however, including the Vettes and the Camaros. But never as a option for the general public. They did funny things over there and still do. Did you know that the very first Vette which was presented at the Waldorf Astoria had it`s 6 cylinder engine removed and replaced with a V8. This became a test car for the 55 Vettes. It had a weird classification number, "122" and was at the 50th recent show but with a 6 cylinder back in it. The car is currently owned by a New Jersey Caddie dealer. There was also at least one 1968 Z28 Camaro convertible built for one of GM`s CEO`S holding office at that time period.
.
Most of the Daytons used by GM styling were of the radial lace and not the cross lace style knock-offs. It looks like the 56 has the radial lace 72 spoke as below.

 

[SebringBill]

The 56 built for Price Bertil was serial #41 and indeed did have Dayton wires. The car is still in Sweden but is missing some of its special trim as it has had a second career as a drag racer. Lars Tidblom owned it for years but passed away recently. I think it's part of a family battle now.

(BTW, EX-122 has a much better story than that. It's not what everyone thinks - and the info may be published soon... That's all I'll say.)

 

[Tom Bryant]

Hey Wally. Your car looks to have a fairly decent paint job. I'm jelous.

Tom

 

[Orange 01 SS]

GM has never offered Dayton wire wheels as an option on any car. There was some limited use of the Datyons on concept cars in Engineering and Styling however, including the Vettes and the Camaros. But never as a option for the general public. They did funny things over there and still do. Did you know that the very first Vette which was presented at the Waldorf Astoria had it`s 6 cylinder engine removed and replaced with a V8. This became a test car for the 55 Vettes. It had a weird classification number, "122" and was at the 50th recent show but with a 6 cylinder back in it. The car is currently owned by a New Jersey Caddie dealer. There was also at least one 1968 Z28 Camaro convertible built for one of GM`s CEO`S holding office at that time period.
.
Most of the Daytons used by GM styling were of the radial lace and not the cross lace style knock-offs. It looks like the 56 has the radial lace 72 spoke as below.

That's a very good looking car. I usually don't care for different wheels on these, but those Dayton's are period and right for that car! Very nice!