Knock off wheels
Thread Starter
4th Gear
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 4
Likes: 0
From: Wolcott CT
Knock off wheels
I am a Corvette novice and have a 66 Vette with reproduction KO wheels. The other day one of my wheels fell off while driving. It turned out that there was no "anti thieft" pin in the wheel. Does this pin actually prevent the spinner from coming off? It looks like it does, but the name "anti thieft" pin led me to believe it was only for detering the thieft of the wheel. Does the presence of the pin assure me the wheel will stay on? This forum has helped me to get to know my Corvette better. Thanks for everyone's help.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Aug 1999
Posts: 2,848
Likes: 3
From: Atlanta, Ga, Fulton
Re: Knock off wheels (dabavelas)
Hello. Another Nutnegger Stater on the Forum. More and more of us are showing up. Now all I gotta do is move back home...Litchfield.
On the matter of the KO's. Some people will tell you that nothing will keep the spinner or the center cap or the wheel for that matter from falling off. A lot of people just plain hate KO's...this writer included. Truth is the pins are supposed to help keep the spinner in place and of course if the spinner satys put the wheel stays put. The center caps are well in my opinion again just junk. people put silicon on there and sorta glue them in place. That among other jury riggeed things was done to my car. I reall y don't have a good answer for the center caps. As for the spinner and the wheels, get a BIG hammer and beat the daylights out of the spinner. Use some anti seeze on the spinner threads...it allows the hammer blows to be more efective. mark the spinner and the wheel hub with a magic marker and do an eyeball check OFTEN to be sure nothin is gettin loose.
Do a search on the wheels.....Kid_Again is (was) a great proponent of KO's although he has moved on to TT-IIs I think. Look at his posts and some others on the KOP's via the search and you will get some ideas and some varied opinions.
For me those wheels were the biggest PIA in the world. Takin them off to work on the car then pounding them back on after completeing whatever task was just much more work than I was up for. THe LAST straw was a flat tire one day under a BROILING Georgia sun. Standin there on the interstate flailing away with that stupid hammer made my final decision. Sold...gone....outta here. Safe dependable easy to remove and install Rally wheels for my 66. Incorrect as they may be for a 66 they are a much more civilized option in my opinion.
On the matter of the KO's. Some people will tell you that nothing will keep the spinner or the center cap or the wheel for that matter from falling off. A lot of people just plain hate KO's...this writer included. Truth is the pins are supposed to help keep the spinner in place and of course if the spinner satys put the wheel stays put. The center caps are well in my opinion again just junk. people put silicon on there and sorta glue them in place. That among other jury riggeed things was done to my car. I reall y don't have a good answer for the center caps. As for the spinner and the wheels, get a BIG hammer and beat the daylights out of the spinner. Use some anti seeze on the spinner threads...it allows the hammer blows to be more efective. mark the spinner and the wheel hub with a magic marker and do an eyeball check OFTEN to be sure nothin is gettin loose.
Do a search on the wheels.....Kid_Again is (was) a great proponent of KO's although he has moved on to TT-IIs I think. Look at his posts and some others on the KOP's via the search and you will get some ideas and some varied opinions.
For me those wheels were the biggest PIA in the world. Takin them off to work on the car then pounding them back on after completeing whatever task was just much more work than I was up for. THe LAST straw was a flat tire one day under a BROILING Georgia sun. Standin there on the interstate flailing away with that stupid hammer made my final decision. Sold...gone....outta here. Safe dependable easy to remove and install Rally wheels for my 66. Incorrect as they may be for a 66 they are a much more civilized option in my opinion.
