(This article was originally published in the September, 2000 issue of the Spark Coil.)
At our last meeting there was a brief discussion about the wire spoke wheels that were available of the 1926 and 27 Fords. These are popular wheels and I think there’s good reason for that. These wheels were quite an engineering marvel when they first appeared. They were a solid welded unit which was very strong, durable and attractive in appearance.
The Model A Ford used the same design during all the years it was manufactured and the Model A and Model T wheels look alike to the casual observer. Model A wheels are different though. They have a slightly larger hub and different placement of the lug bolt holes. While it’s still not too hard to find good T wheels, they are not as easy to get as good model A ones and that has led some folks to use the 21 inch A wheels on their T’s. While wheels are not too hard to find, wire wheel T hubs are getting harder to find and are becoming more expensive when you can find good ones.
Larry Noller (Noller Conversions) in Colorado now offers adaptors which allow you to use a set of the readily available T wood wheel hubs with either Model T or Model A wire wheels. You do have to order the adaptors for one or the other. They do not fit both because of the difference in hub bolt hole location. These adaptors are very well made and fit beautifully. Combine them with a set of easy to find wood wheel hubs and you have a very nice set of wire wheel hubs! Most T suppliers have the Noller adaptors but you may have to ask for them.
Model A wheels came in two sizes. If we want the ones that look like T wheels, we will need to find the 1928/29 wheels that are 21 inches in diameter. They have the same distinctive rolled rim edge that the 21 inch T wheels have. The 1930/31 A wheels are 19 inches in diameter and have a simpler flat rim edge similar to modern steel rims.
Source: www.scmodeltford.org
Image by Emslichter from Pixabay
