steve65

It can't be that hard can it?

I've been trying to get a 1965 hubcaps put onto my rims. Is there a trick to doing this?

I don't want to bang on them to hard for fear of denting them. They are New reproductions.

What the rim had on it was the 1967 style center cap and beauty ring.

The rim is 16.25 inches in diameter. Is this the right size for the 1965 hubcaps? I hope so.

Steve

vark_wso

Steve

Your rim appears to be a '67 Ralley wheel. It has score marks, however, so there must have been some kind of a full wheel cover on it at one time.

On my '66 (with OEM wheels and hubcaps), I apply a smear of Lubriplate (white lithium) grease on the hubcap grips & on the locations around the wheel where these grips land. It seems to help get started using the heal of your hand. Finish off with a rubber mallet. Expect the cap to spring out of position if you try to take too big of a bite with each blow -- just make many laps around the cap going a little at a time.

Suggest you clean and dress the rims of that nasty rust & paint buildup to decrease the friction a bit while installing those nice caps.

nassau66427

Lining the valve stem up with the hole in the hubcap might help.

rayvaflav

.........Okay, that's priceless !

Hitch

I would never use any type of hammmer, mallet, dead blow on a hubcap.
The palm of you hand is plenty hard, using the others you will most likely dent the hubcap along the way.

If you start the side closest to the ground then place your knee against the bottom of the hubcap. The next step is to use the palm of your hand to seat the 3 or 9 o'clock position working your way around the hubcap. Should work nicely.. Dave

Technite73

I agree with Dave, use the palm of your hand and follow his advise.

Consider painting those wheels black for a better look.

65 vette dude

Oops!

65 vette dude

Real PITA,ain't it Steve. I bought the same hubcaps,and I think my palm is still black and blue from trying to bang them on. I took a pair of needle nose pliers and CAREFULLY bent each tab in a little. You will notice when you bend one in, that it springs right back,and you will think you haven't accomplished anything. But by the time you do all of them,you should of gained just enough to get them on. If it still won't go on,then you need to bend them a little farther the second time around. Its kind of a feel thing. I was actually kind of impressed with the hubcaps. Quality is not bad for repros.

steve65

I'm about to get back into this project again.

Plan is to blast off the silver paint and redo black. But befor spending that money, has anyone actually gotten the 65 hubcap onto the 67 ralley wheel? I don't want to risk damaging the caps trying to put them on if there is no way they will fit due to that center raised lip just outboard of the lugnut holes.

Steve

Mike Geary

I just tried to install a stock '65 cap onto a '67 DC rally wheel under ideal conditions --lying horizontal on the bench.

Could not get it to go on. Round and round we went!

However, it looks like if the tangs were compressed a bit then it should go on.

BTW - kudos to CSofM for a great job on their repro caps (even if some judges sniff at them)!

56early

Hi , I learned this trick many years ago from an old timer, (now I'm the old timer) When installing the full wheelcover place the lower part of the cover to the bottom of the rim over the valve stem and with a downward motion (not side motion) on the edge work the cap on striking it DOWNWARD and around . It will go I just put on an original cap on my spare 2 weeks ago( the spare is out of the tub) and ran across the same prob until I remembered the trick. Hope this helps , Jim

MAD IN NC

I think John Z said in another post all wheel weights were placed on the inside from St. Louis....

gilbybarr

You think getting it on is tough....wait till you try to take them off....without scratching the wheel or denting the metal of the cap. It takes some patience. Good luck....65 caps are nice ones.

Kerrmudgeon

65 and 66 caps are always hard to put on, on the other hand they're hard to steal and rarely fall off during hard driving. I start with the stem at the bottom, and use a rubber mallet work up sides using your knee against the bottom. Hit edge of cap on a slight angle, like your aiming for the axle. It'll go on, and I agree with a little white lithium grease on the tangs. Take em off with a big flat and thin screwdriver, using a small twist, move,twist etc., and you shouldn't damage them.

rene-paul

Use an old running shoe between the mallet and the cap.
brgds
rene

Kerrmudgeon

Yes, I have 67 rally wheels and 66 caps which are almost identacle on my 62, and they are a tight fit, only difference would be mine are original 66's....http://tinypic.com/usermedia.php?uo=...2FQIh4l5k2TGxc

Mike Geary

As somebody already mentioned, you hit the outside corner, angling down at about 45*. Do not hit the face of that outer band, it will dent.

To keep from marring the paint when removing a cap, just polish the back side of the blade (the surface contacting the paint) and tape up about 4" on the shank. This protects the wheel outer lip from chipping when you lever the cap off. You just place the blade in the seam, drive it in with your fist, and pry (holding onto the spinner!).

'65's are the only midyears that I've owned (3) and this tool has definitely earned its place as a "keeper".

1lildog

I'm going to need to do something like this or by try by hand. I tried a rubber mallet with a rag over it and I still bent one rally wheel cap.