[Dan in Pasadena]

Originally Posted by markeb01

Hi Dan, the wheels are new production Torque Thrust Originals (TTO’s) (not Torque Thrust D’s). The rear wheels are 15x7 and the fronts are 15x5. I don’t care for the appearance of the 15x8 TTO wheels, because of the extra machine cut in the face of the rim right in front of the spokes. It just looks unnatural to me.

Here’s a close up of my 15x7 and a stock photo of a 15x8 for comparison:





And here’s a close up of the front wheel/tire:



The rear tires are 255/70-15 Firestone Indy 500, and the fronts are 215/70-15 BFG Radial T/A’s. If they don’t change the way they’re made, I’ll be running the Firestone tires from now on. I like the more “squared corner” appearance compared to the T/A’s. They also last longer (the middle of the tread doesn’t wear out like on a T/A), ride smoother, balance easier and corner better than the T/A’s.

Note the spokes on the wheels as seen on my truck (and as shown above) have been painted Iron Cast Gray. The Martin Seynour spray paint came from Napa Auto Parts. As purchased, the wheel spokes appear to be bare aluminum and look rather anemic in my opinion. When I originally bought the front wheels I was intending to go for more of a gasser look, with the front end raised higher and white fenderwell headers. Early retirement changed all that, so eventually I got tired of the spindly look of the front wheels. I simply repainted the spokes black and that changed the look.

Thanks Mark for taking the time to respond and posting the pix too. The rims I bought are TT-D's and are all 15x7's. The owner had stored them a long time and they have some kind of preservative oil on them. I think I'm going to pressure wash them with a strong degreaser to get the oil off the spokes. I'm actually not sure they will fit on the hub of my Jag suspension on my '46. If they don't, I'll save them for a future '60-'66 project.

Thanks for the paint mfg and name for your spokes. I'm a bit confused thought - you mention in your last paragraph you painted hte spokes black. Did you mean you painted BEHIND the spokes black?

I take it the "John Deere Blitz Black" you mention is an over the counter paint for general metals like Rustoleum? Obviously no one in Southern California is painting tractors so the other doesn't exist here as far as I know!

P.S. I'm definitely NOT a painter, so which temperature range or "speed" did you use with your Blitz Black and if you remember the mix ratio (I assume you recorded it for later touch ups?) I'd really appreciate the info.