recentered FMTV's for deuces

[gringeltaube]

.............. but I had a plate built to use the 20 bolts around the outside to mount the plate to the wheel .......

Many ways to skin a cat.... and some (like the OP's) obviously are less expensive.
That drawing is only to give an idea of what can be done, for a cheaper alternative- and to explain the why and how of that "lip"....
I'm not saying the OP's wheels were done that way, though.

What you did is well explained, here...


G.

 

[bigbird1]

Yes , there are some expert welders out there that can weld rims just fine , just not me, I wouldn't trust my own welds on a rim to hold up to the off road torture . but there are many ways to do a quality rim, I love to see how others handle a problem .

 

[patracy]

This isn't a plate we're working on, but rather a ready to install wheel.

 

[gringeltaube]

Yup, what I thought.

I like how those wheels/ tires look, mounted on that truck: the fronts not too far out; rears not too far in.....


G.

 

[NMCShooter]

I'm the one who actually machines and welds these wheels and the picture in the first post is my truck. I machine the LMTV wheels on a CNC VMC using a fixture that uses dowel pins in the holes that hold the two halves of the rim together. The center plate with the 2.5 ton hole pattern is machined on the same VMC from a 3/8 thick blank with the stud holes, center hole and countersinks machined in the same setup. the O.D. of the plate is then turned on a lathe leaving a small lip (approx .040 x.040) like a flange bushing so that when I press them into the wheel they stop on the lip so that the plate is parallel and concentric to the bead seat. Before I weld them I grind the CARC of the inside of the wheel, the heat from welding the inside takes care of the CARC on the outside. Then they're tack welded on the inside, moved to a welding positioner and a large stitch weld is done. Then I flip them and put a continuous weld on the front. Except for the weld, they look a lot like an A3 wheel with 20 studs bolting the halves together instead of 10. We aren't painting them....different folks will want different colors and we can't sell em for what we are if we did. They drive better than the stock NDCCs with less steering wheel movement. With the XMLs, they rub a wee bit on the pitman arm at the steering stop.

 

[Ford Mechanic]

My hats off to the both of you, looks great! Mabey I'll be able to afford a set before too long.

 

[peashooter]

I'm the one who actually machines and welds these wheels and the picture in the first post is my truck. I machine the LMTV wheels on a CNC VMC using a fixture that uses dowel pins in the holes that hold the two halves of the rim together. The center plate with the 2.5 ton hole pattern is machined on the same VMC from a 3/8 thick blank with the stud holes, center hole and countersinks machined in the same setup. the O.D. of the plate is then turned on a lathe leaving a small lip (approx .040 x.040) like a flange bushing so that when I press them into the wheel they stop on the lip so that the plate is parallel and concentric to the bead seat. Before I weld them I grind the CARC of the inside of the wheel, the heat from welding the inside takes care of the CARC on the outside. Then they're tack welded on the inside, moved to a welding positioner and a large stitch weld is done. Then I flip them and put a continuous weld on the front. Except for the weld, they look a lot like an A3 wheel with 20 studs bolting the halves together instead of 10. We aren't painting them....different folks will want different colors and we can't sell em for what we are if we did. They drive better than the stock NDCCs with less steering wheel movement. With the XMLs, they rub a wee bit on the pitman arm at the steering stop.

Looks great, great design with the lipped plate too! $200 each sounds like a great price for a wheel with that much effort put into it

 

[ntxcop]

NMCShooter,

That is such an awesome and SIMPLE sounding solution to this problem. I've been banging my head trying to figure how to get my FMTV rims to work on my deuce, without having to pay thousands of dollars.

Thanks

Keith

 

[patracy]

I don't mean to speak for Bo, but you might be best suited (freight wise) to get him to make a set of plates and ship them do you. Then let a local shop cut out the stock centers and weld them in.

 

[ntxcop]

I don't mean to speak for Bo, but you might be best suited (freight wise) to get him to make a set of plates and ship them do you. Then let a local shop cut out the stock centers and weld them in.

Patracy,

That sounds like it may be a good idea too. I edited my thread after I realized there was an earlier post that stated the cost was $200 a rim. I'll PM Bo about it!

Thank you SIR!

Keith

 

[NMCShooter]

Patracy,

That sounds like it may be a good idea too. I edited my thread after I realized there was an earlier post that stated the cost was $200 a rim. I'll PM Bo about it!

Thank you SIR!

Keith

I just make the stuff in John's shop...you'll have to talk to him about pricing/availability of non standard stuff. I posted because there seemed to be some misconceptions about how we were making the wheels. Having said that, I'm sure he'd sell you just the plates. Unless you have a GOOD friend that owns a machine shop, I wouldn't recommend it. It's not easy to cut the hole in the wheel dead nuts center....they're stampings and the OD is not necessarily concentric to the bead. The fixture I made is the key to how we make them at this price point. There's no way someone can do one set, and do it right, for the same price as we are unless they're doing it out of the goodness of their heart.

 

[ntxcop]

I just make the stuff in John's shop...you'll have to talk to him about pricing/availability of non standard stuff. I posted because there seemed to be some misconceptions about how we were making the wheels. Having said that, I'm sure he'd sell you just the plates. Unless you have a GOOD friend that owns a machine shop, I wouldn't recommend it. It's not easy to cut the hole in the wheel dead nuts center....they're stampings and the OD is not necessarily concentric to the bead. The fixture I made is the key to how we make them at this price point. There's no way someone can do one set, and do it right, for the same price as we are unless they're doing it out of the goodness of their heart.

Thank you for posting the info. There's no doubt you've poured a lot of blood, sweat, and money into this. I think I'll call my dear uncle that just retired from Bell Helicopter. He worked in the machine shop for 36 years and really knows his stuff. Plus he has a ton of machining equipment / lathes at the shop on his ranch, and nothing but spare time now. Maybe he can come up with something for me.

Thanks again for the info, I'm always amazed by the knowledge that is spread around this website, you guys have amazed me yet again!

Keith

 

[FMJ]

Where is everyone getting their FMTV wheels, GL? and if so, is there a way to tell what your looking at is an FMTV wheel?

 

[patracy]

There's a lot of variations. They have plenty wheels. Honestly you will not save anything supplying the wheels. Basically the price for the wheels are mainly the plate and machine work. The wheels are "junk" to John's tire business, so they're basically free.

 

[Tornadogt]

Any Chance you guys are willing to sell a set of 4 for my bobber project with tires mounted 395 or 15.5 ??? I was planing on widening the deuce wheels but then your still stuck with tubes and such... this seems like a much better option..

 

[patracy]

Any Chance you guys are willing to sell a set of 4 for my bobber project with tires mounted 395 or 15.5 ??? I was planing on widening the deuce wheels but then your still stuck with tubes and such... this seems like a much better option..

Sure just give John a call, they can certainly take care of you. 678-373-7072.

 

[Goat437]

Are these still available?