Knock-off Wheels

[larryrollins]

Corroded spinners must be a fairly common problem on knock-off wheels. I'm hopeing someone might have some suggestions on how to get them off. The lead mallet is not working, and I'm to embarrassed to say what else we've tried that's not working. Please help.

 

[Wayne64]

I had the same problem. I used a penatrating oil . Then i put electrical tape around one of the lugs of spinner.Then placed a black abs pipe over the lug off the spinner. Then carefully hit it with my 5 lb sledge . Remember to look if it has a lock pin. This pin needs to be taken out first. Good luck.
I have seen a tool for a couple hundred bucks as well.
Do you have the westean wheel corp rims?http://www.geocities.com/daulquad/kowheel.pdf

 

[larryrollins]

Thanks for the tip. Also the web site you mention gives me some confidence I can hit them without breaking them. This is the first project on a car that's been sitting awhile. Should be fun.

 

[Wayne64]

Sounds like a great project. Please keep in touch and send a few photos. You can aloso
type in the search menu to bring up other posts on this subject.

 

[JohnZ]

You can't break the spinners - just protect the chrome and wail on them with the 5# sledge, or get a "Mother-Thumper" lead hammer; forget the lead hammer that comes with the car - it's for one-time use on the roadside.

 

[Viet Nam Vett]

You can't break the spinners - just protect the chrome and wail on them with the 5# sledge, or get a "Mother-Thumper" lead hammer; forget the lead hammer that comes with the car - it's for one-time use on the roadside.

As always..John Z is Correct. I have the "Mother-Thumper" that I bought last year as he suggested in a previous post. It will give you that extra bashing power to break the spinner lose.

 

[Kid_Again]

here's what i do

use a lot of penetrating oil (NOT WD40), on one wheel, it took me a week of soaking to get it started.

use the small sledge as noted above

then get a piece of old tire for protection against marring the spinner and WAIL AWAY!!!!

when you re-assemble the wheels, use antisieze grease on the threads and roll pins instead of solid pins...that way you can pinch the pins and remove them easily

 

[larryrollins]

Thanks for the tips. The wheels are off, and we're happy! I'm more excited about the response of Corvette Action Center members than getting the wheels off. This is such a great resource. I'm going to sign off and see what it takes to become a supporting member.

 

[stepinwolf]

Larry,

No one in any of the above responses addressed the installation process because it looks rather straight forward, however be warned that there is one small security issue that I feel compelled to mention.

I strongly recommend that when getting ready to tighten the rear wheels and seat the spinners correctly, that you lower the car so that the rear wheels are firmly in contact with the ground, or garage floor.

The reason is because of the force needed in order to tighten the spinners as per the factory instructions. The impact :bang will put an immense strain on a small retaining clip that holds the stub axle in the rear differential. This c-type clip is all that holds both rear axles in the pumpkin, and please don't ask me how I found out about this issue.

When the wheel is raised off the ground and you are banging away, it doesn't take much to snap this little c-ring right off the axle with the fatal consequences.

Not a fun thing to have to replace this little c-clip because in order to do so, you will be obliged to remove almost half of the rear suspension just to get at it. By the way another little thing to be careful of is to try and not have your " MONSTER" hammer come in contact with any of the fender lips, because a large section of fiberglass will be immediately be ripped off, and quite easily at that.

Good luck

Stepinwolf

 

[Craig -1965]

Knock offs

Larry,

I suggest investing in a can of "PB BLASTER" the stuff is great for this application. NAPA stores carry it and one use and you will be getting rid of WD-40 and penetrating oils... Once you get the knock off off use some never sieze on the threads and mating surfaces. I have knock offs also, there great but can be a pain in the ass.......

 

[Kid_Again]

yup, what stepinwolf said:bash

 

[stepinwolf]

yup, what stepinwolf said:bash

Hey, Kid, so sorry I missed seeing you at the show.

As per your above response, are you referring to the " Change of Partners " or the wheel installation,,,

Stepinwolf

 

[Viet Nam Vett]

Larry,

No one in any of the above responses addressed the installation process because it looks rather straight forward, however be warned that there is one small security issue that I feel compelled to mention.

I strongly recommend that when getting ready to tighten the rear wheels and seat the spinners correctly, that you lower the car so that the rear wheels are firmly in contact with the ground, or garage floor.

The reason is because of the force needed in order to tighten the spinners as per the factory instructions. The impact :bang will put an immense strain on a small retaining clip that holds the stub axle in the rear differential. This c-type clip is all that holds both rear axles in the pumpkin, and please don't ask me how I found out about this issue.

When the wheel is raised off the ground and you are banging away, it doesn't take much to snap this little c-ring right off the axle with the fatal consequences.

Not a fun thing to have to replace this little c-clip because in order to do so, you will be obliged to remove almost half of the rear suspension just to get at it. By the way another little thing to be careful of is to try and not have your " MONSTER" hammer come in contact with any of the fender lips, because a large section of fiberglass will be immediately be ripped off, and quite easily at that.

Good luck

Stepinwolf

I thought that the splines in the drive yoke in the diff is where all the impact force would go. Since the drive yoke is spined to the side gear. When I beat on mine ...I have the E-Breake set and the tranny in gear so that that the force....twisting force.....is localized at the wheel.

I thought the Clip keeps the drive yoke from coming out Latterly and would not be effected by the twisting force of the impact on the spinners..


Please splain me...cool

 

[stepinwolf]

Mark,

What the consciences are, along with the impact, is akin to hitting the center section of the spinner, causing an abrupt downward motion. This movement, along with the weight of the other suspension parts, tends to create a downward pull, which in turn causes the stub axle to want to shift out wards, causing the c-clip to pop off the end of the splined section inside the diff.

Sorry I can't justify the inertia movement any better, but believe me Mark, this is what the cause was.

Like yourself, the first time this happened to me I thought it couldn't have been caused by the downward force that was being asserted with the hammer, but guess what a few years later the exact same scenario produced the exact same results.

Then the fun begins since you have to remove the complete spare carrier, remove the half shaft, disconnect the rear spring, drop the rear x-member, spill out all the differential oil over yourself, before getting to the rear cover . Then you have to get inside, remove the clip, and reverse the disassembly process.

All this for one fûcking hammer blow, is in my opinion a very high price to have top pay. As for the shïtty little c-clip, you have best chuck it and replace it with a new one. For those of you in the know, the c-clips in their ( GM ) next generation pumpkins are almost twice the thickness of these, and require expensive, professional, tools to be able to remove, or install them.

Have a good one buddy,,,

regards
Stepinwolf

 

[Kid_Again]

Hey, Kid, so sorry I missed seeing you at the show.

As per your above response, are you referring to the " Change of Partners " or the wheel installation,,,

Stepinwolf

...i thought the reference to the partners was RIGHT on and i'm glad you asked for the clarification......yeah, sorry i missed you also, friday was not my finest day for paying attention....i will post a picture of my $300 '67 bb hood a bit later but the paint job will remind you of those Leisure Suits and disco sunglasses you sent to the Salvation Army 30 years agootfl

 

[Kid_Again]

i have read this post carefully and i understand it

here is my one seminal thought

do what i did

sell your knock offs like i did and you don't have to worry about

 

[Viet Nam Vett]

Mark,

What the consciences are, along with the impact, is akin to hitting the center section of the spinner, causing an abrupt downward motion. This movement, along with the weight of the other suspension parts, tends to create a downward pull, which in turn causes the stub axle to want to shift out wards, causing the c-clip to pop off the end of the splined section inside the diff.

Sorry I can't justify the inertia movement any better, but believe me Mark, this is what the cause was.

Like yourself, the first time this happened to me I thought it couldn't have been caused by the downward force that was being asserted with the hammer, but guess what a few years later the exact same scenario produced the exact same results.

Then the fun begins since you have to remove the complete spare carrier, remove the half shaft, disconnect the rear spring, drop the rear x-member, spill out all the differential oil over yourself, before getting to the rear cover . Then you have to get inside, remove the clip, and reverse the disassembly process.

All this for one fûcking hammer blow, is in my opinion a very high price to have top pay. As for the shïtty little c-clip, you have best chuck it and replace it with a new one. For those of you in the know, the c-clips in their ( GM ) next generation pumpkins are almost twice the thickness of these, and require expensive, professional, tools to be able to remove, or install them.

Have a good one buddy,,,

regards
Stepinwolf

Thanks Bob,
That was a good explanation. I see what your talking about . Makes sense now.
Lowering the wheel to contact the ground ...maybe not with the full weight of the vette seems like a good idea. At least maybe 1/2 to 3/4 weight to keep the load transfer to the ground instead of forcing it out against the clip.

Good advice..

 

[stepinwolf]

Thanks Bob,
That was a good explanation. I see what your talking about . Makes sense now.
Lowering the wheel to contact the ground ...maybe not with the full weight of the vette seems like a good idea. At least maybe 1/2 to 3/4 weight to keep the load transfer to the ground instead of forcing it out against the clip.

Good advice..

Right on Mark,

That is exactly the way I intended to have you interpret the info.

As per Kid's suggestion of getting rid of them in favor of decent wheels, the only people who would object to his recommendation, would be those to whom an incident has not as yet occurred. But hey, all we have to do is be patient and wait a while, because as you well know, sooner of later the crap will hit the fan, and the owner will be up the proverbial creek, especially with them now coming out of , O my God, China. hnoeshnoeshnoes

Stepinwolf

 

[larryrollins]

Thanks for more great information. We had the wheels on the ground for better impact, but didn't know about the dammage that could have been caused by the wheels being up. As for the part about the fiberglass, I'm already paranoid when working around the car anyway. I saw a piece of the lip around the engine bay get broken off. It sure doesn't take much to break this old glass.

 

[Tom Bryant]

Often when you are trying to get a stuborn nut loose, any size, you can get it to move a little by trying to tighten it first. Any movement in either way gives you something to work with and allows you to get the penetrant worked in. Also as you are taking it off if it gets tight, turn it back the other way to clear the crud out of the threads. Then apply more penetrant and continue.

Any time you are changing a tire, even on the family bus, you should break it loose on the ground and then jack it up. Otherwise you are just spinning your wheels.