1968 Wheel Options (styled Steel, Torque Thrust, Mag 500)

CS2-6

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Feb 12, 2018
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Deepinna Hearta
Yall know the line,"long time... first time...".

Some of yall might recognize this post; I opened a similar thread some other forums, but I wanted to ask the same question here in the hopes of reaching a broad an audience as possible.

After 18 years (hey, it's less than a lot of people!) of pouring over Mustang magazines, build threads, and generally lusting after a classic of my own, I finally took the plunge and wound up with a '68. We've been doing a (tasteful, I hope) resto-mod over the past year and the time has come to consider wheels and tires.

Wheels first. I prefer a chrome wheel with a lot of contrast and would prefer a wheel that would've been available in '68. I like the '64 1/2 - '67 Styled Steel, but am not a fan of the '68. Though I guess they would've been around in '68, everything I've seen indicates that they wouldn't have been put on by the factory, the dealers, or the aftermarket. That leaves me with the Magnum 500's and the Torque Thrust II's.

I know you could easily get chrome Magnum 500's in '68. My question is: were chrome Torque Thrust II's available in 1968? (I know Torque Thrust D's were).
Although this is my first post, yall have already helped me a ton, given me a lot of great ideas, saved me a butt-load of time, a world of headaches, and costly mistakes. Thanks.
 
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I'm guessing you are not building a Concours correct show car or you'd be looking for the original wheels for that car. So build it like you like it. I'm 100% with you on period correct, but my period is a bit more lax than yours. I'd pick anything from the 60's or early 70's that I liked and go with them. Personally I have a soft spot for Keystone Classics. I drive my cars, and I drive what "I" like. Wheels and Tires will take nothing away from the value of the car.
 
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"So build it like you like it." That sounds like the right attitude to me.

That's right, no Concours goals for me. Those Keystones are great looking, and they aren't a style I typically see.

I went ahead and performed some dodgy Photoshop work and approximated what my baby would look like with different sorts of shoes:

Crager S/Ss (this is what she is currently wearing)

Torque Thrust D's (even though I probably won't go with these, if for no other reason than to avoid Bullitt comparisons, and I'm not sure the gray would go well with the paint anyway)

Torque Thrust II's

65-67 Styled Steel Wheels

Magnum 500's

Let me know what yall think.
 

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It's all a matter of preference for sure, personally I think the torque thrust Ds or the styled steels look quite nice on your ride. I have a set of the torque thrust like those on a 66 Comet and think they look great. And I'm putting a set of the steel styled on a 66 Stang as well.

Just got an email from CJ Pony, this was the pic in their email....
1968-coupe-chava.jpg
 
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Thanks for the input, Caveman. Yeah, I really like the Styled Steels. The others (Cragers, Magnums, Torque Thrusts) ended up on a lot of different makes, but the Styled Steels are such a classic Ford look.

Wow!! That looks almost exactly like my ride! I don't think I've ever seen a paint job quite as similar. Thanks for sharing that.
 
Wheels are one of the most subjective things there are, so what many people like many will hate, more reasons (to me) to just run the ones you like and not care what others say.

But you asked...

Just my opinion but what makes or breaks a set of wheels is not the style but the size. As Worth mentioned the 14s look small, I think the 15s do too (on 67 and later, they look fine on 65/66). But I think anything larger than 17 looks out of place since you have to go with 35/40 profiles that just look wrong (again just my opinion) on these old cars.

My '67 has 17x8 on all corners with 245/45-17 directionals all the way around, they are large enough to fit large aftermarket rotors and I can rotate.
 
Thanks for the input, yall. Wheels are definitely a subjective component, but I think they can really make or break a car's impression so I'm happy to get as much feedback as possible.

I also agree that 14s are too small on 68s. I like a lot of sidewall though, so I had previously set my limit at 15s, but am learning that getting good daily-driver quality rubber on anything less than 16s is next to impossible.

Thanks again for chiming in, and don't stop now! This is a really great community, and I'm happy to be a part of it.