14" Disc Brake Ready Rims

[YellowRose]

I have seen the comments regarding some of you having difficulty finding the appropriate 14" rims off of disc brake equipped Fords, Lincolns or Mercurys. So one of the things I discussed with John is that subject. He has tons of rims all over his place, and figures many of them are 14" rims off disc brake equipped Fords. He asked me for the specs and years to look for on the 14" disc brake rims I got off that Granada.

So I sent him some pix and the specs of one of my 14" Granada rims we took off a disc brake equipped Granada, a 1975-1980 one (and I do not remember which year it was) before I installed my disc brakes. Mine are 14"x7", but 14"x6" also work. I also sent him the list of all known 14" disc brake equipped Ford, Lincoln, Mercury cars and the years that will work on our Squarebirds.

So this should be a new source of rims for you. If he does not have any of these, I am gonna be shocked! I bought five rims so that if I ever had a flat tire it would not matter which rim I put on because all five of them would be correct. You certainly want your spare to be a disc brake ready rim.

I would NOT email him because does not check that email often. Your best bet is to call him and ask for John or speak with Tammy, his office manager. Here is his website.

http://www.johnssalvagecompany.com/

Remember that he told me that not only does he ship US wide, but he also ships overseas. I would suggest that you ask him to, rather than find some in his rim boneyard, actually pull them from a known 14" F/L/M disc brake equipped vehicle from the list that I provided him. That way, there should not be any question regarding if they are the correct rims or not. Good luck and if you get any, please let us know. I have no idea what price he will ask for them.

The other source I have for rims is Southside Auto Parts, here in San Antonio, 210-627-2900. It is where I got the rims for our disc brake conversion. Ask for Ed or Larry and explain that you are looking for F/L/M 14" disc brake ready rims for a Squarebird disc brake conversion. You might remind them that I got my 14" disc brake ready rims off a 1975-1980 Granada there several years back. That might jog their memory.

[JohnG]

Thanks, Ray!

Question: what are the odds of any of these rims accepting the stock Ford hubcaps from 58-60 ??

John

[YellowRose]

14" Disc Brake Ready Rims

Hi John, If I remember correctly, the 14" stock 1958-1960 hubcaps will fit on these rims. But I would like to see what Howard and others who have gone this route have to say.

Now, I forgot to say that IF you want to put "dog dish" hubcaps on these rims, make sure the set you are getting has the four mounting nubs on the rims for that. Without those nubs, you will not be able to mount "dog dish" hubcaps if you want to. Here is what my rims looks like regarding this. You will be able to see the mounting nubs. I will also post pix of the inside of my 14" disc brake ready 75-80 Granada rim and the measurements I took on it before I installed them.

One more thing. Make sure the rims you get are vented like mine are.

[simplyconnected]

I have an important correction and an addition...
Ray, wheels are measured from the inside bead to the inside bead, not to the outer rim span. These wheels are SIX inch, not seven:


To get BACK SPACING and OFFSET, you need to measure from the back of the center (spider) to the edge, and subtract that from the overall width. We are looking for the offset from the center of the wheel because ZERO offset is centered exactly in the middle of a wheel.

If we took your seven inches and (overall width) and subtracted Howard's 3-1/2, that would equal 3-1/2"

This wheel has ZERO inches of offset, and it is a 14"x6" wheel with 3" of back spacing. Howard is using his OEM hubcaps on this wheel. That was the purpose; to make it look stock. - Dave

[Howard Prout]

My rims are 14" x 6" - Ray got three of them for me - two fronts and the spare. The spare will work on either axle. I had them powder coated. I have Sunburst wheel covers and they fit the rims perfectly. Note that the picture of my rim is facing the opposite direction as Ray's. The second picture shows how the rotor and caliper fit inside the rim - it is a tight fit but it works!

[YellowRose]

14" Disc Brake Ready Rims

Thanks, Dave for continuing my education. I did not know that. I always thought the measurement was from outside to outside and not inside to inside the bead. So now I know mine are also 14x6". Thanks also for verifying the zero offset and 3" of back spacing and that Howard is using his OEM hubcaps. Howard, thank you very much for posting that picture of your disc brake set up inside the 14" disc brake ready rim. I could not find mine to show people how they fit, barely, but they DO clear.

[DKheld]

On the hubcap fit..... I'm positive the original style hubcaps fit mid 70's 14 inch LTD wheels - that's what I'm running with my Granada conversion.

Great info Ray - thanks

Eric

[jopizz]

Another alternative is early-mid 90's Ford Ranger 14" rims. They will work fine with disc brakes and the stock hubcaps fit perfectly. They are much easier to find than the old Granada rims. I picked up a set for less than $40.

John

[YellowRose]

14" Disc Brake Ready Rims

Thanks, John, I have added that to the list. I had 1998 Ford Ranger on the list already.

[Ian M Greer]

Question in general to the group . It was always my understanding that our birds came with solid welded rims for safety sake to safely handle the heavy weight of our birds . Mine of course being 63 . Are you in general describing replacement rims that have the open slots in them like the regular fairlanes and galaxies verses T-birds solid rims. Has anyone heard of rim failure using open slot rims on a T-bird , much the same as the wire wheels failing and collapsing not being able to hold up under the weight of the car ?????? Ian (REMEMBER NOT ALL BIRDS FLY SOUTH)

[simplyconnected]

...our birds came with solid welded rims for safety sake to safely handle the heavy weight of our birds...

Ian, I'm trying to understand your question without reading too much into it. Of course, wheels are of the highest safety priority. (We call these, 'inverted delta' parts. Every one must flawlessly meet or exceed the standard with no exception.)

Ford rims were all two piece steel construction. They started out as coiled sheet steel. The rim blank was cut, rolled, butt-welded, skived, then rolled into shape. The spider (center) was simply cut into a blank, drawn, trimmed, pierced, then flanged, all in stamping presses.

The two tubeless wheel parts are clamped in a fixture then spot welded, using huge spot welds (about the size of a US quarter). They were mostly made in Monroe, MI, but Ford did buy from Budd Wheel and KH. For some reason, Monroe couldn't keep up with the demand of 50,000+ rims per day. (Yep, each car has 5, each shift makes 500 cars, and there are 20 assembly plts.)

As far as 'strength of the wheel' goes, you will destroy your tire before bending an OEM rim. I have never heard of a wheel coming apart, not even in a collision. I have heard of them rusting through but it takes many decades in Michigan, when left out with no tire mounted. (Sorry if this is too much info.) - Dave