dunlop center cap

[RickHC]

I lost a center cap off one of my dunlop wires this morning. Does anyone have a source?

[Gunslinger]

Don't you mean Dayton wires? Contact them directly and ask.

[RickHC]

They are the OEM Dunlops that were on the car when it was purchased new. Made in India.

[Michael]

The 89 's had Dunlop wire wheels... We wish they had Dayton wires on them. I cannot keep the Dunlop wire wheels round and am looking to upgrade to a larger diameter wheel. If I do upgrade this yr I will keep you in mind as I will have a complete spare set of wheels and caps.

[RickHC]

Thanks, Michael. Please do keep me in mind. I have had no problem with the Dunlops yet, but the car only has 33,000 miles on it so who knows as I intend to drive it. It's "trailer queen" days are over!

[Gunslinger]

The 89 's had Dunlop wire wheels... We wish they had Dayton wires on them. I cannot keep the Dunlop wire wheels round and am looking to upgrade to a larger diameter wheel. If I do upgrade this yr I will keep you in mind as I will have a complete spare set of wheels and caps.

I didn't know that...never knew Dunlop made wires. Learn something new every day! Thanks for the correction.

[avantidavid]

I have a 1988 Avanti convert. I realize that the caps are different but what I did was buy Appliance wire wheel caps and grind the plastic raised A in the center down then buy the black Avanti logo stickers that are still available and stick/glue them on and you cant tell the difference. I would not not doubt if this is what Avanti Motors did.. lol...... Look on ebay under Dayton wire wheel caps and see if any of those look the same.. If they do pop off the center logo/cap and replace with the Avanti logo sticker Dayton Wire Wheel Hex Nut Center Cap 6391

Edited May 17, 2013 by avantidavid

[avantidavid]

In regards to what Michael stated about keeping his wire wheels round. My wheels are in very good condition but I could never got them right, by balancing them the regular way. So I called some of the local tire shops untill I found someone who could balance them on the car. I had GREAT success with getting the wire wheels balanced ON THE CAR the old school way. This made a huge difference. It drives as good as new. :-)

[Michael]

Avantidavid - Tell me more about balancing tires "on the car". I just priced new Dayton wires for the car and it's $2800, including new tires. Does not matter whether the wheels are 15" 16" or 17"...All the same price. UGH. I am happy to throw some money at the car to see if this helps/solves the problem. Please give me some more info on how they balance the tire "on the car" so I can talk to the shops I know and find out if the possess "the right stuff". Thanks Mike

[plwindish]

A year ago I bought a used set of Dayton wires for a very good price from a forum member and had them sent directly to Dayton to get "reconditioned". Turned out the set of 5 I bought were no where near as good as they looked in the pictures. Two were bent beyond straightening, one other was too rusted to re-do. Dayton said it would cost more to recondition them than to buy new wheels from them at a nicely discounted price they offered me.

All together, with reconditioning 1 of the old 72 wire wheels and buying 4- 70 stainless steel spoke direct bolt on wheels with the back spacers, 3 bar "knock-off" type center caps, the price was just over $2100. They were shipped to me then it was off to the tire shop to get them mounted. All was well for the first three, trial fitting 3 wheels on the car before mounting and balancing tires, attaching center caps and final mounting. The 4th wheel wasn't trial fit before mounting the tire. Guess what, the wheel had a different center hub than the other three and the tire had to be unmounted and the wheel sent back to Dayton (Monday or Friday wheel making day?) I had the older reconditioned spare mounted and waited for about 3 weeks for the turn around for them getting the wheel and putting the correct center in and shipping back at their expense. Dayton does send their logo that is put on the center caps, but I opted to buy the Avanti stickers and use them instead.

I love the look of wires on the Avanti, but they are a pain in the _ ss to clean, even with the wire wheel cleaner. Wires are like Thomas English muffins, "nooks and crannies" to get around, clean and polish. Would I buy a new set again?? If I did, I'd probably keep the old wheels I had on the car before I bought the wires, get another set of tires and switch out to the wires for shows, but that would create another interesting set of problems like having 2 sets of tires that need to be replaced because of age instead of mileage, storage place for the wires in a climate controlled place to prevent rusting, etc.etc.

[RickHC]

Mike. they have a electric driven drum that resembles a dyno drum. It is pushed against the rolling surface of the tire and spins it at road speed. There is also a strobe light that highlights the out of balance part of the wheel and tire. I used these in the 60's when I worked on service stations. I have always maintained it is a better way to truly balance a tire/wheel and brake drum or rotor. All the spinning components.

[avantidavid]

here is where I had my wheels balanced on the car it was by the old man who is the owner I think his son runs it now. Not sure what if any special tools or equipment that migh be needed. maybe just the knowledge.It made a huge difference on my car, anyway here is the place give them a call and ask them about the balancing. Talk to the old man or his son and they can give you the info so you can call your local tire shop and see if they can do it.

T & T Tire Factory Inc

3711 S Tacoma Way, Tacoma, WA

(253) 475-6777 () ‎ · tnttire.com

[Charlie Kile]

Back in the 70s I was racing stock bodied cars on local dirt tracks. We got our tires from a local shop that made ReCaps just for us. He also had a tire grinder and groover and could custom make tires the way we wanted. At the time the tires on my E-Type always seemed unbalanced. (Dunlap chrome wire knock off wheels). I took the car to the tire shop where he ground the tires round on the wheels then balanced them on the car. Had to be careful to raise both rear wheels due to the positraction. But the car was incredibly smooth after words and the tires lasted nearly 20 years. I don't know if any one grinds tires any more but if you can find someone it made a huge difference with my wire wheels. Charlie RQB3921