I see these wheels brought up in conversation every once in a while. I have a set that I bought for my vette in 1970. I think they are 10 inch for the front and 12 inch for the rear. Are they worth something? They still have the old old polyglass tires on them.

 

pics please.

 

They used to be a dime a dozen back in the day. They aren't that common anymore, and the value of them is going up. I've been looking for a set of original ansens for over three months, and I haven't been able to find wide enough ones for my vette...I am installing 4'' flares.

 

The wheels are (the 38 yo tires probably aren't). Unless they are Mickey Thompsons or Pro Trac's, the rims are most likely 8's and 10's (I think those were the only tire companies that made a tire that would fit a 12"). /:\

 

I always liked those wheels. My buddy had a set on his Jeep and they looked great. He let his brother take the Jeep hunting. On the way home, his brother called and said the Jeep was vibrating really bad and would not get over 25 MPH with out the vibration. We told him to park it and we would come get the Jeep. Somehow the lug nuts had came loose and the wheel was wobbling around on the studs. It ruined the wheel.

 

they are also known as "sewer covers"...and are VERY heavy.
redvetracr

 

I believe you are correct parker, I went out and tried to measure them today and the rear measure outside to outside 11 inches approx. The front measure 9 inches.

 

This is not a very good picture as it is 38 years old, but I think you can see them.[IMG][/IMG]

 

The 8's are still fairly common at $25-50 per, the 10's are less common and will be worth more (condition dependent) Without recent pix $150-400 for the set, but that's alot of wiggle room. /:\

A 5 on 4 3/4 bolt pattern will add a few bucks as apposed to the uni-lug.

 

Hello,
Here's a picture of my car before I put on new tires and my restored
Rally's. These wheels are Magnesium and are very light weight. I had the
old tires removed and I planned on restoring the wheels over the winter.
I'll have to measure them the next chance I get.

After I looked at the pictures, I realized just how much went into cleaning,
polishing and waxing the paint. I can't get over the difference.

Before


After

 

Ansen wheels were never made of magnesium, all aluminum. If they were true mag wheels they would have been black from oxidation and taken days to shine up. Polished Mag wheels will start oxidation within a day or even water or rain screws them up. They are a real bitch to keep a shine and also actually can burn. Nearly impossible to repair by welding, The basic reason all the race cars switched to aluminum wheels....

 

OMG, that looks like a repaint! Although your wheels are probably aluminum, Halibrand does (did?) make that style in magnesium, turns dark grey fairly quick and burns real nice.

 

Greetings!

I beg to differ. This metal has a different patina or finish
compared to aluminum. In addition, they are exceptionally light
in weight compared to other aluminum wheels I have picked up and
worked on that were of the same dimensions.

Unlike the aluminum wheels I have refurbished in my past,
I gave up trying to clean these a couple of months ago after spending
about 6 hours a piece trying to clean them. Even though I kept up with using
a different rag to remove the residue from the cleaner applied, it appeared the
more metal cleaner I put on them, the darker them became. I also work with finished
magnesium and it's patina nearly mirrors the physical appearance of the wheels.

So I ask you, what makes you inclined to think they are aluminum? Are you a metallurgist?
You do realize the term "Mag" is short for magnesium and that magnesium wheels were introduced
at this time and then eliminated from production wheels because of their physical composition.

It has a low flash point and once ignited, cannot be extinguished with water.
Water becomes an accelerant. Only a specially forumulated, dry chemical can be applied to extinguish
burning magnesium. In addition, the chemicals in your household fire extingisher cannot extinguish.

 

Are there the Ansens you are talking about, or are you talking about the slot style?

 

Back in the day wheels were made of magnesium, but for a variety of reasons already posted, that pretty much stoped in the 60's. The term Mag stuck much in the same way Xerox meant copy machine but not all copy machines were Xerox's. Several companies made slotted "mags" including Ansen, ET, and Halibrand. Below is a pic of a Halibrand slot in magnesium. If Ansen ever made one in anything other than aluminum, it will be news to me.

 

Hello,
Well then, thank you for the example given.
I was unaware that Ansen did not make a magnesium wheel.

My next question would be, is there a manufacturers stamp
found anywhere on the wheel for me to determine if what I have
is in fact an Ansen wheel? I based it on the plastic cone center cap
with a rubber grommet that fits perfectly in the center of the wheel
which came with the car.

Thanks.
Rudy

 

Reason one I know they were all aluminum is that we use to sell them. Reason number two, is we use Magnesium wheels on the race cars, and I also was the one polishing them.

Halibrands were the Mag wheels in both bolt on and knock-offs. As new there was a gold color protectant that had to be sanded off before they could be shined up. Another company with real 'Mags' was 'American Racing Wheels' ..

As noted above the aluminum wheels being close copies of the Halibrands quickly adopted the phrase "Mags" but for everything...::lol
:
These are "Mags", both front and rear...

 

Ironcross,

Very good then, sir.
I appreciate the education on the wheels.
I must say, the polish job on you wheels looks exceptional.
After all we have discussed, what in your professional opinion
would be the steps I need to take to get my wheels in shape.

Their back sides are full of road wear - tar, dirt, paint and the show side,
dull, dingy, just awful finish. I appreciate any input you may have.

Rudy

 

Water, soap, and 600 wet/dry paper. Then buff the wheels with a finish compound, by hand or machine.

 

I may be wrong here, but on the back should be a part number or company mark cast into them. After American Racing bought/merged with them I don't know where you'd find it. /:\