Determining Rim Size Without Measuring

Nov 03, 2007 6 Replies

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phaeton 18 years ago

I have a 99 Ranger 4x2 with the stock steel 15" wheels. All four of them became *mysteriously bent* one day when I purchased new tires >: ( Bent in the sense that they are all now somewhat 'oval' in shape instead of a perfect circle.

Anyways.... it's no fun to drive on bent wheels, so I will need to replace them. I would like to get the same size to avoid having to buy tires all over again. Looking at the rims, I'm guessing 15x7, but it's just a guess. The tires on them are 225/70/15, and those are the stock dimensions.

Is it reasonable to assume that 225mm tread width == 22.5cm tread width == 8.8 inch tread width, and that the tread width and rim width will be the same? Thus, they are 15x8.75 or so?

Also, I can purchase new wheels or used wheels. Is it reasonable to assume that used aluminum wheels are less likely to be bent than steel ones? I always thought that aluminum would crack instead of bend, so if they're not cracked they should be perfectly round.

Otherwise, I spose I can pick up some new and relatively inexpensive steels from the Summit catalog, maybe locally.

Thanks for suggestions.

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Tegger 18 years ago

phaeton wrote in news:1194119588.600784.198020@

57g2000hsv.googlegroups.com:

How did you conculsively determine the wheels were "bent" instead of the tires simply being ineptly mounted?

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phaeton 18 years ago

I took them back to the tire shop, thinking they were improperly balanced. Multiple times. Eventually, a half deaf kid that gave a s*it took the time to figure out why I had been in there so often, and when he found the reason, he brought me out to the balancer to show me. I saw first hand that the wheels weren't round, in turn, as they spun on the balancer without a tire on them.

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Tegger 18 years ago

phaeton wrote in news:1194130958.833269.141130 @y42g2000hsy.googlegroups.com:

Were the wheels true on the balancer's shaft? I bet not.

Jack up one corner of your car. Spin that wheel by hand with the tranny in neutral (wheel cover off). Observe the action of the rim. I'll bet all four "bounce" not at all.

Your tire monkeys are inept (deaf or not). This is so distressingly common it's depressing.

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Mike Romain 18 years ago

I don't believe the diagnosis, I suspect equipment failure.

That said, the rim size should be stamped on the inside of the dish.

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's - G> I have a 99 Ranger 4x2 with the stock steel 15" wheels. All four of

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Â« Paul Â» 18 years ago

How do you know the balancer is not out of round?

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ray 18 years ago

as others have said, it's probably not bent wheels.

that said, you need to know the rim width, the bolt spacing, and the offset. None of which you'll know for sure without a measuring tape. You don't even have to take the tire off to that.

Ray

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