Custom wheels for 1 1957

[Brent W.]

I have a 1957 on which I would like to mount a set of Halibrand replica wheels, possibly 15x6 or 15x7. Will both of these fit without rubbing and what offset, back spacing & bolt circle diameter do I need? For these sizes what would be a good tire size? Then what is the maximum wheel width and the tire size that will fit without rubbing?

[Tom P.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

Brent,
I have 15x6 front and 15x7 rear later, GM painted steel wheels on the 56. These wheels came from mid-70s GM A-body cars (Malibu, Cutlass, etc), which have the same bolt pattern as all earlier Chevys. The offset of these wheels are whatever would be "stock" for GM cars of the period. The front/rear tires are 225/75R15 and the inside sidewall clears the rear leaf spring by about 1/2in.
For the rear of these early cars, you can run just about any width that you can get to clear. But for the front, I would recommend staying with a relatively narrow tire. I like to inflate them to 32-33psi, especially up front, but I also have the fast steering adapter on my 56 which also increases steering effort. The reason is because these early kingpin style frontends are not real compatable with big fats on the front, plus, with the stock 53-62 style steering, the fatter the footprint, the stiffer the steering effort becomes when stopped or moving very slowly.

[John H.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

I have a 1957 on which I would like to mount a set of Halibrand replica wheels, possibly 15x6 or 15x7. Will both of these fit without rubbing and what offset, back spacing & bolt circle diameter do I need? For these sizes what would be a good tire size? Then what is the maximum wheel width and the tire size that will fit without rubbing?

Brent -

Chevy wheels use a 5 x 4-3/4" bolt pattern; the RPO 276 5-1/2" rims had a +0.44" offset.

[Brent W.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

Thank you for the feedback. My car is actually a '57 Airbox car which means there is also the elephant ears (front) and air scoops (rear) to take into account. Probably the best thing will be to get a wheel with similar specs to what I want, mount a 215/75R15 tire and check the clearances on the car before I buy.
John, today I measured a 5-1/2" rim and got an offset of 1", not 0.44". Hopefully I measured correctly.

[Bruce B.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

Brent,
I had a set of American racing Equipment Salt Flat wheels on my 62 Corvette and they should also fit a 57. They look like a kidney bean wheel such as a Halibrand. I had the gray painted centers.
They are part number 2705761 and were 15 X 7" and I ran 205 75 15 radial tires.
I also have a set of American Torq Thrust D wheels which I ran on 57 . They were American part number 1055761 15" X 7" also with 205 75 15 radial tires. They are now on my 62.
The last 4 numbers of the American part number describes the bolt pattern and the back space which was the same on both types of wheels.
I have been told recently that since the American wheels are now made in China (no big surprize) there are some differences in back spacing and quality.

[Brent W.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

Thank you Bruce. The American Racing Salt Flat wheels with the gray painted centers are exactly what I am looking at. I wasn't sure whether to get the 6" or 7" and appropriate tire size. Now I know, thank you again.
If the elephant ears and scoops do not clear I can always remove them as this idea is for driving on the street.

[Jim W.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

I have a 1957 on which I would like to mount a set of Halibrand replica wheels, possibly 15x6 or 15x7. Will both of these fit without rubbing and what offset, back spacing & bolt circle diameter do I need? For these sizes what would be a good tire size? Then what is the maximum wheel width and the tire size that will fit without rubbing?

Brent, If you're looking for quality replica wheels such as Halibrands you should call Phil Schmidt at PS Engineering in Torrance, California. His telephone number is (310) 534-4477. He does a lot of these for the Cobra crowd and did a set of AR Torq Thrusts for me that got for my '67 convertible. They're a little pricey but worth it IMO. Good luck, Jim

[Steven B.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

Brent, If you're looking for quality replica wheels such as Halibrands you should call Phil Schmidt at PS Engineering in Torrance, California. His telephone number is (310) 534-4477. He does a lot of these for the Cobra crowd and did a set of AR Torq Thrusts for me that got for my '67 convertible. They're a little pricey but worth it IMO. Good luck, Jim

Agree with Jim 150%. Phil's wheels are the closest to the original Halibrands I have seen and he will custom make for you.

Steve

[Bruce B.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

Brent,
I agree with Steve about talking to someone knowledgable about wheels.
A friend of mine recently bought a set of new American Torq Thrust Originals in 7" width and the back spacing was wrong for his car, a correct 57.
So be sure all your homework is done before mounting tires on the wheels as there is usually no returning them after mounting the tires.
Bruce B.

[John H.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

John, today I measured a 5-1/2" rim and got an offset of 1", not 0.44". Hopefully I measured correctly.

Brent -

Offset is the difference between the actual centerline of the rim (between the flanges) and the wheel-to-hub mounting surface; if the rim centerline is inboard of the mounting surface, that's positive offset. If the rim centerline is outboard of the mounting surface, that's negative offset. Photo below will make some sense of all the different wheel measurement terms.

[John N.]

Re: Custom wheels for 1 1957

Brent, If you're looking for quality replica wheels such as Halibrands you should call Phil Schmidt at PS Engineering in Torrance, California. His telephone number is (310) 534-4477. He does a lot of these for the Cobra crowd and did a set of AR Torq Thrusts for me that got for my '67 convertible. They're a little pricey but worth it IMO. Good luck, Jim

Brent,
I have four sets of Phils kidney bean wheels (knock-off style). He can make bolt ons also. Memory are that they are 6.5" wide. you need to know what offset you want (need) before he starts to make chips (his words).
Regards