Hub or lug concentraic wheels

[Phrede]

I purchased new wheels that did not come with centering rings and are meant to fit a C6 Corvette. I checked the specs beforehand, including the bores, and an XLR matches a C6.

Today I went to get the new tires mounted and the tire dealer is having problems with balance (road force). We check the wheels, with the tires mounted, and the radial run out is about .028". I called the manufacturer, Factory Reproductions, and they say the absolute max. is .020" but should be measured using a spider and a flat plate so that location is done from the lugs??!

A call to a different retailer...... they say they supply centering rings. This tells me that they are hub concentric and measuring the run out should be done off of the hub taper.

A lot of different stories. Can anyone with aftermarket wheels tell me what they know? Did you use centering rings?

TIA

 

[tonypro99]

Yes you must use hub centric rings or else you will get wheel shimmy and it will annoy the $hit out of you.Trust me I had aftermarket rims and I will never use them again I will just stick with OEM's not worth all the trouble. If you must balance them without hub centric rings then you must use a Lug Centric adapter and balance the wheels using that method or else again you will develop the wheel shimmy. Now alot of so called "tire experts" will say they never heard of it and its not required but rest assured I have been in the industry and know what I am talking about.

All in all just get the Hub Centric rings and you avoid going those extra steps. If you got any more questions ask Im here to help...

 

[Phrede]

Yes you must use hub centric rings or else you will get wheel shimmy and it will annoy the $hit out of you.Trust me I had aftermarket rims and I will never use them again I will just stick with OEM's not worth all the trouble. If you must balance them without hub centric rings then you must use a Lug Centric adapter and balance the wheels using that method or else again you will develop the wheel shimmy. Now alot of so called "tire experts" will say they never heard of it and its not required but rest assured I have been in the industry and know what I am talking about.

All in all just get the Hub Centric rings and you avoid going those extra steps. If you got any more questions ask Im here to help...

Thanks,

The dealer I bought them from ( West Coast Corvette ) sez the bores are the same as the OEM since they are made especially for C6 fitment.
They claim that using the tapered bore locator on the Hunter is correct and wants run out measurements of all 4 wheels.

The mfg claims they are lug concentric and must be balance with the adapter locating off of the lug holes.

A different dealer of the same wheel claims the ship rings with them.

If the bore is made to the correct OEM size then a ring will have no place to go, right? The fact that the lug nuts are tapered makes me think that they are used for location. Certainly both can not be used for locating the wheel. A lot of research on the Corvette forums sure gives me a strong feeling that they are lug concentric.

Another thought..... If the tire installer incorrectly locates off of the bore instead of the lugs when balancing, as mine was doing today, the wheel will not be balanced when on the car. The OEM wheels may have the center of the bolt hole circle and the center of the bore close enough that balancing using the bore may not matter. Aftermarket wheels may not hold things that tight (it is just a clearance bore) and it makes a big difference between the road force balancing machine and the car. All just a theory at this point.

My thinking was to put C6 wheel to open up the tire selection and to be able to get a little more meat on the ground in the rear.

Tomorrow I am going to measure the bores myself and do a dry fit of an empty wheel on the bore to check the fit. I may end up running them across a CMM to get a real picture.

Then on top of it a clunk showed up in my front end tonight, which could explain the odd wear and maybe the high speed vibration.

 

[richardyoo]

My custom forgelines are hub centric

 

[james04xlr]

my Dvinci's are hub centric and smooth as glass.

 

[Phrede]

Are you two with hub concentric wheels using centering rings?

 

[james04xlr]

Are you two with hub concentric wheels using centering rings?

No, my wheels were made for a C6 vette, they are a perfect fit, no rings needed.

 

[richardyoo]

Are you two with hub concentric wheels using centering rings?

No rings on mine... direct bolt on

 

[Phrede]

No, my wheels were made for a C6 vette, they are a perfect fit, no rings needed.

A C6 Corvette wheel is not hub concentric. That is part of my whole problem trying to get to the bottom of this. An XLR and a C6 use the same hubs that have a 2.76" hub diameter for the wheel. this is about .027" smaller that the bore on a C6 wheel (70.8mm) so I am confused how it could be used for a pilot.

Do you have conical seats on your lug nuts? That is a dead give away that the location of the wheel is determined by the lugs, not the hub.

Thanks for your info, every part helps clear up the confusion.

 

[richardyoo]

the C6 and the XLR share the same part for the hub... so they will be the same.

I see that you've found the thread that I was reading over at the corvette forum - so I'll let you hash it out with them.

What I know is that when I put my wheels on my car, they float centered even before I put the lugs on... so I've been calling them hub-centric. It looks like I may not truly understand the correct terminology, and perhaps they are lug-centric wheels regardless of my observations.

What I can tell you is that I have no vibration issues, no weird wear issues, and everything works fine with the wheels I had D3 spec and ship me.

 

[Phrede]

the C6 and the XLR share the same part for the hub... so they will be the same.

I see that you've found the thread that I was reading over at the corvette forum - so I'll let you hash it out with them.

What I know is that when I put my wheels on my car, they float centered even before I put the lugs on... so I've been calling them hub-centric. It looks like I may not truly understand the correct terminology, and perhaps they are lug-centric wheels regardless of my observations.

What I can tell you is that I have no vibration issues, no weird wear issues, and everything works fine with the wheels I had D3 spec and ship me.

Got it.

A hub-centric wheel will be a snug fit over the hub with no lugs installed. There will be no float or movement at all. If the hub is rusted or dirty the wheel will not go on until it is cleaned. Universal fit wheels will require centering rings.

Lug-centric wheels loosely fit on the hubs and will move around a small amount radially. Tightening the lugs into the tapered holes on the wheel brings the wheel into it's finally position. That is why lug tightening torque and tightening the lugs with the wheel off the ground is important. The bore may or may not run concentric with the lugs or the lip. Which is a problem if the tire installer uses the center bore to balance with and it is not true with the lug hole circle.

 

[james04xlr]

my wheels when fully pushed on by hand were fully seated on the hub. The lug nut holes were centered and I was able to screw on my lug nuts by hand to the almost fully seated position.