HIGH-FASHION WIRES No Longer an Old-School Look, Contemporary Wire WheelsAre Fast Becoming a Hot New Trend

Dayton's rich heritage of pioneering

wire wheel technology led to its innova-

tive wheel designs becoming standard

equipment for more than 30 automobile

manufacturers, including the legendary

Duesenberg, Cord and Auburn. Today

Dayton Wire Wheels is creating more

than an automotive fashion statement,

as it continues to incorporate premium

performance and durabili-

ty measures into cool-look-

ing wire wheels that fit

more applications today,

for the modern rodder,

than ever before.

If you are wondering if

your billet wheels can be

replaced with a cool look-

ing set of wires, the answer

is yes-on all counts and in

all sizes. No longer must

you worry about high-

horsepower applications,

or whether Dayton wire

wheels are up to the tor-

sional loads imposed on

such a design.

Independent tests have

shown that the new stain-

less tough-laced wire

wheels can withstand the

same abuse as billet

wheels, and they have actually outper-

formed some billet designs under identi-

cal overload conditions. Did you know

that a Dayton wire wheel can withstand

frontal impact and side loading that

makes it an alternative big-tire option?

Neither did we. But the video and photo

results of such tests are impressive, as are

the results of how round the Day tons

remained under strenuous abuse. These

are little known facts about wire wheels.

In addition, when compressed, they

bounced back when others cracked and

even failed.

But that's the performance aspect.

There's more to owning a wheel than

expecting it to be round-that's a given.

Dayton knows there are cheaply made

wire wheels available that can have seri-

ous problems with poor fit, lack of lasting

finish and worse: structural deficiencies

that are bad for the aftermarket and the

image of such wheels. Inferior chrome

plating, loose spokes and loose knock-

offs are but a few of these problems,

and when a hub adapter fits poorly, the

wheel will not run true. You must be

careful, as many off-brand wires are not

laced to run true, let alone seal tubeless

tires.

All this raises the question: When was

the last time you went out to the garage

and checked the run-out on your pres-

ent wheels, regardless of the type of

wheels they are? Wheel run-out at the

outer rim should be within a few thou-

sandths of an inch on full rotation.

Some say as much as 0.004-inch is

acceptable. Why not check your set?

Jack up the car and steady it. Mount a

dial indicator on a sturdy stand of some

sort and mount its pointer on the outer

surface of your wheel rim. Very slowly

rotate the rim one full revolution, noting

the dial-indicator readings as you go,

and see what you learn about your own

wheels. You may be

surprised to learn that

not all wheels are cre-

ated equal, regardless

of what they are made

of. All quality aftermar-

ket wheels (don't be

surprised to learn that

inexpensive imports

may not be) are

checked for runout

before leaving the fac-

tory to ensure that

they are within factory

tolerance (whatever

that may be for each

manufacturer). So,

check to see what

effect road use has

had on your custom

aluminum wheels

and if yours are within

acceptable tolerances.

Each Dayton, as an example, is hand-

tightened and gauged (with a dial

indicator) for concentricity and run-out.

The spokes are pre-loaded with even

tension for durability and precise wheel

alignment, and contrary to popular

belief, periodic re-truing and/or retight-

ening is not required.

Wheels are, however, a fashion state-

ment, and until now Dayton wire wheels

have not generally been thought of in

contemporary fashion terms, but rather

more for their classic good looks on

traditional street rods, old classics

Someone at Dayton Wire Wheels noticed a huge gap in the wheel business, and I don't mean back in 1916(although the company certainly did then, as well), when Henry Ford's original Model T traveled America'sroads on Dayton wire wheels. That was then, this is now, and it's a whole new ballgame.

Cross Lace —available in 13- to 16-inch, 72-spokechrome, with chrome knock-off orspecialty hub

Classic II—14- to 28-inch, with high offset, 72 to 88spokes, available in gold or chrome

Classic II - 14- to 22-inch, 72 to 88 spokes, availablewith contrasting painted rim and hub,stainless or painted spokes, wide choice ofpaint combinations and your choice ofcenter cap

Triple Cross (chrome)—13- to 20-inch, 72 to 100 spokes, withchrome plate nipples and hub center, withor without knock-offs

Triple Cross—13- to 20-inch, 72 to 100 spokes,with or without knock-offs, paintedrims and hub, stainless spokes andyour choice of center cap.

and European sports cars. There has

also been an embracing lowrider move-

ment, which has its own style of wire

wheels. And there are the classic cruisers,

the full customs and the luxury automo-

biles that also embrace the wire wheel

look. Largely, however, you expect to

find such wheels on classic Italian and

English sports cars, especially vintage

British sports cars such as Aston Martin,

Austin Healey, Allard, Jaguar, MG,

Morgan and Triumph. Now you find

them on more and

more contemporary

rods, especially those

where the wheels are

artfully integrated into

the overall appeal of

the car, such as Ashley

Webb's (SEMA's Best

Heritage Vehicle,

awarded by Ford)

beautiful hand-built

Track T roadster fabri-

cated by her dad, Dan

Webb. This Webb cre-

ation incorporates a

unique set of stag-

gered Dayton wires

painted a contrasting

orange to the sleek

black roadster. The car

is a startling work of

art and incorporates

huge 20- inch Dayton

wires on the rear and 17inch Day tons on

the front. The arresting combination is

used as an integral design element in

the Thom Taylor penned roadster, and

we couldn't imagine the car with any

other style of wheel, regardless of color

or finish.

Of course, the more traditional wires

we've come to expect are still available,

and the selection and breadth of avail-

able styles and wire sizes and rim offsets

are broader today than ever, and you can

get them in chrome (four-layer nickel-

chrome plating for greater durability and

corrosion resistance) or painted in vivid

as well as muted colors. Stainless steel

spokes, which cannot rust, have twice

the fatigue resistance of chrome plated

spokes. Swaged spokes, which are thick-

er at the hub and tapered toward the

rim, provide a number of advantages.

The swaging process gives the spoke a

smooth, brilliant finish, provides an

improved, even distribution of stress,

and allows the use of more spokes for

even more strength. Then there is the

precise and expert polishing of all the

parts, including the wheel rims, both

front and back. The tubeless designs are

built to guarantee a seal, yet the wheel

can be disassembled and reassembled

in the event of wheel and/or spoke

damage.

The technology incorporated by

Dayton to design, engineer and manu-

facture these wheels in-house includes

its custom designs and starts with the

bolt circle and center-locating hole that

is precisely machined to the original

wheel specs for each vehicle. This

ensures optimal, smooth running. This

advanced knowledge and experience in

each phase of Dayton's wheel technolo-

gy is not only conducted under strict

quality control, but it is the stuff that cre-

ates such specific results and is the prod-

uct of such companies that have been

building and continually developing

such product since the turn of the centu-

ry-not this century but the last century.

And during that time, you can imagine

the number of imitations that have

cropped up-designs built

to compete with the

standards set by Dayton.

Dayton continued to fur-

ther its technology,

which includes technolo-

gy presently being test-

ed to the Society of

Automotive Engineers'

specification J328 for

fatigue resistance. So,

as in life, there is a

difference.

Put in its own words:

"In a market full of imita-

tions, we have made it

simple to distinguish

true Day tons from the

look a like." This has led

Dayton to devise a num-

ber of wire wheel

designs aimed specifical-

ly for the street rod and

high-performance markets, and all are

stamped or forged with the genuine

Dayton logo. Designs include:

• The Cross Lace, available in 13- to 16-

inch, 72-spoke chrome, with chrome

knock-off or specialty hub;

• The Classic II, 14- to 28-inch, with high

offset, 72 to 88 spokes, available in gold

or chrome;

• Classic II, 14- to 22-inch, 72 to 88

spokes, available with contrasting paint-

ed rim and hub, stainless or painted

spokes, wide choice of paint combina-

tions and your choice of center cap;

• Triple Cross chrome, 13- to 20inch,

72 to 100 spokes, with chrome plated

nipples and hub center, with or with-

out knock-offs;

• Triple Cross, 13- to 20-inch, 72 to

100 spokes, with or without knockoffs,

painted rims and hub, stainless spokes

and your choice of center cap.

Basically, there is a wire design to fit

almost any look and style of street rod,

and if you don't see what you like,

Dayton will create one for you. You

can mix and match most color codes,

select from forged-steel hubs with

direct-bolt or true knock-off wheels,

polished stainless steel or painted

spokes, and sizes ranging from 13 to

24 inches in diameter with a variety of

wheel widths and rim offsets.

These wheels come with a three

year warranty on finish and structure,

and every wheel is 100 percent made

in the U.S. And, if you like the look, the

wheels can be gold-plated or painted

to match your paint application

(code). Dayton understands the time

and labor involved in any street rod

project and why so much of this time

is spent making every detail just so. As

a result, the company believes that

there is no generic wheel, and if what

Dayton offers doesn't quite meet or

match your style or color of car, the

company will customize a wheel with

specific paint to exactly match the fin-

ish of your vehicle and will include any

of the options available, including cap

design, which are high-strength caps

in several designs and feature the

Dayton name forged on the back. The

adapters are also stamped with the

Dayton name to ensure that only gen-

uine Dayton adapters are used.

And for you guys who wish to

restore a set of original wire wheels,

Dayton does that too. Dayton has a

full restoration shop in-house and has

created a process that can transform

even the most worn wire wheels into

beautiful "new" wheels. Dayton will

inspect your wheels to see if they are

rebuildable and will contact you

before any work is performed. The

wheels are first checked for straight-

ness, hub wear and metal deteriora-

tion. If your wheels cannot be restored

to original specs, this is a way

THE USE OF ROBOTIC ARMS ENSURES PRECISE RIM DIMPLING FOR PROPER LOCATION AND ATTACHMENT DEPTH. THE SPOKELOCATION AND NUMBER OF SPOKES DEPEND UPON WHEEL DIAMETER AND STYLE. THE ETCHING PROCESS IS SHOWN FORWHEEL HUB COVERS. THE WHEEL HUBS ARE HIGHLY PRECISION-MADE COMPONENTS MADE ENTIRELY AT DAYTON. FOR PRO-TECTION, EACH WHEEL IS ETCHED WITH ITS OWN SERIAL NUMBER AND DAYTON LOGO.

to learn what your options are.

Obviously, show-quality wheels, built to

100 percent show perfection, will receive

that extra attention, and all wheels are

carefully checked in both lateral and radi-

al directions. Protection against stone

chips is accomplished with several coats

of primer and four layers of enamel with a

special advanced hardener, which also

protects against further corrosion.

This is a cyclical hobby we are involved

in, where looks play an important role in

our component selection. And if some-

thing does go out of style, you need only

wait for its popularity to return. Our cars

are full of revolving trends, and now that

our cars are being built to such high stan-

dards, incorporating the "feel" of yester-

day with the technology of today, it's little

wonder that Dayton Wire Wheels has

gained so much recognition among pres-

ent-day custom rod builders. No longer is

a traditional looking rod necessary to

make proper use of such wheel designs,

as they are being incorporated in a variety

of styles, as opposed to well-used billet

designs. This includes the high-tech old-

school look that is the result of blending

what seems at first glance to be old style

but with the latest in style and with sleek-

er proportions.

Smooth is a look that complements

wires, and now that wire wheels can be

considered "customizable," especially with

the Triple Laced designs, that too fits the

challenge of creating that one-off look for

a modern-looking street rod. There's no

better time to let your imagination create

something unique, and new-style wires

may just change your present look into

something altogether new. SRB

Product Profile

Dayton Wire Wheels Dept. SRB,

115 Compark Rd., Dayton, OH 45459,

888/559-2880, www.streetwheel.com,

www.daytonwirewheels.com