VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1933-1936 17 inch wheel trim rings

Hi there,
I have seen on a 34 chev, the same as mine, chrome trim rings for the 17 inch wheels.
I have searched the web and find that they are available on ebay for smaller wheels and also 18 in wheels.
But not for 17 inch?
does anyone know if they are still available for 17 inch chev wire wheels?

Peter

I looked for years for 17" trim rings for my '35 Standard. I finally saw a set of 6 on ebay that were described as 16' rings.
I could tell from their appearance that they were not for '16 wheels so I contacted the seller and got some measurements. Based on the measurements, I decided they were 17" and bought them.
They were NOS and genuine GM (GM was stamped into the tabs that hold them on the wheel) but I could not get them to go on my wheels. They were too large.
I checked my '35 Accessory book and discovered that the rings for Master and Standard were different even though both series used 17" wheels.
I was talking to a friend of mine who has a '36 Master. He said that he had bought a set of repop trim rings for his car but they would not stay on the wheel. We traded rings and solved our problem.
I will call him and find out if he remembers where he bought the rings I have.
The visual clue that identifys a trim ring larger than '16 is the notch for the valve stem. It is almost non existant on the 17' ring. It is just a barely noticable dip in the inside edge.

Mike

I believe Bill Hirsch has trim rings for 17" wheels.

Pat,

How can one contact Bill?

You can look him up on Google. He also advertises in the Generator & Distributor.

first listing on Google, typed in (trim ring 17") and got this site
I need a hubcap. com

Interesting, but those are ABS chrome plated plastic

that site also offers stainless, but not in that size 17"

mike

thank you all for your help.
I fear that the quest will be ongoing for many years.
Maybe I & I should start manufacturing them again? the filling station just buys off I&I and adds $10/$20. Hmmmmmmmmmmm
Peter

I went thru the same searchs a while ago looking for 17 stainless trim rings.

I would think the best chance of getting them would be WHEEL VINTIQUES in california........but only if the demand was there for 17 " wheels with trim rings.

I also thought of buying 18" ones and making a welding jig and cutting one into 4 equal pieces until it was 17" and then TIG welding it together. The amount of work in making the welds seamless and polishing them, just doesn't make sense time wise.

Sooner or later somebody will do them, I can wait or do real nice triple pinstripping instead.

mike

Hi there,
Thats an interesting idea Mike, but so much work involved!
Has anyone bought and fitted the chrome on acrylic rings mentioned earlier? Maybe they look OK?
I have just sent that company a message asking about 17 inch rings and it will be interesting to see what they reply with....

Peter

if you decide to make them DON'T use Al's metal spinning in New Castle, Ca. you will never get your parts or your $$ back.

I googled bill hirsch and he shows 2 types for 17 inch wheels.

mike lynch

Hi there Mike,
I did too, (google) and dont know which ones fit a 34 chev with 17 inch rims?

Peter

==========================================================Does anybody know on this chat site have & they purchased the 17" trim rings from Bill Hirsch. Do they fit the 17" chev wheel correctly and if so which of the two is correct. I guess the other answer would be to contact thru email Bill Hirsch to correctly answer the question. When in doubt always ask the well respected seller.

mike

hi there,
he has 17 inch rims, in wide and narrow fittings, but I have no way of knowing which would fit my wire wheels.
At $60 per rim, I cannot afford to find out the hard way.
Seems like I will just have to put them on my too hard to find list.......
Peter

I received an email this morning from BRETT HOUSTON of New Zealand. He has problems getting onto VCCA chat, but can read it online.

POSTED ON BEHALF OF BRETT.

Brett states......" I don't seem to have any luck getting onto the VCCA Forum, but just love reading it."

" I have just bought 17" trim rings for both my cars from Bill Hirsch. ( 35 EC standard sedan and 35 cabrio Holden Body----wheels for both cars are the same ) I got the small cut out rings as they are out of stock of the larger cut out rings."

" They fit my wheels just fine, but i had to enlarge the cut out for the valve stem by about 10MM. It did not take very long with a die grinder , but i am worried about rust in years to come."
brett houston


No worry brett , if they are stainless steel , will never rust

mike lynch

If he will post a request with all the data an Elf will take care of it.

I think the point is that if he was able to post a request, he would not have a problem to be solved by said Elf.

Mike

RAY THE ELF if you care to contact Brett Houston direct, and help him with his problems logging on to CHAT here.
he is .... brett at btsl.co.nz

I believe brett owns either a 34 or a 35 standard touring

mike lynch

I have Bill Hirsh's stainless 17" trim rings on my 1935 Std
coupe, and they fit perfectly! I bought them several years ago
at Hershey and they really look great! I have put several thousand miles of driving on them and never had one come loose.
A little chrome polish and they still glisten as new! As I
recall, they were made in South America and imported here. My
wire wheels are 17 inch, the tire size is 5:25/5:50x17. To be
honest, I do not recall if they have the large or small valve
stem cut-out, and I can not see them until I get the car out of
winter storage, which may not be for 3 or 4 weeks.
Phil Lipton millnphil@yahoo.com Let me know if there is any
thing more I can do to help. Phil

I asked Hirsch the question and he says that for the '34 Chev Master, it is the ones with the small cutout.

I contacted bill Hirch and I need the rims with the small cut out seems. I will order and post pics when they arrive and are fitted...........
Peter

hi there,
today the 17 inch trim rings arrived, well packed and in good condition,
But the cut-out is to small for my valve stems, its the small cut-out that I was advised that was correct for my car. Apparently NOT.

How do I grind down and ENLARGE these cut-outs ?
the overall quality is superb and I dont want to compromise the finish....

Peter

an update,
emailed Bill Hursch and he replied that he thought that I had a Master.
The standard and the Master use the same ring but the standard has the larger valve stem cut-out.
I can either return them or find a machinist workshop that can grind them out to the right size.
has anyone done that on this forum?

Peter

Have you tried them on a bare wheel with no valve stem in the hole to make sure they fit the wheel itself? Once you modify them, if they still don't fit your car, they are not returnable or useful to anyone else. Just a thought.

Mike