i have been fixing up a COE for the marching band, the school district is rejecting our donated truck because it has split rims. but i "thought" i had the better version of these "widow makers". i have pictures posted in ALBUMS, could someone determine if mine are the 'illegal' rims. we have put so many hours into this truck.
please take a look at the fotos in my album and let me know if i am needing to replace hubs and rims. and what my options are......Thank You

 

Those wheels are the lock ring style splits. They are still legal, and still purchasable through most tire trucks that service commercial vehicles. Those wheels are not "widow makers." The "widow maker" is a two piece wheel that, according to our resident wheel expert, is of the Firestone RH5*. Meaning, that it uses a 5* angled lip, and it is comprised of a front, and rear wheel half that are overlapping in the middle. In all honesty, there are few states that actually outlaw the RH5*, and there aren't any laws on the Federal books that I can find regarding them. However, they are of the least safe style of wheel, and most shops won't touch them, and most insurance companies won't insure a shop that does service them. In other words, your wheels are not the "widow makers," and are not unlawful. The person you're talking to is misinformed, and obviously knows little about truck wheels. I actually have 8 of the disk type lock ring wheels, and can have them serviced any Les Schwab store in the country, and just about any tire shop that deals in truck tires.

 

thank you, i was sure i had this information before. i appreciate your time

 

X2 on the lock ring wheels, nothing "wrong" with them.

But I'd rather have 22.5 tubeless tires. In talking to the school district, be sure they are not rejecting tube-type tires as well as the lock ring wheels.

 

Beyond that, I'm looking at a '73 Ford Condor motorhome, and it has disk wheels that have a lock ring. If you decide to swap out to a different hub set-up, I'll let them go to you cheap. BTW, I grew up by Reno....Silver Springs to be precise. I can tell you, that there is absolutely nothing in any of NRS laws about RH5* split rims, and nothing in any state rules about them. The only thing I can figure, is that the person you've talked to doesn't know what a widow maker actually is, and thinks any wheel that is more than one piece is a widow maker. That person may also believe that the insurance company for the district won't cover any expenses associated with an accident, but he/she has likely never even read the policy. The only time an insurance company will be able to deny a claim, is the policy specifically exludes something. Since the wheels are original equipment type, the insurance will cover any accident associated with it. Also, take a look around your area. I will guarantee you that more than one city, county, or state owned rig will have those wheels on it. I know that I've personally seen several, although it has been 12 years since I left Nevada.

 

yep been thru there several times, rural Nevada is GREAT

 

RE widowmakers etc, there are some links here that have pics and diagrams so you can tell the difference more easily. The visible locking ring as the wheel rim isn't a WM. Also, a little history and the IIHS efforts to recall all those wheels, and more in the last post on that thread:

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...-purchase.html

 

It could very well be that whatever maintenance shop the school uses, or maybe even runs itself, is not equipped to deal with split rims, no matter what type. It could very well be that they refuse to do anything that doesn't use tubeless tires.

I used to drive a truck for a living in my mid 20's, the truck I drove, an Isuzu box-truck, had split rims, and many if not MOST shops refused to deal with them.

 

it's the school districts and lawyers that impede volunteers/booster parents from helping out. the affluant school have all the top notch gear; the schools on the wrong side of the trauck have to scrape by and jump thru hoops to get to the competition. forgive me for my rant on a truck blog.......... the other issue is it's a 40 y.o. truck, thats really COOL.
thanks for the support and help