Last week I called O'Connor Classics to get more details on dropping off
my wires wheels for rebuilding. Unfortunately Mike, the person who
normally handles such things, wasn't there so I didn't get all of my
questioned answered but I did find out a few things. First, O'Connor
does indeed have their wheel rebuilding done by British Wire Wheel in
Santa Cruz, and I found out that I could have them done in two to three
days if I'm in a really big hurry. I'm not. I also found out that BWW
offers two types of paint finishes: a straight finish which is
equivalent to the original factory finish (but with modern epoxy paint)
and what is referred to as a show finish. I assume the latter finish is
for concours cars or maybe just fanatics. Even so, I'm considering it.
The down side is that it's not original, it's more expensive and I'd
probably feel less comfortable driving the car because I'd be in
constant fear of getting a stone nick, hitting a curb or what have you.
On the other hand, if I were to do the wheels myself (which was my
original intention), I would have put on the best finish possible (or
had it put on) and as a percentage of the total cost of having the
wheels redone, it's probably not that big of a deal. As to potential
damage, guess I'd just risk it. Maybe I could get some touch-up paint
from BWW. Have any of you seen wheels with this finish? If you have,
I'd be interested in your comments.
Next I have to think about tires. First choice is Good Year of course,
but not necessarily the best choice. Since all new Cobras came with
Good Year tires (even in Europe) this is the choice to maintain
originality. However, there has also been a fairly long tradition of
using BF Goodrich T/A's. These are good tires and apparently a much
better buy than Good Years. Phil Ethier suggested T/A Comps but I'm a
little concerned about using tires with a road racing compound since
they will be on the car for a long time and I understand that these
compounds don't age well. Another factor to be considered is that three
of the four cars I currently own need new tires. Murphy's Law.
One additional request: where on earth can I get an electrical
schematic for my snake????
Roland Dudley
cobra@hpcdcsn.cdc.hp.com
CSX2282
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