I need to cut the centers from my wheels...

[ekgguy]

I am in the process of having a custom set of rear wheels made for my '68 LWB.

Here is what I am starting with. 15 x 5.5 plain steel wheels



I want to remove the center sections of the wheels that I have and have them welded into these with custom spacing.



So I did a little work with the wire wheel and flap disks today and found these



and on the inside... this



The spots in the last two pictures that are outlined in red directly coincide with each other, so I am guessing that they are the welds that hold the wheel together.

My question is, does anyone know if I have these drilled or machined out, will that work for removing the wheel centers? And, does this appear to be something that could be done in a home workshop of does it need to be professionally done?

Once I get the centers out, I will have them professionally welded in, I want to make sure they are safe.