Kelsey Hayes Bent Spoke 40 Spoke 16 " Wire spoke Wheels Comparison

Every early Ford enthusiast recognizes the "Buzz Word" Kelsey Hayes Wheels..

I am more of a Chevrolet fan and I thought I would just display a comparison of the two different versions of the 16" Kelsey Hayes Bent Spoke 40 Spoke accessory wheels.

Seems to me, an argument about which one is the most appealing and proportionate in design would be futile.  The center is much more appealing in shape and size on the Chevrolet version.

Actually I have some Mopar wheels and they have the same center as the Chevrolet version.  To me, it just doesn't get any better in the early wire spoke wheels. The Mopar wheels are for sale for $400 for the set of 4 with a 36 spoke spare included.

I'm now offering a set of 4 of these Chevy wheels for $800.  These are extremely hard to find. I put this set together by advertising up and down the west coast and watching eBay diligently.  5/6/22

RARE RARE RARE CLEV-WELD CHEVROLET WHEELS 1930s

Rarest of the early accessory wheels made by Clev-weld, who was the same manufacturer of the famous , so called "General Jumbo" wheels. General Tire made tires that were named JUMBO, and they were mounted on the aftermarket wheels that are known as the General Jumbo Wheels.

All the other tire manufacturers made similar tires and call them different names like "Air Balloon"and "Air Wheel", etc. but the one that is by far the most well known is the GENERAL JUMBO...

I have owned and seen many different wheels of this sort that were produced for the early 1930 cars, so that they could run  "BIG WIDE TIRES" that would go over soft surfaces better than the original "PIE CUTTER" tires.

General offered their JUMBO tires on wheels that were 14",15", and 16".  The 16" are by far the most desirable now because there is a fairly wide verity of tires available now in reproduction.

I was very excited to see these wheels that I just purchased on eBay.  They are full set of 5 wheels in 16" x 4-1/2" and 6 lug Chevrolet pattern.  The wheels are NOS and have never had tires mounted on them.  They are wheels that I have never seen before.

Mopar had some wheels that were similar but not the same, if you look closely and count the spokes...

I may use these on a Teardrop trailer that I plan to build.  I haven't decided yet as I have a couple of different options of rare accessory wheels that would be great on that application. My other option is the Bent Spoke/40 Spoke/ 16" x 4-1/2" Kelsey Hayes 6 lug wheels.

Update.... I am now offering this set of 5 Clev-weld wheels for $1800.  5/6/22

Here are some images of my choices.

Vintage Art Deco DeVilbiss Air Compressor

This vintage Art Deco DeVilbiss Air Compressor, I believe, was made somewhere around 1936.

It is a portable, but it isn't something you'd want to carry around much. Although the outer housing is made of aluminum, and it only measures 18 inches long, 14 inches tall, and 9 inches deep, it is quite heavy. In fact setting it on the bathroom scale, it weighed in at 80 pounds. It actually has a 1/2 horsepower electric motor in the bottom center that has a shaft out both ends to drive each of the two compressor motors.

This was my prize purchase at the swap meet in Bremerton WA this last weekend.

Classic Car windshield wipers by Trico in 1928

Trico has been the name in windshield wipers almost since the dawn of motorized vehicles. If you still have the original wipers on your vehicle, chances are, they were made by Trico. It's interesting how often these vintage parts show up for sale, in NOS new old stock condition. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200597808497&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

The seller of this item generously allowed me to use his pictures so that I could share them with my readers.

Classic Car Seat Cushions Vintage Coolers

Air conditioning in cars in the 1950's and Trucks in the 1960's was almost unheard of except for the Swamp Coolers that were mounted in the passenger window.

Another pretty effective way to stay cooler, was to use the seat cushions that allowed air to circulate behind your back and under your butt. Not many remember these from years ago, but I went on the hunt for some when I was making plans to drive coast to coast in 2007, in my 1937 Chevrolet Pickup Truck. I found a couple of them on e-bay and it was one of my favorite sellers that had them.

I was very glad I had them when I ended up driving in temperatures that topped 100 degrees. I could feel the pleasant breeze behind my back and only imagined what it would have been like without the seat coolers, sitting against the vinyl.

General Jumbo Clev Weld Wheel Restoration

Restoration of these Clev Weld wheels is a complicated process and many hours have gone into the restoration. We have them almost ready for the first copper plating. We have taken them apart, cleaned them, installed 1/4 inch nutserts, installed them back in the rims and installed two of them in wider rims. We used countersink screws to hold them in the rims. We welded the lug bolt centers back into the spoke centers on a lathe to insure proper alignment and welded the adapter rings on the face so they would receive the General Caps, because none of the Goodrich caps were ever reproduced.

Classic Car Air Conditioning

Before air conditioning became a complex pressurized system, there was the Swamp Cooler that hung on the top of the passengers door. This system was very simple and quite effective. It wasn't the most attractive thing to have that bulky unit hanging on your door and it does interfere with your vision out the right side.

The swamp cooler or evaporative cooler functioned by collecting air in the front and passing it through a saturated drum that was constructed of wire mesh and filled with fiber material that would suspend water. The mesh drum is rotated through the water in the bottom of the unit with a pull cord in order to saturate the fiber as it dried. The outlet for this would be set to enter through the top of your door window.

These coolers bring a pretty good premium now. You can usually find a few to choose from on internet auction sites.

1930 1931 Cadillac V-16 Engine

GM built multiple cylinder engines for the Cadillac line in the early 1930's and unlike the Ford Flatheads, these were in head valve engines. It's true that Ford built a very inexpensive and relatively fast vehicle, starting in 1932. Which is one of the main reasons Ford became so popular. To this day, the 32 is still a popular car, and only a very small fraction of the 32s that you see are actually real 32 Fords. Most are plastic replicas and now they are reproducing them in metal.
Believe it or not. You can most likely own a very nice early Cadillac for the same money you'd have to pay for a real 1932 Ford. Am I painting a clear picture here yet?  I'm sure that there isn't a guy out there, that hasn't seen plenty of the Ford Flatheads. How many of you have seen the V-16 Cadillac engine from prior to the first Ford V-8? Well here is a nice example of that beautiful V-16 Cadillac engine. They also built a V-12 in the same time period. I found this example on an auction site that deals in Vintage Cars and parts

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General Jumbo Wheel Restoration Clev Weld Wheels

I call these General Jumbo Wheels Because that is what they are most often called. The reality of it is that these are Wheels that were made by Cleveland Welding Co. and these eleven spoke wheels were produced for Goodrich Tire Co.

Because the 11 spoke wheels are more of a refined look than the 9 spoke wheels that General Tire Co. used, we are modifying these to take the General caps. No one that I know of ever reproduced the Goodrich caps which were made to snap onto a clip ring that was spot welded to the rim center. The caps for Goodrich were larger in diameter too.

These wheels are far more complicated to restore than the 9 spoke because of the way the center was constructed.

The rivets were drilled out of the rims and a large portion of the rivet fell inside the spokes. That was when we realized that we would have to cut the center out of the spoke section. They had a bit of rust inside them making them hard to press apart after the centers were cut at the weld on the lathe.

We had all the pieces sandblasted and installed 1/4 inch nutserts in each spoke so we could refasten the spoke section to the rim without welding after the center section is chromed. Originally they just burned some of the chrome off the back side after riveting them into the rims, and just painted it with some silver paint to cover the burn.

We are putting wider rims on the pair for the rear so the holes for the spokes will have to be indexed by our machinist.

After we install the spoke centers in the rims they will be set up in the lathe again and the lug bolt plate will be welded into place. Also the adapter ring on the face so they will accept the General caps, will be welded at this time.

The next step will be to remove the centers again and copper and file and sand until they are ready to polish for the final chrome finish.

Installing the chrome centers and painting the rims black is the final step in this complex project.

The results will likely be proud ownership of what will probably be the only set of these wheels that have ever been restored.

235 261 Chevrolet Dual Exhaust Header Manifold

A split manifold on a stove bolt Chevrolet 235 or 261 engine makes for a unique sound and increases breathing capacity, therefore slightly increasing horsepower.

The early Corvette came with what was called the Blue Flame Six. It had the dual exhaust manifold and three side draft carburetors.

Through the years, there have been a lot of standard manifolds split, and they were done in a wide range of fashion. Sometimes done with a plumbing elbow, just scabbed onto the side of the manifold with just an extra hole exiting the manifold.

There was a rear section offered for splitting the manifold that was actually a separate cast manifold. You would cut the original manifold just behind the heat riser and block it off at that point, making the process quite simple. These are quite rare to find, but make for a nice vintage correct look and are of pretty nice quality, although they don't really look like they match when finished.

I have an example here of a very nice original 235 manifold that has been split, using an original flange from another manifold. It has also been blocked off just behind the heat riser so as to make two separate chambers. In making two separate chambers, it gives the exhaust a definite cackle. If you have pressure equalizing between the chambers, it softens the sound greatly.

The welding of the cast iron is a tricky process. It is best done in conjunction with an oven for preheating and controlled slow cooling after the weld is done. It can be done by Brazing, cast iron welding or nickel allow welding. Keeping the manifold bolted to a head with the intake in place as well, provides for a great jig to prevent warping.

This example here has a very nice tight shaft for the heat riser, with almost no wear on it. Because it is quite an involved process to do a manifold like this, it is not worth the trouble to split one that is not in excellent condition. This one was welded together with nickel alloy rod. A final finish of VHT cast iron paint was applied. This coating holds up very well. I used it on my 1937 Chevy pickup manifold, several years and 30,000 miles ago.
                 Sold                                           For Sale $325

Kelsey Hayes Bent Spoke 40 Spoke Wire Wheels

Bent Spoke or 40 Spoke are common terms when referring to early Ford 16 inch accessory wheels made by Kelsey Hayes. Kelsey Hayes has made a lot of different wheels throughout the years. Some of them were wire spoke wheels. In fact a lot of them were, in the 1930s. Probably most of the standard wire wheels on production cars where contracted out to Kelsey Hayes. Even the wire wheels on the 1950s Buick Skylarks were made by Kelsey Hayes. The 15 X 5-1/2 inch original accessory artillery wheels that I have on my 1937 Chevy Pickup Truck were also made by Kelsey Hayes.

Ford guys seem to have adapted the terms, Kelsey Hayes, bent spoke and 40 spoke as their own, however you can see a very nice example of those wheels that were made for Chevrolet as a genuine accessory wheel in the early 1930s. They have the bow tie stamped in the center that signifies Genuine Accessory. Comparing the design of the Chevrolet wheels opposed to the Ford wheels of the same type, you will notice a much more pleasing appearance of the center design. They just seem so much more balanced in design appearance.

I had collected these wheels thinking that I would some day build  a teardrop trailer to pull behind my 37 Chevy pickup, but I'm realizing that I probably won't get around to it in this life time. If you are interested in the wheels, you can contact me through the Contact Doug link on the top left of my site here. I also have a nice period correct hitch for the trailer, and possibly a light. THESE WHEELS ARE SOLD

General Jumbo Wheels on 1937 Chevrolet Pickup Truck

General Jumbo Wheels made by Cleveland Welding or Cleve Weld Wheels that were used for the General Tires and equipped with General Hub Caps give the 1937 Chevrolet Pickup a very unique look. When I first saw this combination on my truck, I thought "nasty". The tires are Good Year Collector Series tires because they are the only tires reproduce in this size that are period correct for the wheels. I now have some custom made Good Year Caps that fit and I have the wheels, tires and hub caps all for sale. Update: My truck has the red Kelsey Hayes artillery wheel back on it now.

General Jumbo Cleve-Weld Wheel

General Tire company offered a wheel/tire combination in the early 30s. Here is a nice example of what you would get. There aren't any appropriate General tires available for these General Jumbo rims, although you can get a period correct Good Year tire that fits. That is what I intend to do for my 37 Chevy Pickup Truck. It will certainly set my truck further apart from anything else out there.

1934 Chevrolet Goodrich Tire Original

Original 1934 Chevrolet tires are a rare thing to see. I would like to see one of the reproduction tire manufacturers take one of these five original tires that we have, and make a nice copy. I did offer it to one of the companies and all I got was, "We don't do custom orders" He couldn't understand that I was offering him an opportunity. At least that's what I thought. We would certainly be the first to buy a set if they were reproduced. These tires are beautiful, but they are only good for static display. Being 75 years old, you wouldn't want to tour on them. The spare tire doesn't look like it's hit the ground. It looks like we painted the red on the tire to match the wheel, but we didn't. The red on the tire was actually done that way originally.

1937 Chevrolet Truck Right Mirror Arm Steel Like Original

The Right Mirror arm for 1936 through 1938 Chevy Pickup Truck is very rare. I have only seen one original on e-bay, and it had been chromed. The detail was lost on that one. They are next to impossible to find. I bought a reproduction when I was restoring my truck. I mounted it on the hinge and sat in the driver's seat. I then realized that the arm was curved forward so much that you could hardly see the mirror. In attempting to straighten the built in curve, it snapped off. I was actually relieved that happened. It made me nervous to mount my original 1937 Chevy Pickup Truck mirror on that cheesy pot metal arm. I knew that a slight bump against it could end up with my prized mirror head on the ground in pieces.

I knew at that point that my original 37 Chevy mirror would be mounted on a steel arm, like the original, and not some brittle pot metal reproduction.

I started with a piece of re-bar and some flat stock. I chose the re-bar because by grinding off the cross hashes, I ended up with a piece that looked like it had cast lines up and down both sides, just as the original has. I shaped and welded the flat stock together to fit over the hinge, like the original and welded the rebar piece that I had carved on, to the formed piece that I'd made from the flat stock. I ground the top of the formed piece so that it looked like the cast line extended onto that piece just like the original, and made a round piece for the mirror head to bolt to and welded that on.

Now it was time after grinding, filing and sanding the piece to do the finish on it.
I surfaced it with primer surfacer and sanded it. I then primered it again using very low pressure so that the primer went on with a texture that made it look like a cast piece, just like the original. After that was dry, I took a little angle grinder with 50 grit and brushed it across my casting lines, just as the original was. After that, it was sealer and topcoat.

The only way to detect that it is not an original by looking at it, is that it doesn't have the casting number 592146. On the dark pictures, notice the textured look in the finish and the grinder marks on my casting lines that I created.