newer wheels on one ton - help

[bucket]

i have a set of newer one piece dodge budd wheels for my 70 dually. i think i need to change the studs form 1/2 to 9/16. the hub opening in the wheels is larger than the hub itself, meaning the hub does not support the wheel, only the lugs. normally, don't the wheels fit snug around the hub to help with support? should this be a concern?

also, when was the last year for drums on the front of a one ton? was it 70 or later? the front studs i'm finding are listed for one ton disc brake applications. will these same ones work on the drums?

[70rs/ss]

some wheels are hub centric others are lug centric so it'll work, and you dont need to change the studs, just bolt the wheels on with the studs and lugs from the truck.

[bucket]

the wheels are on the truck now. problem is the studs are not long enough anyway and i am breaking studs. almost lost a wheel the other day!

[kyull67]

I would be concerned about the wheel not fitting tight against the hub, that's probably what made it wobble and come loose.

[bad_turbo]

had the same prob with my '69 1 ton. I have 2 different wheels on the front, even though they look the same. One is hub centic and the other is lug centric. Just had to get acorn lug nuts for the lug centric wheel.

[Chris H]

Originally Posted by bucket

i have a set of newer one piece dodge budd wheels for my 70 dually. i think i need to change the studs form 1/2 to 9/16. the hub opening in the wheels is larger than the hub itself, meaning the hub does not support the wheel, only the lugs. normally, don't the wheels fit snug around the hub to help with support? should this be a concern?

also, when was the last year for drums on the front of a one ton? was it 70 or later? the front studs i'm finding are listed for one ton disc brake applications. will these same ones work on the drums?

Your Dodge wheels probably have a 4.77" hub opening, where Chevy wheels are supposed to be 4.56". Chevy wheels are hub centric, meaning the wheel is centered by the hub as well as having the hub take care of the weight bearing rather than the studs. Should you be concerned? Some here will say no, but I say you absolutely should be!! Losing a wheel at speed would certainly ruin your day, and may well kill someone else.

Last year for drum brakes on a C30 was 1970, and drum brake trucks used 1/2" studs. You can upgrade to the 71 and later 9/16 studs (I know Joesjunk did this on his sweet 68 C30 to run Alcoa wheels).

Another thing to consider on dually or Budd wheels is that the factory used what I call a clamping plate with coined holes and acorn nuts. I have seen some guys run flat nuts, or nuts with flat washers, but the GM wheels were not designed for it.

[Longhorn Man]

you said it yourself, you are breaking lugs.
I say ditch these wheels, and get proper fitting ones.

[bucket]

yes, i'm breaking lugs.

but i want to make sure that i can't get these wheels to fit right (different lugs, etc) before ditching the wheels.

now if it impossible or cost prohibitive to get these to fit, i will ditch.

are there other one-piece budds that would be a direct fit?

[Longhorn Man]

New wheel lugs of the correct diameter would solve the breaking problem for now, however, it would be a band-aid fix. If you haul loads, or do heavy towing, then you'd just be asking for trouble.
92 (or what ever year they started that body style in one tons) to 99 wheels would fit fine.

[Chris H]

The Accuride wheel catalog shows the correct wheel part number as 29587, used on 1976-2000 Chevrolet/GMC C/K3500 as well as dually vans and P/30 motorhome chassis. 472536 is the GM part number on the clamping plate.

You are talking about machine work to get the dodge wheels to work safely on your pre-71 dually.

I looked at this extensively when I owned a 68 C30 Open Road motorhome, as I like to save some money and use what I find just like everyone else. I thought about taking some Chevy wheels and using bushings in the stud holes to bring the diameter down to the 1/2 stud. Doing that and using clamping plates was the next best option in my mind to changing studs. I would encourage you to change the studs. Maybe a good time to upgrade to disc brakes as well...

[longhorn70gmc]

I have 8 lug DODGE wheels on my Longhorn. They fit well. They are from the 92-99 ara. I understand about trying to find a solution that is easy on the investment. Rubber Tires for these trucks cost allot of money brand new. I am currently trying to fine GM, 8 LUG, 16's rims for my Longhorn. Everyone out here wants. 100.00 a piece for them. Ouch! Good luck on your fix!!!
Respectfully

[bucket]

thanks guys,

want to confirm what i'm hearing...
chris h, if i go with wheel and clamp numbers above, i still need to switch to 9/16, correct.

i really don't want to get into discs as the power drums work just fine. anyone have a part number for a 9/16 stud that will work on a front with drums?

[Joesjunk]

Here are some of the 9/16" lug stud part numbers I have. I don't remember what ones I used for sure?? O'Reillys part number, BD61393, DB61194, 610-189. I used two of the three numbers listed here. Good luck!!!! Let me know if you have any more questions.

[Chris H]

Originally Posted by bucket

thanks guys,

want to confirm what i'm hearing...
chris h, if i go with wheel and clamp numbers above, i still need to switch to 9/16, correct.

i really don't want to get into discs as the power drums work just fine. anyone have a part number for a 9/16 stud that will work on a front with drums?

The wheel and clamp numbers I gave do use the 9/16 stud.
Looks like Joe has you covered on the 9/16 stud part numbers. (He is pretty sharp on the dually trucks!)

[Joesjunk]

Looks like Joe has you covered on the 9/16 stud part numbers. (He is pretty sharp on the dually trucks!)[/QUOTE]


Well, It is one of my old duallys!!!

[bucket]

thanks guys!