1966 Styled Steel Wheel Help

npg3 · Oct 14, 2010

I bought a set of original SS wheels 20+ years ago...3 '66 wheels and 2 '67's. They were a decent deal at the time, and I considered putting the 2 66's up front, the 67's in the rear, and the extra '66 in the trunk. Now, I just want to either find 2 '66's for sale so I can have a matching set, or I may just sell my wheels and get a brand new wheelset.

Questions:
1) should I sell them and get a new set?
2) if so, who should I buy them from? Who has the best repro wheel?
3) most importantly, what is the best size? 1966 GT coupe, basically stock, I am going to do an Opentracker suspension rebuild, and I want it to look on the sportier side with some white letter tires, OR I may even do dual red bands in the future to match the red Pony interior.

Thanks

Kman · Oct 15, 2010

Original SS wheels in good shape are worth a lot to restorers looking for original wheels. Selling them should not be a problem. I would think a 15x6 or 15x7 SS repro wheel would work well on your car. I have had two sets of Scott Drake SS wheels nad would recommend them based on my experience. I went from a stock sized SS wheel (14x5) with a 195/65/14 redline to 15x7 Tourque Thrust D's with 215/65/15 Radial T/A's four years back and the handling improvement was substantual. My car has a stock suspension with a 1" bar in the front and Koni shocks as the only deviations from stock. Not exactly a corner carver but handles nicely for what it is.

2+2GT · Oct 15, 2010

I agree, there are people who wil pay good money for the OEM styled wheels, they are riveted, a dead giveaway on a show car if repro welded wheels are used.

I'm running stock 66 14x5's with 205/70R14's, GT springs, Gas-A-Just, a 1" front bar, Traction Masters, and the "Arning/Shelby drop", and cornering is startlingly good for an old dog.

Arning/Shelby Suspension Drop

PoppyMod · Oct 15, 2010

npg3 said:
I bought a set of original SS wheels 20+ years ago...3 '66 wheels and 2 '67's. They were a decent deal at the time, and I considered putting the 2 66's up front, the 67's in the rear, and the extra '66 in the trunk. Now, I just want to either find 2 '66's for sale so I can have a matching set, or I may just sell my wheels and get a brand new wheelset.

Questions:
1) should I sell them and get a new set?
2) if so, who should I buy them from? Who has the best repro wheel?
3) most importantly, what is the best size? 1966 GT coupe, basically stock, I am going to do an Opentracker suspension rebuild, and I want it to look on the sportier side with some white letter tires, OR I may even do dual red bands in the future to match the red Pony interior.

Thanks

For new ones, check with Specialty Wheels. I recently had balance issues with an aftermarket Styled wheel on my 64.5.
Good Luck!

fwaynedavis · Oct 17, 2010

Suggested Wheel

My '65 is riding on 15x7's from Specialty Wheels (purchased through Dallas Mustang) I get constant remarks on how good these look! Technically your 66 should have the type with Beauty Rings if you are trying to go for accuracy otherwise I'd use the full chrome. And if you can sell those originals to someone needing them, you are in good shape.

2+2GT · Oct 17, 2010

fwaynedavis said:
Technically your 66 should have the type with Beauty Rings if you are trying to go for accuracy otherwise I'd use the full chrome. And if you can sell those originals to someone needing them, you are in good shape.

Technically, the "65" wheels were used until Oct 1965, so August and September Mustangs should use the earlier wheel. I looked into this because I have the later wheels on my Sept car, but since it'll never be in the inner circle (more like outer parking lot) of any car show, I don't care.

npg3 · Oct 18, 2010

I have a Feb. 1966 car, so I need rings...

Specialty Wheel seems like a good company, and CJ Pony has a great deal on a complete set with BFG tires.

Is the 15x6 ideal? I was not sure if the 15x7 would rub.

If anyone has pics of a '66 Coupe with 15" SS wheels, that would be great...i can then compare the look with the stock 14".

Thanks.

PoppyMod · Oct 18, 2010

npg3 said:
I have a Feb. 1966 car, so I need rings...

Specialty Wheel seems like a good company, and CJ Pony has a great deal on a complete set with BFG tires.

Is the 15x6 ideal? I was not sure if the 15x7 would rub.

If anyone has pics of a '66 Coupe with 15" SS wheels, that would be great...i can then compare the look with the stock 14".

Thanks.

The following pic is of my setup on 15X7s with 225X60X15 BFGs. I get no rub and have lowered, at least, 1" all around.

npg3 · Oct 18, 2010

Thanks Poppy...no rub, that is amazing.

I was just going to do an Opentracker suspension...mid-eye rear leafs...slightly lower than stock.

PoppyMod · Oct 18, 2010

npg3 said:
Thanks Poppy...no rub, that is amazing.

I was just going to do an Opentracker suspension...mid-eye rear leafs...slightly lower than stock.

an additional FYI, I didn't have any rub when I was running the Shelby 1.5" drop in front, as well.
The dia. of this combo is only 25.6". My spare tire is a 205X70X14 BFG combo and is only 25.4".
Hope this helps!

65FBE2 · Oct 19, 2010

Each car seems to be a little differant as far as clearance is concernerd. I did a lot of research on this and found no one who had rub issues with a 15" x 215-60's They look great and no one will notice the 3/8" less width

npg3 · Oct 19, 2010

65FBE2 said:
Each car seems to be a little differant as far as clearance is concernerd. I did a lot of research on this and found no one who had rub issues with a 15" x 215-60's They look great and no one will notice the 3/8" less width

You just solidified the decision I had made...thank you.

fwaynedavis · Oct 22, 2010

Styled Steel fit

My SS wheels dont rub ever, at 15x7. using BF 225x60x15 However it seems variables in builds causes rubbing on some 7" for some reason. My car is lowered 1.2"

tx65coupe · Oct 24, 2010

I have Specialty Wheels Magnum 500s on mine and I think they are great looking wheels and are very good quality.

npg3 · Oct 25, 2010

I am going to go with the Specialty Wheel SS wheel...I need to find a place that sells the whole package with tires mounted, shipped, and ready to bolt on...any ideas?

Coker can do it, but they are a little pricey.

horseballz · Oct 25, 2010

Summit now provides the mounting/balancing service. I don't think they list the service on their website yet, as it's kind of new, but if you call them they'll take care of you. They unfortunately don't appear to handle Specialty Wheel but do carry Wheel Vintuque:

Wheel Vintiques 55-5712044 - Wheel Vintiques 55 Series Steel Rallye Chrome Wheels - Overview - SummitRacing.com

and they have a GREAT selection of tires. I don't know where you're located, but if you have a Discount Tire near you, they are worth checking out. They can get almost any wheel you want and they regularly run specials/rebates on wheel and especially BFG and Michelin tires. You won't fin their complete wheel selection online, you need to go into their store. Their prces are a little higher than what you can find elsewhere online but after the rebates it's likely a savings over online + shipping.
HTH,
Gene

npg3 · Oct 25, 2010

The problem is that the car is almost 3 hours away from me...near my parent's house, and my dad is doing all of the running around for me down there.

Basically, the car is being trailored to the exhaust shop since there is no exhaust on it. Since the rubber is bad, he does not want to drive the 30 minutes back to his house and take a chance on the highway.

My buddy, who owns the exhaust shop, said to have a wheel/tire package sent to him, he'll bolt the new wheels on, and my dad will be ready to go.

If it was close to me, I would do the wheels and tires separately. The suspension is also being done in the same area. After all of that, THEN I am taking it back to my house...phew.

The area of central Illinois where my parents live or are close to have great shops...suspension, exhaust, paint, mechanics...a lot of hot rodding crazy farmers down there.

horseballz · Oct 25, 2010

npg3,
Then from what I can gather, your best bet would be Summit Racing with the Wheel Vintiques wheels that I linked (the link worked, right?) and I would recommend BFG 215 or 225/60/15 tires. Summits customer service and shipping is very good.
Just My $.02,
Gene

john_simms · Oct 25, 2010

npg3 said:
The problem is that the car is almost 3 hours away from me...near my parent's house, and my dad is doing all of the running around for me down there.

Basically, the car is being trailored to the exhaust shop since there is no exhaust on it. Since the rubber is bad, he does not want to drive the 30 minutes back to his house and take a chance on the highway.

My buddy, who owns the exhaust shop, said to have a wheel/tire package sent to him, he'll bolt the new wheels on, and my dad will be ready to go.

If it was close to me, I would do the wheels and tires separately. The suspension is also being done in the same area. After all of that, THEN I am taking it back to my house...phew.

The area of central Illinois where my parents live or are close to have great shops...suspension, exhaust, paint, mechanics...a lot of hot rodding crazy farmers down there.

If your car is in central IL, then you might want to check out Mustang Corral in Edwardsville, IL. I live in Edwardsville and was in their shop just last week. He has a set of 4 wheels, lugs and centers for I believe $695. I have bought a few things there over the years, and they seem to know their stuff.

Here is a link to their website. 1965-2005 MUSTANG CORRAL PARTS, SUPPLIES, AND ACCESSORIES Hope this might help.

tx65coupe · Oct 26, 2010

Mustangs Unlimited was selling them with tire packages. Take a look at their Ebay store. Thats where I got mine with free shipping or a discount. I know it was cheaper that way.

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