Tire tubes

[pathung]

Great write-up, thanks Gordon!

[AlfistiSA]

Dan

In your case, go with any correct sized 15" tube you can find in those rims of yours, especially if you are storing the car for an extended period of time, tubless tires on a project are a PITA as if they go flat, the bead-seal is usually compromised & you have to jack up the shell to relieve the pressure on the tyre to where it *might* hold air again.

Looking at your rims, once blasted it's doubtful they'll retain enough integrity to be used on the final product, so you will need the tubes to retain air & give you the ability to re-inflate from flat without jacking up the car..... again - guess how I know this...

Been there, done that, pumping up tyres by hand can take years off your life.

Once restored, I'd go with tubeless, all my Giulietta's are tubeless, but all our real vintage stuff run tubes, 16" / 19" / 21" with spoked wheels.

Ciao
Greig
Some 750's
Some 101's
Some 105's
Some others
Big garage
Little time

[davisfamily]

Another wonderful answer, Gordon. I suspected that the differences between a tubeless and a tubed wheel would be that lip to hold the tire better. Perhaps that is what GTD was talking about.
I'm glad someone has had first hand experience with making this combination work. Even if the wheels.ca people had blowout problems, the disadvantage of the internet is that they can say it won't work even if it was just for them, or an isolated incident.
Is there a specific, off-the shelf silver spray paint that works the best to make the wheels look close-to-Alfa spec? Obviously they need some help based on the photo above!
Thanks for the quick response. Now to get the other three!

[Gordon Raymond]

Hi Dan,
A careful search of charts at a friends bodyshop helped me discover what others here on the BB knew. One of the GM silver wheel colors is IDENTICAL to the Alfa Fergot / Borrani wheel silver. I now have forgotten which one, but others here might chime in. Fortunately it is not difficult to research.

[AlfistiSA]

BMW Polaris silver

Dan - in your case the point is moot, the original wheels are badly corroded & will in all likelyhood need to be replaced with better ones - safety first !!

Media blast them, use rattle can primer & try Krylon dull aluminium or whatever else looks semi reasonable & give the primered wheels a good coating, both inside the tyre well & outside. Mount the donor tyres with tubes to stop the air leaking out of those corroded rims & move the project to the farm.

June is drawing nearer - Take pictures & post 'em

Ciao
Greig

[GTD]

Dan
The information posted so far has been fairly accurate. My reason for suggesting you look for a Borrani wheel size with the letter "J" inside the rim was to ensure that the tubeless tire would seat properly. A different wheel profile could allow the tire to slide off the rim.
Much more tire and wheel info (more than you are likely to ever care about) may be found HERE. And don't forget to read page 1 for a little more...

Regarding paint for that pictured rim ; Greig is spot on - clean it and paint it with anything for now but expect to replace it before actually driving your Sprint.
25+ years burial in that Georgia soil was a death sentence for it.

My reason for suggesting tubes is that your car would originally have been equipped with them and as mentioned - the wheels don't always hold air that well without tubes. You're a long way from worrying about road speeds and tube vs. tubeless safety features.
Get 'er rollin' and Get 'er done!

[davisfamily]

The tube showed that the tire has some dry rot from setting up for a while. I will be running lower PSI levels in the tube until I can get the rim on the car. What is the recommended pressure for storage, or road use on a 165R15?
Also, I picked up a cheap ($20) spot blasting rig today from Harbor Freight, and I plan on sandblasting the wheel this week. I'll post pictures of the before and after. (Then I find out that my father-in-law has a complete sandblasting setup that he used to strip down and ol' Nova twenty years ago...so I'll convert it to pecan shells or something later down the road.)

[Gordon Raymond]

Try about 30-35 PSI for storage and easy rolling around.

[AlfistiSA]

Unless that family barn has a compressor, expect to get intimate with a hand pump at regular intervals............ build your storage lean-to, concrete that floor & stick it up onto stands. Pumping tyres by hand will take years off your life, you are years away from driving it, the priority now is move, store, slow down the deterioration, then restore slowly.

Ciao
Greig