63C

I love the look of the Knock off wheels, but don't know which
way I'm going to go yet. My 63 Coupe is NOM and is going to be
a driver. The purist in me wants the Original style "real" Knock Off.
Am I totally nuts to go with the Original style?
Love to hear the Pros and Cons of this.
What do people carry for a spare?

RMBLROAR

I have the repo knock offs on my 66. I bought it that way back in '86 and haven't had any problem with them coming loose. With that said, I wish I had a dollar for everytime I worried about one of them coming off. I'd love to replace mine with the direct bolt on knock off just for the piece of mind that they won't come off. There is a difference in the look between the two, but for the most part, you can't really tell unless you're right on top of them.
As for the spare, I have a regular radial mounted on a steel rim. Had to use it only once when I had a rear tire blow because of dry rot. I just took the adapter off, mounted up the spare and drove to my local tire store for 5 new tires.

Hope this helps.....

richscorvettes

The knock-off style wheels are a great choice. For a car which will be driven I think you'll find the bolt-on a more practical choice as you won't have to be concerned with the spinner loosening but you'll still have the same overall appearance.

Rich Lagasse

hogan64

You cannot tell the difference between bolt-on and "real" KO's from looking at the wheel. They look exactly the same. You would need to remove a wheel to tell if it's "real" or not. I replaced my "real" KO's with bolt-on's last year. I never had a problem with the real KO's. In fact, I never had ANY problems using them at all. It's just a royal pain to remove and reinstall the wheels correctly. I also worried I did something wrong when installing them and they would fall off. I always followed the installation advice of people on this forum and guess what? They never fell off or even loosened. I guess I did install them correctly after all.

Spend the extra $$ and get the bolt-on’s. Piece of mind and exact same looks.

P.S. I still have my real KO’s with spare if you want good driver wheels at a good price.

Donny Brass

I might be interested in the knock offs. And you would not have to bother shipping them, I live by you. Please e-mail me at brass327@hotmail.com.

Vandoren

Can somebody explain the difference between original and direct bolt on?

as i understand, there is no difference in the look so the difference must be in the installation. Is there an adapter that you have to bolt on the stud for the both of them or is there a difference?

I had knock off wheel on my 64 since i purchased it 5 years ago and never had any problem until this year. Lost on in early spring,with no major damage to the car. I did reinstalled it as it should have be done but the spinner keeps on coming loose. I really like the looks of it but now i'm thinking about changing them. So before i make a move i would like to know the difference between original and direct bolt.

Thanks

Donny Brass

direct bolt ons bolt on just like a regular wheel, the cone and spinner are decorative only

Vandoren

Thanks!

Do you know who sell them and for how much?

tuxedo

My car came with old style KO's and I quickly changed to direct bolt KO's. I was in a real bad wreck once and I did not want that wheel coming off. I know there are many on the Forum that like the originals. But I did not want to have to check them every so often and worry about them. There are plenty of other things to check on these old cars on a regular basis. Buy the direct bolt KO's. If the original KO comes off it can hurt you, or somebody else as it flies down the road. It can also bust up your fiberglass around your fenderwell if it comes off when you are driving slow and stays in your fenderwell. Call up Virginia Vettes . I got mine for $1495 a couple of years ago. They are now listed for $1599 but maybe they will sell them to $100 less. They are usually real competitive.

www.virginiavettes.com

gilbybarr

Bolt on Knock offs.....worth it for the piece of mind and you cant tell the difference in any way at all. Got mine from Virginia Vettes....best prices.

ctjackster

well, thank God for America and the right to an opinion!

Real KO's here, all five corners, same rubber all around too (Goldline 215/70R15 performance radials - DiamondBack). Juuuust fit in my spare tub, that item must be a repro as I understand original tubs might not fit such a tire.

the only time I worry about them is when I read some story on here about some guy whose wheel fell off - of course, I whack the **** out of them when I install them, use pins, and make sure my center caps are securely installed (white rubber mallet for that) center cap keeps the pins in, critical to my peace of mind

Viet Nam Vett

http://www.licorvette.com/misc.htm

Then click on "Misc Forms and Instructions" and look for the pdf file for knock off wheel instuction sheet.


It will show you what's involved and the parts used in this assembly.