VCCA Home Forums GENERAL DISCUSSION General Discussions Rim identification

Hi all,

I picked up a couple of rims that were in the garage of a Buick collector. He passed away and his daughter was cleaning out the house.

Anyway, I really don't know what they go to and I was hoping someone here might know.

1. The wider rim has Jaxon stamped on the inside. Also, there's a number 3 (see pic). The tire that came off it was 6.50 x 20. The rim is 4 1/2 inches across the top and 3 inches inside the valley. The inside of this rim is really beautiful.

2. The narrower rim is more rusty. The tire that came off this one was 6.00 x 20. The rim is 3 7/8 inches wide and 2 1/2 inches in the valley.

Let me know what you think.

Thanks, Dean

The rim that is 3 inches across the valley is a 1928, the 2 1/2 across the valley is 27 and earlier.

Dean,
A 6.00 tire on the narrow rim should have looked very much out of place. Perhaps the same is true of the 6.50 on the wider rim. Did they look unusually pinched together at the rim?
Those are truck tire sizes, as you know, and Ray is saying car rims as I understand.
I have a wheel/rim catalog from the 30s. It illustrates latches, lug position, (when appropriate) diameter, width, etc. I used it to I.D. some rims I had.
Not to doubt Ray, but I can take a look when I get home.

Mike

Mike, go ahead and take a look and see what you think.

Yes, I am calling those car rims.

Mike and Ray, thanks for your replies.

The tires, with respect to the ID, fit comfortably on the rims. After I unlatched the lock, the rims came off easily with a couple of tire irons.

Yes, the beads of the tire from the narrower rim seemed squished together (like a truck tire on a car rim), but the ID of the tire fit the rim well.

I just measured the outside diameter of the rims (simulating latching with a rim spreading tool) and here are the results:

1. The narrower rim is 21 1/2 inches in diameter

2. The wider rim is 21 7/8 inches in diameter

3. Measuring the spare on my '28 AB Canopy Express, it is 22 3/8 inches in diameter.

So, although I agree with Ray that the width of the rims points to '27 (and earlier) or '28 Chevy cars, I suspect these rims are for a different application.

The '27 and '28 cars use 21 inch tires, whereas 20 inch tires were on these rims.

Mike, thanks for the offer to look in your rim reference book. I look forward to hearing what you find.

Best regards, Dean

Only '29 Chevrolet passenger and 1/2 ton used 20" tires. Many years of trucks used 20" tires.

Dean, Ray, et al
I finally remembered to get out the rim catalog.
The wide rim appears to be 1929 Chevy and the narrow one is for '29 Buick. I did not bring the catalog to work with me and I can't' recall if the Buick application was limited to a certain series. It seems odd that a Chevy would wear a wider rim than a Buick.
Also the catalog listed the Buick rim as 4" wide instead of 3 7/8". There was no Jaxon type 20" X 3 7/8" rim anywhere in the catalog.
I don't know where I got this catalog. It is a photo copy showing application info as well as a section showing latch type, dimensions, lug spacing, valve hole location, etc for hundreds of cars and trucks. Snap rings, individual lugs and bolts are also covered.
I will be happy to try to I.D. any mystery rims for anyone.

Mike

Thanks for the info and the effort, Mike.

Sounds like that rim catalog is quite rare.

Cheers, Dean