RFV wrote:
Hi All!
Looking at replacing tires on my 1973 Dodge Sportsman B300 from 16.5 inch rims to 16 inch rims. Any suggestions on where to purchase dulley rims for this from?
Thanks!
Rudy
First, and most significant, question: Do you have drum or disk front brakes?
If drum, you won't have any problems going to 16 inch rims.
If disk, it depends on which calipers were used on your vehicle.
One of the chassis I have is a 1973 RM350 (Class A), which uses dual piston Kelsey-Hayes calipers. In that case, 16.5 wheels barely clear the calipers and 16 wheels bind against the calipers. (Based on actual experience ... I tried 16 inch rims on the RM350.)
On your MB300 (which is the designation for your chassis), Dodge may have used different, probably single piston calipers and these may clear. Check it out before you commit.
Other issues is hub clearance ... the Dana 70 rear axle has a relatively large diameter hub. For example, 17 inch rims from a ~2004 Silverado 2500HD would need the hub holes turned out to clear the larger Dana 70 hubs. (Which is exactly what I'm exploring.)
Pin alignment on duallies went away sometime in the late 60's so that shouldn't be an issue.
Sometime in the past several decades, manufacturers went from lug-centric to hub-centric wheels. The "coined" lug holes on lug-centric wheels align the wheel to the hub to keep the wheel centered on the hub. A misaligned (off-center) wheel will bounce, vibrate, and cause the tire to wear unevenly.
Early Ford dual wheels will also fit and both Dodge and Ford dual wheels were actually manufactured by the same company, on the same assembly line. (The only difference was the pentastar or oval stamped on the wheel.)
The important thing to look for, besides coined lug holes, is the 8 x 6.5 bolt pattern. In recently, Ford went to a different, metric diameter for their bolt pattern, resulting in wheels that will almost, but not quite, fit older axles. Interestingly, Chevy used to be the "odd-man-out" when it came to bolt patterns but has gone to the more common 8 x 6.5 pattern in the past couple of decades.
Sorry if this sounds a bit confusing and sounds like a bit of a treasure hunt. All I can say is "been there, done that, and still scratching my head and searching for a solution.
