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 Ian Bugden
A.k.a.: Ian Bugden
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| posted on January 18th, 2004 at 04:38 PM |
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Empi 5 Spokes???
Hi all,
I am considering fitting empi 5's to my '59 and I have a few questions I hope you can answer.
- How do these bolt on? do they use the standard Lug bolts or do you have to use studs and nuts?
- Do they alter the track at all?
Thanks in Advance.
Ian.
A good friend will come and bail you out of jail.....
But a true friend will be sitting next to you saying "Damm that was fun!!!"
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TheGermanFolks
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| posted on January 18th, 2004 at 04:52 PM |
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They use Mag style lug nuts, so you will have to stud your drums before putting them on. They do alter the track of your car by a little bit due to
its different offset than you stocks and being an inch wider than a stock rim.
Scott R.
PRAISE THE LOWERED
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ratty 63
A.k.a.: Rossco
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| posted on January 19th, 2004 at 09:34 AM |
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yep, this is exactly what I have done to my '63. You can also get bolts that will fit if you don't want to fit studs to your drums, but
studs make it far easier to fit the rim - no holding the rim in place whilst trying to line up the bolt holes and fit the bolts. The bolts are also
more expensive and harder to find than the studs (from my experience). What brand of Empi 5 where you looking at fitting?
R
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Ian Bugden
A.k.a.: Ian Bugden
Officially Full-On Dubber
AKA - Bugs
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| posted on January 19th, 2004 at 04:55 PM |
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Ratty 63
I have no idea, are there different brands? what are the better ones? I don't want polished or chrome just silver with the machined outter
lip.
Where did you get your from?
I am considering ordering them from the states, possibly from Blimp.
A good friend will come and bail you out of jail.....
But a true friend will be sitting next to you saying "Damm that was fun!!!"
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ratty 63
A.k.a.: Rossco
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| posted on January 19th, 2004 at 05:37 PM |
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...I am not sure of the current manufacturers brands, although several manufacturers have made replicas in the past. All of them slightly different
to each other.
My car is fitted with Rocket Industries 5 spokes - I thought that you might have found a second hand set (like mine) and was interested to see who
yours were made by. My 5 Spokes were found at the Toowoomba Swap Meet for a good price a couple of years ago. They were from a Formula Vee that had
been wrecked in an accident. The rims were slightly damaged (around the outer edge). I had them repaired by a local company who is well known for
repairing "unfixable" mags. They did such a good job, I can't even tell which wheel it was that they repaired!
Last year I found a single 5 Spoke - different manufacturer, at another swap. This one has marks from being curbed around the edges, however they are
not serious enough to have repaired - its now my spare so it doesn't get seen much.
All of my wheels are silver (cast) in the centre and polished around the outside. The set from the Toowoomba Swap have been repolished (when they
were repaired), the spare is as it comes from the supplier.
There are a few pics of my car and a close up of the rims on my web page if you are interested...
As for the brands available tody, not sure, sorry  Perhaps someone who has
fitted a new set recently can help. I feel that they would probably all be of similar quality now... but worth asking the question anyway.
Don't forget to post a pic of them on the car when it all done. :thumb
Oh, yeah. My rims are fitted with std sized 165 tyres on the front, and 205 75's om the back. The rear tyres just (only just!) touch the rear
body mount when the suspension is fully compressed, so next time I will go for 195's to stop this from happening.
R
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sikdub
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| posted on January 20th, 2004 at 08:59 AM |
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Ratty, have you ever tried to get centre caps for your rocket empi's? cos ive had bugger all luck....
Steven
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ratty 63
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| posted on January 20th, 2004 at 09:48 AM |
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Hi sikdub,
Yeah I have tried to find centrecaps for my wheels and come up with exactly the same problem as you . I know a couple of other people with Rockets too, and they all are missing the centrecaps. The centre of the wheel is an
odd size (not much clearance between the snout on the drum and the centre of the wheel either!), so finding caps is an issue .
I did email a company in the UK who are advertising centrecaps for empi wheels in the Volksworld mags and got them to measure the OD of the caps they
are selling. They are only 1mm bigger than the ID of the centre of the Rockets, so perhaps...
Would still be an expensive exercise for a 'maybe' though!
Those of you planning on fitting brand new Empi 5's won't have this problem as the wheels should be supplied with centrecaps.
R
PS: if you have any luck in the future, please let me know - thanx
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TheGermanFolks
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| posted on January 20th, 2004 at 05:46 PM |
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lol< funny you guys mention the caps, we (the GFK) always joke about people not having caps on thier rockets. You might as well Chrome the grease
cap on your spindles.
Scott R.
PRAISE THE LOWERED
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greenie
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| posted on January 20th, 2004 at 07:33 PM |
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| Quote: | Originally
posted by ratty 63
...I am not sure of the current manufacturers brands, although several manufacturers have made replicas in the past. All of them slightly different
to each other.
My car is fitted with Rocket Industries 5 spokes
R
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Question from a learner dubber - We've just picked up a set of Rocket Industries 5 spokes for our "bitza" beetle - where are they made
and are they any good? We just got them because we liked the look of them and basically needed any wheels we could get hold of.
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vwtyp2
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| posted on January 20th, 2004 at 09:20 PM |
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got my empi 5's from VVDS about 5 years ago. $250 ea back then. don't know what make they are, the casting is a little rough though.
the new Midlands Wheel Supplies ones are pretty good, and are available locally.
I have 2 sets of their BRM replicas and are happy with the quality of them.
Most people seem normal, till you get to know them.
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ratty 63
A.k.a.: Rossco
Custom Title Time!
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| posted on January 22nd, 2004 at 10:35 AM |
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Hi Greenie,
| Quote: |
Question from a learner dubber - We've just picked up a set of Rocket Industries 5 spokes for our "bitza" beetle - where are they made
and are they any good? We just got them because we liked the look of them and basically needed any wheels we could get hold of.
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Firstly, welcome to the forum! Always good to see a new face around
here!
I am fairly sure that the Rocket Industries Empi 5's were made in the USA (I still have the stickers on the back of my wheels, however the car is
not stored at my home, so I can't just go and have a look ). I am
told that the Rockets are an older replica, not exactly sure how old but I believe them to have been made in the late 60's - early 70's.
As far as them being any good - I have not met an Empi 5 spoke (replica) that is not any good!! They all look great!! . The casting on the Rockets is a little rough compared to the wheels
made today, however if they are polished, this will not matter. My wheels are just the cast finished with a polished outer rim. The roughness in the
casting adds character to my way of thinking!
The only drama that I have had is that the centrecaps for the Rockets are impossible to get (as you have probably guessed from the above
discussion)
TheGermanFolks, I gather that the problem is not one that is just in Australia - I have seen the grease caps chromed on other cars in the past and it
looks OK. The only issue is were the speedo cable comes through the left side grease cap looks a little ... er... odd. Does anyone have any tricks
to fix this 'problem'?
R
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