<<So whats the deal? Were those standard or uprated splined hubs? Did
they use some sort of "pin" device I've heard mentioned? How would current
72-spoke offerings from the usual suspects (Moss - Dunlop?) stand up?
I'm a sucker for wires, what can I say. I love how they go all blurry
when you go fast and the spinners look like little blender blades. But I
don't want to break the bank on wheels I'm going to thrash about.>
The only 'pin device' was the Dunlop peg drive wheels (knock off steel wheels)
used on the D type, lightweight E type Jags, MGA Twincam, (some) AH 100S, and
Gordon Keeble GT.
The factory used wider wire wheels with more spokes (too bad - I just sold a
set in Vancouver), but they are rare and expensive.
The short answer is that if you really want to do competition work, go alloys
- the wires flex and are heavy, notwithstanding the good looks. The last gasp
of wires in competition was the early factory 'B's, where they traded brake
cooling for wheel rigidity, and should have known better. The last guy that I
know of that seriously raced a B with wires was a fellow from Victoria. I
remember him hiking back to the pits on foot from the last turn at SIR. When
they dragged his car in, the brake disc was 'D' shaped instead of round. He
switched to alloys for the next race.
There are, or used to be, tons of used 14" alloys from Datsun Z cars with the
right offset - in any case, new wheels in the correct offset are easy to come
by.
Just my .02 cents (Canadian).
Bill S.
Vancouver
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