Got some new wheels: Boss 338's in 20x10 and 20x8.5

[brossow]

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

So as I see it, the "new" design will clear the grease caps on the front (according to the blog entry), but... The rotors still need to be milled down? I thought the reason they were needing to be milled was to clear the center cap...?

The milling is so the rims will seat. The center bore of the rims is still smaller than the outer diameter of the hub (except on the light-duty 1" rotors), even in the new version. There was a different issue with the grease caps and center caps that actually was solved with the -3AA revision.

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

And roughly an inch spacer is needed for the rear? I've read every post in this thread it seems... It just keeps getting more confusing with all of these supposed "fixes" and revamps of the wheels. I guess I've just been reading it wrong, but I took it as the manufacturer fixed all of the issues...?

The issues still exist. They're supposedly gonna try again, but don't hold your breath -- if they do it at all, I expect it will be a year or more before they start rolling off the line.



SUMMARY:
Even in the latest -3AA revision:

1. These wheels will not fit without modification on the front except on light-duty (1" thick) rotors.
2. These wheels have the wrong backspacing in the rear and will require spacers (exact size of the spacers depends on which size you choose) unless you really don't care about your tires rubbing. They may bolt on, but likely they will be so close to the bed side that they will rub when the body shifts or suspension flexes, especially with a trailing-arm rear end.

[JOHNORO]

I am thinking these wheels were manufactured for
cars and not trucks ..we took it upon ourselves to try
them on our trucks we all were warned that making these Wheels fit were not for the faint of heart but being the resourceful truck guys we are some of us just had to make em fit
On the front of mine have Cpp's dropped modular spindles which solves the problem of doing any modifications and the bring the wheels in about 3/4 of an inch on each side (I run no inner fenders) and on the rear I have 1.5 billet alum adapter 5on5 to 5 n5 and all is good . please take note that i have this on a 2wd blazer so my rear end my differ in width from yours
hope this helps out some of you

[brossow]

Originally Posted by JOHNORO

I am thinking these wheels were manufactured for
cars and not trucks

Not exactly. These were designed and marketed for '88-up trucks, which they fit just fine. It was after we started trying to bolt them onto vehicles they weren't designed for that we started complaining.

[JOHNORO]

Nice

[djw32]

Originally Posted by JOHNORO

I am thinking these wheels were manufactured for
cars and not trucks ..we took it upon ourselves to try
them on our trucks we all were warned that making these Wheels fit were not for the faint of heart but being the resourceful truck guys we are some of us just had to make em fit
On the front of mine have Cpp's dropped modular spindles which solves the problem of doing any modifications and the bring the wheels in about 3/4 of an inch on each side (I run no inner fenders) and on the rear I have 1.5 billet alum adapter 5on5 to 5 n5 and all is good . please take note that i have this on a 2wd blazer so my rear end my differ in width from yours
hope this helps out some of you

John,

What size tires are you running on the front? If you did have the inner fenders installed, would the tires rub?

Also, are you running 5" backspacing on the front rims?

David

[spazzyfry123]

So it looks like I'm just going to need to buy them and figure it out just how much needs to be milled on the front kind of deal.

My bed is tubbed out (about double the size of the factory wells) so rubbing on the inside shouldn't be an issue... But I'm buying them to look good. It'd be silly to have them sucked in.

I just want these wheels because of the "lip" around each spoke. BUT... With the money spent on spacers, extended studs, and having the extended studs put in for the rear... Then the milling of front rotors every time brakes are needed... I'll end up spending more than if I would have just bought some TTII's. Not to mention I do not want to be running spacers with the power I'm planning on running.

Too bad for the manufacturer. No telling how much money they are losing with not getting this done right.



So... Coys or American Racing...?
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[brossow]

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

So it looks like I'm just going to need to buy them and figure it out just how much needs to be milled on the front kind of deal.

There's a post somewhere in this thread that has the exact measurements for machining or brute-force grinding the hubs to fit. That should take the guesswork out of it.

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

BUT... With the money spent on spacers, extended studs, and having the extended studs put in for the rear... Then the milling of front rotors every time brakes are needed... I'll end up spending more than if I would have just bought some TTII's. Not to mention I do not want to be running spacers with the power I'm planning on running.

Not a lot of expense involved for the spacers and no need for longer studs. Go with a bolt-on "adapter" type of spacer and you're gonna be about $40 out of pocket. Here's an example for under $40 shipped on eBay: link. I can't address the power issue with any authority, but generally speaking I'd say that if you're getting enough traction combined with enough horsepower to shear off the adapter lugs before breaking other components, then you really should be looking at race-specific wheels instead.

[mcbassin]

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

So it looks like I'm just going to need to buy them and figure it out just how much needs to be milled on the front kind of deal.

My bed is tubbed out (about double the size of the factory wells) so rubbing on the inside shouldn't be an issue... But I'm buying them to look good. It'd be silly to have them sucked in.

I just want these wheels because of the "lip" around each spoke. BUT... With the money spent on spacers, extended studs, and having the extended studs put in for the rear... Then the milling of front rotors every time brakes are needed... I'll end up spending more than if I would have just bought some TTII's. Not to mention I do not want to be running spacers with the power I'm planning on running.

Too bad for the manufacturer. No telling how much money they are losing with not getting this done right.



So... Coys or American Racing...?
Posted via Mobile Device

Spazzy,

Follow this LINK there is a drawing with the dimensions the rotors will need to be turned down to on the end. I also had to cut off the dust caps and end of the spindles for the rims to fit. Then I had to use silicone to hold the center caps on. They were an early version of these. I think the newer ones the center caps will work out better. good luck

[spazzyfry123]

Originally Posted by mcbassin

Spazzy,

Follow this LINK there is a drawing with the dimensions the rotors will need to be turned down to on the end. I also had to cut off the dust caps and end of the spindles for the rims to fit. Then I had to use silicone to hold the center caps on. They were an early version of these. I think the newer ones the center caps will work out better. good luck

Thanks, Mike!
It looks like the newest ones don't require the dust cap to be cut up. Is it just the rotor hat surface that needs to be milled .38"? Or are there multiple angles that are needed? I'm planning on running the 20" wheels staggered and I have drop spindles. I'm not new to "making" things work with spindles and wheels, but it'd be nice if I didn't have to worry about the spindles. I had to grind down the loving crap out of my Lightning's spindles to fit the factory wheels... Sheesh.



-Tyler
Posted via Mobile Device

[brossow]

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

Thanks, Mike!
It looks like the newest ones don't require the dust cap to be cut up. Is it just the rotor hat that needs to be milled .38"?
Posted via Mobile Device

Can't address the milling question (haven't done mine yet) but the center cap on the new (-3AA revision) wheels is held in place by an O-ring rather than the long clips that needed to be cut down in previous revisions. The clips on the old-style center caps would bottom out on the rotor hat before seating completely on the rim; the new caps are so short that they don't do that.

[mcbassin]

Originally Posted by brossow

Can't address the milling question (haven't done mine yet) but the center cap on the new (-3AA revision) wheels is held in place by an O-ring rather than the long clips that needed to be cut down in previous revisions. The clips on the old-style center caps would bottom out on the rotor hat before seating completely on the rim; the new caps are so short that they don't do that.

Do you know if the new centercaps will fit on the older version rims? I would like to buy if they will.

[mcbassin]

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

Thanks, Mike!
It looks like the newest ones don't require the dust cap to be cut up. Is it just the rotor hat surface that needs to be milled .38"? Or are there multiple angles that are needed? I'm planning on running the 20" wheels staggered and I have drop spindles. I'm not new to "making" things work with spindles and wheels, but it'd be nice if I didn't have to worry about the spindles. I had to grind down the loving crap out of my Lightning's spindles to fit the factory wheels... Sheesh.

-Tyler
Posted via Mobile Device

I don't think you would have to do multiple angles or anything, I did that to try to retain as much side wall as possible on the rotor. I understand the making things work deal too.

[clos69]

Why don't you guys just go with the Rev-100 wheels made by AR here

They look similar and cost less with less hassle imho.

[brossow]

Originally Posted by clos69

Why don't you guys just go with the Rev-100 wheels made by AR here

They look similar and cost less with less hassle imho.

From what I can tell the Rev wheels are made in Taiwan, not right here in the USA. That's one good reason right there.

[clos69]

Brent I agree that American Racing wheels are being produced overseas but that doesn't necessarily mean that their standards for quality of their products demenish. AR has been in bussiness for a long time and their quality is the reason for that.

[brossow]

Originally Posted by clos69

Brent I agree that American Racing wheels are being produced overseas but that doesn't necessarily mean that their standards for quality of their products demenish. AR has been in bussiness for a long time and their quality is the reason for that.

I didn't say anything about quality, did I? But if I'm spending my hard-earned American dollars on wheels, I'd rather it went to pay the wages of hard-working Americans producing said wheels.

[nlped]

Originally Posted by brossow

I didn't say anything about quality, did I? But if I'm spending my hard-earned American dollars on wheels, I'd rather it went to pay the wages of hard-working Americans producing said wheels.

Amen, Brother!!!!

[TyKby2]

Rev wheels are just licensed by AR not made by them, big difference

[Andy4639]

I just put a set on my 71 and couldn't be happier! The front hub had to have just the lip shaved down took the guy about 10 minutes to do this. The backs fit fine with no spacer. I'm very pleased with how they look. Oh yea he did tap in the bearing cap a little too!

[brossow]

Originally Posted by Andy4639

The backs fit fine with no spacer.

With all due respect, I think you need to define "fine" and post your pics from the other thread so no one else is misled by this. With your 275-series tires and no spacers, you've got what looks like 1/4-1/2" of clearance, which is going to rub as the body and rear end move, especially with the trailing arm rear. Your track width is also narrower at the rear than at the front. Yes, they bolted on, but please tell the whole story before others rush out and think they can do the same as you did without any problems. For people who run a wider tire (like my 295s) and/or actually care if their tires rub, these won't "fit fine" by most standards. However, a pair of spacers can be had for under $40 that will fix this.

That said, they look great on your truck, as I've said previously. I'm not posting this as a personal attack but simply trying to clarify things. I've spent WAY too much time working with others and top management at the company itself to get this fixed and provide accurate info to now just sit back when someone comes along and says they "fit fine."

I'll save others the trouble of finding your no-spacer pics. Here they are:

[JOHNORO]

Originally Posted by brossow

With all due respect, I think you need to define "fine" and post your pics from the other thread so no one else is misled by this. With your 275-series tires and no spacers, you've got what looks like 1/4-1/2" of clearance, which is going to rub as the body and rear end move, especially with the trailing arm rear. Your track width is also narrower at the rear than at the front. Yes, they bolted on, but please tell the whole story before others rush out and think they can do the same as you did without any problems. For people who run a wider tire (like my 295s) and/or actually care if their tires rub, these won't "fit fine" by most standards. However, a pair of spacers can be had for under $40 that will fix this.

That said, they look great on your truck, as I've said previously.

I'll save others the trouble of finding your no-spacer pics. Here they are:

Now this guy has done his homework
I agree BROSSOW

[mcbassin]

Well I guess we'll see. I would sure like to see them tweak the back spacing issue too. It sure would be cool to just bolt on a perfect fit year late and a dollar short

[djw32]

Update!

American Wheel Corp will be fixing the lip issue very soon. I will keep you posted on the info as I get it.

David

[brossow]

Originally Posted by djw32

Update!

American Wheel Corp will be fixing the lip issue very soon. I will keep you posted on the info as I get it.

David

If I had a dollar for every day that passes between when AEW says something is coming soon and when it actually arrives, I'd have enough to buy a set of Coys instead.

[djw32]

Originally Posted by brossow

If I had a dollar for every day that passes between when AEW says something is coming soon and when it actually arrives, I'd have enough to buy a set of Coys instead.

Good point. Hopefully I will have some positive info soon.