66 Wheel Weights - Original Style

[Peter M.]

Had my 66 steel wheels refinished - when remounting the goldlines, I would prefer to use original style lead weights (shape and once markings). Anyone know of a supplier that would be exact or close match to vintage 1966 style?

[Mike M.]

Re: 66 Wheel Weights - Original Style

I get them at service stations that have been in buisness for years. they usually throw nothing away and they let me root thru their stash of old lead weights. good luck mike

[Gary B.]

Re: 66 Wheel Weights - Original Style

Peter,

I've done some preliminary research on wheel weights and I believe that there were at least 5 different wheel weight suppliers to GM during the 60's. Two suppliers that I been told about are Perfect Equipment and BADA. Two or three of the other orginal suppliers are no longer in business and as far as I know no one makes reproduction wheel weights and none of the suppliers still in business makes 60's vintage appearing weights.

Original 60's vintage weights typically have the weight in ounces embossed twice on each weight, both to the left and to the right of center. I believe that some examples of original weights include ones with the word MICRO, LH, or the number 14 embossed in the center of the weight. You should be able to find some of these weights one older cars at wrecking yards or pick-your-part places. If you try finding some weights at these places, you'll certainly find current wheel weights, such as MICRO and SNUGL for example, but the current ones have both ounce and gram designations embossed on the weight. You might think you can grind off the metric weight, but if you do this you'll obviously be left with the weight amount appearing only once, which typically is incorrect, except perhaps for 1/2 oz weights, which might have had the ounce designation appearing only once because of their small size. I'm speculating at this point, though.

Note that NOS weights occasionally appear on e-bay. One current auction is:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=10076&item=2408365965

but I don't personally know anything about the particular embossing for the weights in that auction.

If anyone has more information about original Corvette wheel weights, I would very much like to hear from them. My e-mail is beaupre@rrdmail.stanford.edu

Gary