1973 GMC 6000 Wrecker wheels

[Madman415]

8.25x20 split rims from hell. Not only are they they dangerous to swap tires on, finding someone crazy enough to do it is a whole other nightmare. I just want to buy a steel wheel that fits the 8.5" x 10-lug pattern. WHERE?? WHO SELLS THEM?? Please, someone point me in the right direction before I sell this truck out of frustration.
 

[truckdog62563]

Accuride lists them new in their on-line catalog, as does Henderson Wheel. The bolt pattern should be 10 lug x 8.75" rather than 8.5". They are hub piloted. Accuride's part number is 28160. Here's the links. Henderson Wheel is located out west. There are plenty of Accuride dealers around the country. Stu
Accuride, Henderson Wheel

 

[oldmopar]

Are they actual split rim most of the 60's 70's trucks are lock ring. Which is a big difference from a split rim. But in any case a real truck shop should be able to do the swap for you.
 

[truckdog62563]

Yeah, I was wondering the same thing. The truck is pretty new to have widow makers. The latest I have reference to the true widow makers being available was 1972 from Budd and 1976 from K-H. Lock ring style are still sold new today for Dayton applications so finding a shop or road service able/willing to work on them shouldn't be too hard. The new Accuride rims I cited are 22.5 x 6.75 wide. They take a 9R22.5 tubeless tire which is the exact replacement for an 8.25 x 20 tube type tire. They should both be about 38" outside diameter. Stu
 

[Madman415]

I looked at the rims last night from Accuride. I couldn't believe I was actually looking at the correct lug pattern. Thank you so much for this help. The tire size would have been my next question. So the 9R22.5 will be the same height about as what's on there?

The old guy that put all the new wheel cylinders on it said that they are the suicide rims that could kill you if you're not careful. He would change them, but he's 78 years old and about 75lbs soaking wet, he said those days are long gone.
 

[truckdog62563]

If the old guy called them suicide rims, that's probably what you've got.

Tubeless wheel designs are much different than tube type wheel designs. Tubeless designs are always in half sizes (17.5, 19.5, 22.5) and will in truck applications always have what's called a 15° rim lip profile and a drop center. The tube type rims have what's called a 5° rim lip and will have either a flat center or a semi-drop center profile. I'm gonna try to link in my Photobucket page that shows a side by side diagram of the two. If it doesn't work, you can probably find it in the Accuride catalog. The reason the 20" tube type and 22.5" tubeless have the same outside tire diameter is the different lip profile and drop center. Stu
Wheel Profile Comparison

 

[Madman415]

ok, after reading your little lesson on wheels, which by the way, very helpful, I think I should show you a picture of the wheels so incase I'm mistaken, I can be corrected.
 

[truckdog62563]

That's a good idea. Or I can also post here pic's of what the true widow maker split rims look like. The technical name for them is Firestone RH-5°. You can identify them by the fact that their two halfs connect at the middle of the rim. Looking at them with the tires still mounted you'll see on the back/concave side a raised band like area that's about two inches wide by a half inch tall. That's the joint. If you don't see this, then your wheels are the less dangerous "locking ring" style. They can be killers too if handled wrong during tire mounting, but are safe in operation. Here's links. Stu
Widowmaker, Concave side

 

[truckdog62563]

For whatever reason my links look like they bring up my whole Photobucket "wheels" section. Odd because I linked the individual pics the same way I did earlier. Oh well, I think you can look through them and find the pics that match my descriptions. If you have trouble let me know. Stu