At lunch today one of the fellows said he knew of a truck with front wheels that were wooden spoked and it was a 1948 model.

I thought bs but did not call it. I said I did not think there were many made in cars after 1930.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Here in Korntucky, it was about three years ago.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

I remember tales of cars and trucks coming off the assembly line at or near the end of WWII with wooden bumpers because the chrome was not available or steel, not sure. But never knew if it was true. Maybe the same for wheels at some point?

Wooden spoke wheels had some give to them, and the wood itself had some flex, so given the suspension systems of the day a wooden wheel could give a better ride than a steel one over a dirt or gravel road.

Wooden wheels did need to be maintained or they would just fall apart. This was known as a sideslip and it would flip the car. Cloth tops remained popular for even large cars throughout the 1920's because it was thought that the best way to survive a sideslip was to be thrown clear of the car. You might hit a big rock and get killed, but if you stayed in the car and got rolled up into the ball of steel and wood the car would soon become death was a sure thing.

A wooden wheel needed to be reworked every two years with normal use. You could also soak them in water since they would tighten up after they dried out. I have done this with wagon wheels so I know this works. (Yeah, I really am that old.)

The last wooden wheels I know of that were offered on a production car were on the 1936 Packard. Option #209744 for those that did not like the stiffer ride of steel wheels.

And.... On rough roads wooden wheels would spring back into shape if they took a hit. Wire wheels and steel wheels would just stay bent, so many people out in the country would buy Plymouths since they offered wooden wheels as standard equipment up until 1933. (Some sources say 1934.)

We still use them in Taxachusetts!



Oh, wait a minute. You mean to "use" usefully...

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1982 300SD -- 211k, Texas car, tranny issues ____ 1979 240D 4-speed 234k -- turbo and tuned IP, third world taxi hot rod

2 Samuel 12:13: "David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die."

By the way... The option price for wooden wheels was $50. You could get six wooden wheels with dual sidemount spares for $210.

According to the BLS inflation converter $210 would equal $3550 today.

Ballin'!

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Cool! Thanks for the info!

Anybody know about wooden wheels for big trucks?

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

I see where this is going let's get to the point:

For the right price, I'll make you a set for your Studebaker.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

i have some interesting wooden wheel information, but Tom wouldn't see it, so there's no point in writing it down.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

This does not advance the year any, but I saw a 1932 Auburn V-12 Coupe at the fall Auburn meet back in the 60's with 5 wood spoked wheels. Some years later I again saw the same car and it had been 'updated' with six wire wheels and side-mount fenders. I believe that the 1933 Auburns were the last year that wood spoke wheels were offered by that make.

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1968 220D/8 325,000
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not a car, but my grandfather had one of those small trailers originally built for a model T, using model T wood spoke wheels. My understanding is he bought it as an un-built kit from somewhere in the 60s that was sitting on it, and used it every summer for vacation up until the 80s, until some enthusiast begged him to sell it, and ultimately traded him for a much newer trailer.

Most people couldn't believe he was towing this thing along behind an old wagoneer for years at highway speeds.

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