Wheel Valve Stems

[600Miles]

This may seem trivial but what length valve stem should I use to clear the stock hubcaps? '62 Daytona Lark, 5/8" rim hole. The one shown is 1 1/4".

[StudeRich]

Obviously it will take at least a 1 1/2 or more measured from the wheel to the tip of the stem to fit your Wheelcovers, those are way too short.

Do avoid the really Long ones though, too much is Not better.

[StudeRich]

Are those really Stock Budd or Kelsey Hayes Studebaker Wheels though, I would have to see a Pic of the wheel center to tell.j

[bensherb]

I will never again use a rubber valve stem! A couple years ago I put new tires with new rubber stems on my truck then drove it 350 miles from home on the freeway. The next day after 3 miles (also freeway) one of those new stems broke, tire went flat, and by time could pull over the new tire was garbage. After putting on the spare and driving 1/4 mile I ended up buying two new tires and having ALL the valve stems changed to metal ones. An EXPENSIVE lesson! Just sayin'.

BTW: ALL my vehicles now have metal stems!

Also; metal stems will limit wheel cover rotation on the wheel. A common issue with full wheel covers, specially when using wheels without wheel cover stops built into them.

[600Miles]

Mine have raised bumps either side of valve stem

[bensherb]

Yes! The stock/factory wheels on my GT had them too. When I replaced them with 2" wider, stronger, Ford Crown Victoria wheels they had no bumps and the wheel covers would rotate. I bonded a piece of aluminum bar on each side of the valve stem and that stopped the rotating. I didn't like the idea of using metal valve stems just to stop the rotating wheel covers. Those wheels are now on my dads '53 Coupe. I replaced them on the GT with 17" x 7.5" mags from a 2017 Mustang.

[Buzzard]

Rick,
One of the problems is that most valves are now coming from "off shore" determined by sheer cost. Gone are the days where you could get real Schrader American made valve stems featuring rubber as the main ingredient. Nowadays the off shore units are made mostly from petrochemical products. We all know what ozone and heat do to petrochemical anything. The suggestion of utilizing metal stems makes the most sense.
Bill

[StudeRich]

Yeah, and you have to wonder if the Metal Stems are also Off-Shore Mfg. with petrochemical rubber Gaskets !

[600Miles]

Supposed to be 62 Lark wheels and are stamped 62 inside and a logo also. You probably saw this car an FB MP, Portland area.

[Dwight FitzSimons]

Those are stock Studebaker 15x4.5" wheels.

Much has been written on this Forum about using factory wheels (especially 4.5" wide ones) on our Studebakers. Searching the topic will yield a lot of good information. Basically, they should never be used with radial tires, only with bias-ply tires.

--Dwight

[Dwight FitzSimons]

I should add:"And, no one should run bias-ply tires on the street."

[Buzzard]

Yes Dwight, but they are 60+ years old. A 6 or 6 1/2" width opens up a whole bunch of options . At some point retaining originality should no longer be the driving force on decisions. Wheel Vintiques manufactures Chryco Cop Car wheels which work real well. They have the correct lug nut tapers as well as the hub centric center hole which make them perfect for decent size radial tires.
Besides my Cop Car wheels are 7" wide and have the ventilation holes.
Bill

[Dwight FitzSimons]

I have used 15 x 6" or 15 x 6.5" Ford steel wheels on my Studebakers since the late 1960s, along with Ford lug nuts. Others report satisfaction with Chrysler wheels. They all should be inspected periodically for cracks and damage to the lug holes. I wouldn't use original Studebaker wheels, especially the 4.5" wide ones; there is just no need to. They are too narrow, the steel in them is too thin, and they are old.

There are people who are so originality-oriented that they can't be dissuaded from using the original wheels for their car. An example of this viewpoint is the local man who restored his '53 Commander and replaced the 1954-up brakes (11"/10") a previous owner had installed with the original 1953 brakes.
--Dwight

[StudeRich]

Wow Dwight, THAT take the cake for Stupidity !
Who, but the owner would EVER know!
I would give him 4 extra points for his Safety Upgrade if he left the '54's on there..

[bensherb]

Yes Dwight, but they are 60+ years old. A 6 or 6 1/2" width opens up a whole bunch of options . At some point retaining originality should no longer be the driving force on decisions. Wheel Vintiques manufactures Chryco Cop Car wheels which work real well. They have the correct lug nut tapers as well as the hub centric center hole which make them perfect for decent size radial tires.
Besides my Cop Car wheels are 7" wide and have the ventilation holes.
Bill

Hub centric ? I don't know about the late Lark types but the C/K's don't have hubs to fit into the center hole of any wheel in order to be hub centric.

I modified a set of hubs for my GT to make them fit Ford wheels "hub centric".

[mbstude]

There are people who are so originality-oriented that they can't be dissuaded from using the original wheels for their car. An example of this viewpoint is the local man who restored his '53 Commander and replaced the 1954-up brakes (11"/10") a previous owner had installed with the original 1953 brakes.
--Dwight

I'm guessing he doesn't put many miles on that car. Those extra "authenticity points" aren't worth much when you're driving down the road.

[Dwight FitzSimons]

That '53 Commander Starliner is so perfectly restored ($100k+) that most owners wouldn't drive it much. He did drive it to a show I attended a few years ago, though. I agree that they should be driven no matter what (as long as they aren't unsafe).

[Hawklover]

I will never again use a rubber valve stem! A couple years ago I put new tires with new rubber stems on my truck then drove it 350 miles from home on the freeway. The next day after 3 miles (also freeway) one of those new stems broke, tire went flat, and by time could pull over the new tire was garbage. After putting on the spare and driving 1/4 mile I ended up buying two new tires and having ALL the valve stems changed to metal ones. An EXPENSIVE lesson! Just sayin'.

BTW: ALL my vehicles now have metal stems!

Also; metal stems will limit wheel cover rotation on the wheel. A common issue with full wheel covers, specially when using wheels without wheel cover stops built into them.

Plus a hundred on the steel stems, no more wheel cover creep on my Avanti!!

[Hawklover]

Yes Dwight, but they are 60+ years old. A 6 or 6 1/2" width opens up a whole bunch of options . At some point retaining originality should no longer be the driving force on decisions. Wheel Vintiques manufactures Chryco Cop Car wheels which work real well. They have the correct lug nut tapers as well as the hub centric center hole which make them perfect for decent size radial tires.
Besides my Cop Car wheels are 7" wide and have the ventilation holes.
Bill

Bill 30 yrs ago i was able to purchase brand new KH wheels for a '75 MoPar Cordoba, never like the Ford rims because the wheel center does not hug the hub:-(

[bensherb]

Does your Avanti have flanged rear axles? With the tapered axles and removeable hubs there is no hub for the wheels to "hug". NONE of the Studes I've ever worked on had anything for a wheel to "hug" on the front hub either; unless the brakes were changed to something other than Studebaker.

[JoeHall]

My experience with rubber valve stems and full disc Stude hubcaps is same as Bensherb's, and I have used only steel stems since the 1980s. Rubber stems may be OK for bicycles, or wheelbarrows, but not on Studes with full disc hubcaps. Problem is, the hubcaps "walk" and will pull the stems out of the wheel, or put enough sideward pressure to make them leak. I Never had ANY luck with any of the above suggestions with stopping hubcap walk, but the steel stems stop it in its tracks, permanently.

[Hawklover]

Bill 30 yrs ago i was able to purchase brand new KH wheels for a '75 MoPar Cordoba, never like the Ford rims because the wheel center does not hug the hub:-(

My R-1 Avanti single leg has tapered axles. I assume we are talking about the center of the steel wheel, yes??........on Ford wheels the five lugs hold the wheel to the drum, and the center (on my Avanti) does not "HUG" the hub. With the MoPar Cordoba wheels not only the five lugs, but the center of the steel wheel fits "tightly" around the drums hub.

[Hawklover]

Avantis do not have removable hubs, they are part of the actual drum.

[bensherb]

IF, it has tapered axles that the "drum " bolt to, the hubs are separate pieces from the drums and they are held together by the lug ( wheel bolt) studs which are "swaged" (peened over ) to keep the two pieces together. The peened part of the lugs can be cut away to to make the drums removeable without removing the hub (making brake work WAY easier). With a "flanged" axle the "hub" is part of the axle ( not bolted to it) and the drums simply slip in place upon them. They typically have a hub center approximately 2,7" in diameter which the wheel will center upon making them "Hub Centric". The hubs for tapered axles only have a tapered center around 1.5" diameter which CAN NOT center on any wheel so they are "Lug Centric"; meaning the weight of the vehicle is entirely carried by the wheel lug studs and NOT the axle hub.

[bensherb]

NO! IF there is a large nut is holding the drum onto the tapered axle the drums ARE NOT part of the hub. They are two separate pieces held together by the wheel studs which are "swaged" to keep them together. If the swage is removed brake work can be done without removing the hub making it WAY easier. Flanged axles are forged with the axle and hub being a single piece. They typically have a hub center around 2,7" diameter that the drums and wheels center upon with a few thousandths of an inch clearance making them "Hub Centric". The drums on them simply slip in place. The removable hub on the tapered axles typically have a tapered center around 1.5" diameter which a wheel CAN NOT center upon. The wheels center on the lug studs making them "Lug Centric"; meaning all of the weight is being carried by the wheel studs, NOT the axle hub.

[bensherb]

" The removable hub on the tapered axles typically have a tapered center around 1.5" diameter which a wheel CAN NOT center upon."

Cannot center upon because of the as cast un-machined, non concentric, tapered center of the hub does not fit snugly into the wheel.