Stu, Right - F500 or F550 or something like that. I don't know how to find out exactly. Luckily, the tire tools from our old 1946 similar truck help. tire irons and the double hex dust cover and rear lock nut remover. but I could not get a strong enough breaker bar for the double ended lug wrench 13/16 square on one end and 1.5 inch on the other. It took an 8 foot extension to get them off anyway. Jim

 

Bill - I heard Chuck say long ago that the old books sometimes show parts that the new reprint copies, or I'll assume the CD versions, don't show. As I recall him saying, it appeared that parts that were NLA or were melded with other more modern parts would not always show up in the newer references. The examples that he cited were the splash pans used on the 48-52s. Is the 1904 glass bowl we discussed a while back another example? Could that be the reason the new books/CDs don't show this wheel? Stu

 

That's sorta correct, when the part was first obsoleted by Ford, it was only listed in price books for one year hence.

When parts catalog changes occured (after the 1 year had passed by), the new pages may/may not have the obsolete part number listed.

Back then, while there were bound paper catalogs for earlier models, there were also loose-leaf catalogs for 1957 and later. When changed occurred, Ford only sent out the specific pages the changes were made on.

When you have a loose-leaf catalog that has 6,000 + pages of text, 2,000 + pages of illustrations, changing those pages was a royal PITA, and Ford made 4 changes a year.

Ford later combined 1957/63 truck parts into three bound catalogs, But everything afterwards was loose-leaf or on microfiche.

Loose leaf pages were usually installed in Ford binders made expressly for this purpose. When stacked atop one other will stand about 3' high and each binder feels like it weighs a ton!

1957/63: I have one catalog w/the newest pages dated January 1968 (see below for further info). Have the bound paper catalogs (printed in 1970).

I bought a 1956/57 truck bound Chassis & Accessory catalog yesterday...that I found in FTE's "Parts for Sale" section. Peeps musta been asleep, cuz it was 20 bucks, and is almost as hard to find as Jimmy Hoffa!

1964/72: I have one on a CD (hipoparts-scanned from the final printing: 5/1975), one on loose leaf paper (dated 1/1972), one on microfiche (5/1975).

1973/2001: Microfiche only, and have several different publication dates for 1973/79 & 1980/89.

1957/63 catalog w/the newest pages dated 1/1968: The wheels are listed on two pages: 9/1967 & 1/1968 = No TCAA-1007-B wheel is listed on either.

 

I worked my way through school selling parts at Sears, 1966 to 1970. We had the same problem with updating pages, price changes, etc. If you think about all the stuff that Sears sold/sells that you'd have to find parts for, it was quite a reference rack. It took up the whole counter. When microfiche came along it was a shocker, and a problem because the image quality sucked. We hung onto the books as long as we could, but with no updates coming they soon lost relevance. Some of the books that were to be trashed dated back to the 1920s. Today they are on my display shelf out in the shop. Stu

Edit - A buddy of mine has a '57. I found a '56/'57 manual at Iola last year for $16. He was there with me and I almost had to nag him into buying it. I would have if he wouldn't have. I use his today if I need it. Stu

 

A long time pal of mine (and fellow "Packard nut") was the parts manager of the Santa Monica Sears store.

When he was first hired, I told him 'the first job they'll give you is selling womens shoes.'

I was kidding when I said that, but that is EXACTLY what occurred!

He left Sears about a year before the shock absorber/brake scandal was announced by the gov't (that you may recall).

After an undercover investigation, the gov't accused Sears of selling suspension and brake parts to customers their vehicles didn't need.

When my pal was there, I happened to be there one day when a customer who owned a 1969 Cadillac El Dorado was foaming at the mouth over the 500 bucks Sears charged him for a brake job.

That was a lotta money back then to charge...to do a brake job on a circa 2 year old car.

Because of what Sears did, the laws were later changed throughout the US for everyone in the service/parts biz, and the Bureau of Auto Repair was established.

Every customer had to receive a written estimate before work was performed, and had to be contacted when any change in that estimate occurred.

If the customer could not come in and initial the RO, the exact time he/she was contacted on the phone had to be written on the RO.

If the customer could not be contacted, most shops stopped working on the vehicle. Then when the customer showed up, was usually PO'd that the work wasn't completed when promised.

 

Thankfully I wasn't part of that, althought I do recall it now that you mention it. Auto parts and service were a separate department at our store. I got to be the first contact with mad appliance/electronics/farm equipment/lawn mower customers and aborbed most of their abuse. When standard policy, delivery times, and service schedules wouldn't satisfy the person, next came the service manager, then up the line to the store manager. Having that experience I never again felt I had a bad job. Stu

 

Been studying on what larryejoh mentioned earlier about the hub switch. I have a few old bearing catalogs from our local parts store and looked up front bearings. I believe they are the same from 1957 to 1967 as is the seal. Then the only thing that changed for the next few years was the outer bearing. This makes me think maybe the 1967 hub would work on a '66 giving you 8 hole wheels. Before '67 you had 6 hole wheels and after '67 I bet they went to dual cup disc brakes. Means it's a one year hub that might work to get the front done, after that the rearend is easy. Unless when Ford went to twin I beam they changed the depth of the hub.

 

I was also wondering if the adapter part of the hub the part that bolts to the drum with eight studs could be changed out. I've been looking in the junk yard for a 67 and latter F350 to see if that inner bolt circle is the same. If it is I could just change out that part of the hub and leave the inner part (the part with the wheel bearings) alone.

 

I'm not sure but, I think the adapter you speak of is part of the hub, I am going to a salvage yard this weekend to investagate further. If my memory is correct I think the brake drum just bolts to the hub assembly that is all one piece. I will also check a brake book to see if drum brakes were offered in '67 or later.

 

I'll save you the trouble. 1968/72 F250 2WD's and F350's were available with dual piston caliper disc brakes, but only as an option.

1953/66 F350's and 1953/65 F250 2WD's have 12 1/8" x 2" F/R brakes. The shoes are the same, but...the wheels, hubs, drums, studs, nuts, spindles, bearings and seals are not the same.

1966/72 F250 2WD: Depending on the GVW, some have 12 1/8" x 2" brakes, some have 12" x 2 1/2" brakes / 1967/72 F350's have 12 x 3" brakes.

1948/97 F250's have 8 lug wheels on a 6.50" bolt circle as do 1967/97 F350's. 1953/66 F350's have 6 lug wheels on a 7.25" bolt circle.

If changing the hubs/drums was possible, peeps with 1953/66 F350's would be fixed for life, but it cannot be done, because the parts do not interchange.

Brake drums do not bolt to drums. Studs with serrations on them are pressed into the hubs, then the drums are pressed onto the hub's studs.

The studs serrations are what tie the whole tamale together. Old studs should never be used again, because the serrations flatten out when they are removed from the hub.

Using old studs: The drum will not mate up to the hub properly. Sooner or later, the drum will "walk away" from the hub...taking the wheel along with it. Not pleasant!

 

I inquired about this subject 11 years ago when I acquired my '65 F350 dually... all six 16" widowmakers were rusty, bent or both. I swapped the rear axle for a later 8-lug Dana 70, so at least the rear could use the common 8-lug rims with 235-85R16 tires.

Even then, Stockton's customer service sucked and they wouldn't make a pair for the front. They even insisted their powerwagon wheels would work on my truck and shipped me a pair... of course they wouldn't fit, because they aren't for duallies, and stuck out a foot beyond the fenders

The best solution I came up with was to have a machine shop take a pair of 8-lug rims, weld the holes up, and re-machine for 6x7.25" pattern. Not cheap even in 2001, but they're still working fine for the limited use they get (a few hundred miles a year) and I inspect regularly for cracking.

Are you sure the wheel could actually come off? I'm on vacation so I can't go check my truck, but I thought the hub/wheel/stud was "captive" so at worst the brake drum could come loose while the wheel stayed attached to the truck...

Does anyone have a link to a company that can actually make steel 16" rims with the 6x7.25" pattern?

 

The company that I know will do your custom wheels is American Wheel Specialist located in Pasco, WA. This company is the wholesale custom wheel supplier to the huge Les Schwab Tire chain that covers the western states. I visited the company a few years ago and spent most of a morning sitting with the owner and his son talking wheels and getting a tour of the place. The technique they use is to remount old WM centers into new tubeless outer rims. At the time of my visit I saw their yard that was full of donor wheels, but was told that they did not then have a yard supply of the 6 x 7.25" centers. So you'd want to call them to see what they can do today, but at worst you'd have to pull the centers from yours to have remounted. AWS, being a wholesaler, cannot work with you directly if you live within the Schwab service area, but will if you live east of Schwab's territory. If you live west, you'd work through your local Schwab retailer. The owner of American Wheel Specialist is Juan Murillo, and his son is Shaun. The phone number is (509) 543-9305. They don't have a web page.

As you've said, the Stockton Power Wagon wheel has a flat center. I have, however, seen Stockton custom wheels made where they welded a flat plate with new bolt pattern to the face of a donor wheel then machined out the original center. After welding both inner and outer seams the wheels work fine, but don't look like originals. Below are pics of them. You know that Stockton has changed ownership after Frank's death. Maybe they are giving better service now, I've not heard of any new experiences. These pictured wheels are obviously on a Chevy. You'd have thought that Stockton would have at least used donors having the same number of hand holes! Stu

 

Thanks for the tips. Unfortunately I scrapped my old wheels many years ago, (although I did keep one for a spare).

I'm aware of Stockton Wheel's problems. They managed to alienate a LOT of customers over the years and I hope if they re-open that they re-discover the meaning of customer service. (The website is still up but non-functional).

Replacing the center disc of an easily-obtained 8-lug wheel sounds like the best solution, if AWS or anyone else has old 6x7.25" centers, or can make new ones... don't care if they look original as long as they're strong. I'll check around and watch this thread

 

Finding other WMs or lock ring style for donor centers shouldn't be too difficult. There was also a member here that gathered up 17.5s, many of which he later found were bent. If some of them have good centers they'd probably be useable too.

AWS doesn't use used outer rims from other wheels. They have a source for new tubeless outer rims then remount the old centers into them. When I visited them and was being given a yard tour I noticed a pallet of my 19.5" wheels sitting off to one side in the yard. I asked about them and was told they were returned from a Schwab dealer and replaced because the motorhome owner didn't think they were balanced well enough for highway speeds. I ended up buying them for what Juan Murillo said was his cost. I figured my old trucks will never be asked to travel at highway speeds. I've compared these wheels to some NOS Budd 19.5s that I have, and to the donor 17s (Budd 66520s)that they took the centers from (a 17 tube type and 19.5 tubeless are twins). All the measurements are the same one set to the other, and the welding on the customs, both inner and outer seams, looks nice. Stu

 

I am thinking of cutting off the outer portion of my 59 f350 dually hub so a '92 8 lug wheel fits over it, then using dually adapters which I already have, bolted through all 3 components, drum, hub and adapter. Machining off the bell shaped outer flange is easy and safe. There is no need to go near the critical bearing area in the hub. Next we see the 8 lug pattern holding the drum on. Upon careful measuring, it is 8 on 6.5 pattern, perhaps the drum is used on 8 lug applications as well. On my particular truck the drum is bolted to the flange with shouldered bolts. This may have been done by a PO, but it was done well as the drum is centered and no brake pulsation etc. There is plenty of room inside the drum for the bolt heads to clear. I will need longer shouldered bolts and nylock nuts here. I feel I would have the option to use cold headed wheel studs here as well. Dorman and other sites have listings of many sizes, and one could pick a stud with 1/2" long serrations, which is just right for the flange and drum to be assembled. Then bolt on the dually adapter (like later trucks use). I realize the outside face of the brake drum flange is not faced off and would need to be in order for the adapter to run true.
I have already replaced the rear axle with a 10 1/4" from a '92 and want the fronts and rears to be the same. I know I can stick with the 17.5s I have up front, but they measure about 30 1/2" and the rears are 33". This was a flatbed dually and is now in the process of becoming a 9' flareside. I don't see anything here that is too unconventional or unsafe. Though my machining on the vehicle might be a bit '3rd world', I will check my work with a dial indicator, and keep it running true. Might be a week before I get to this and maybe I should get another set of hubs to practice on, just in case.....