Wheels used on Trans-Am Camaros

[Jon Mello]

There were some instances where the 5-spoke Americans broke but I don't think there was an epidemic of this happening at that time. There was some natural movement for some to the 200-S American because it was new for the '69 season and it was a new, unique design. Tire sizes were growing a lot in this timeframe and there probably was some concern that the wheels would be under more stress. Since the Minilite wheels had more spokes, it is also natural to assume there was more inherent strength in that particular design. Off the top of my head, I can not remember seeing a picture of a broken Minilite but I can recall seeing some broken 5-spoke Americans. I think once Bud Moore saw that other teams were not having any issues with Minilites breaking, he followed suit later in the '69 season. Successful teams tend to follow what other successful teams are doing.

[Shadow Ahead]

Are there any versions of the daisy wheels that have a center reinforcing rib under each spoke and a full circle bolt hole plate without the reliefs cut in on the underside at the "nose" of each daisy spoke? In short, are there any 200S or 200P wheels that mimic the ARE roadracing 4-hole Libres:http://www.zparts.com/zptech/comparisons/wheels/pages/are_vs_noname_back.html

Steve

[1109RWHP]

This is a magnesium one I used to own.

[Shadow Ahead]

That has the full bolt circle and thick spoke sides. A definite improvement over some other ones.

[1109RWHP]

That may be, but they are the ones known for breaking the spokes at the hub.

[Shadow Ahead]

I think those are the torque thrusts and perhaps 200s's with the pie cutouts on the backside of the bolt hole circle. I seriously doubt ones like the one pictured were the break prone ones. If there was another version with the rib in the middle also they would be bullet-proof, hence the question I started with about versions existing with the Libre and six spoke feature.

If you look at the picture in the TA wheels section you can see why the spokes broke where they did.

[69Z28-RS]

By 'extra rib', are you referring to something like this ??  This is the backside of the ARE six spokes (AR70?) wheels...  This wheel design was the result of some early issues with the 5-spokes (Torque Thrust) magnesium wheels cracking spokes...  The second photo is the backside of 5-spoke Torque Thrusts (This 5-spoke has a crack in one of the spokes which I think was from 'rubbing' the top of the wall at Daytona at 'fairly high speed'..   )

note: The five spoke weighs ~ 1-1.5 lbs more per wheel than the 5-spoke.

[Shadow Ahead]

Yes, like both above examples. The six spokers appear to take the Libre bolt hole circle concept one extra step beyond by machining the pad above a completely concentric ring separating the spokes from the bolt hole circle.

[69Z28-RS]

Both sets of those wheels were ran on the RAC-Enterprises 69 Z28 TransAm and IMSA GT owned and driven by Robert (Bob) Christianson.  His race car colors were gray and black (although the car was originially orange/black)..

I had a typo and didn't catch it in my last post (too late to edit).. What I SHOULD have said in my note was:

note: The SIX spoke weighs ~ 1-1.5 lbs more per wheel than the 5-spoke.

[Jon Mello]

Here is a link to an Australian company that is reproducing a Minilite-style wheel and also a copy of the American 200-S wheel. Prices seem reasonable and evidently they have a warehouse in Southern CA so it seems like quick shipping would not be a problem for a US customer. Thanks to Sig Hansen for pointing this out to me.

http://transamraceengineering.com/

[69Z28-RS]

Those superlite versions are extremely light (on the order of magnesium), although it says they are aluminum.. Doesn't that mean there is less mass?  ie.  thinner in thickness of the metal?     I've always loved minilite look wheels..

[Jon Mello]

The 15 x 8 Superlite wheels are said to be 9 kg which is just a hair under 20 lbs each. That is not extremely light for an aluminum wheel of that size. A magnesium wheel would be about 33% lighter.

[69Z28-RS]

thanks Jon,

I saw the 9 number,and read it as lbs...  my mistake..     
I'm glad to know I'm just blind and not going crazy..  

[Jon Mello]

You're welcome, Gary.  If it truly was a 9 lb wheel I would be worried about the thickness of the metal and how much abuse it could take.

[69Z28-RS]

You're welcome, Gary.  If it truly was a 9 lb wheel I would be worried about the thickness of the metal and how much abuse it could take.

absolutely Jon..    When I read the 9 as lbs, I was shocked... (but they did call them 'superlite'..)..       If I recall correctly, the two types of 8x15 ARE magnesium wheels I have were on that rough order but a bit heavier (Torque Thrust D approx 10-11 lbs, and AD70 12-13 lbs).