Re: New tires for the '69

[UFO]

Hey by the way about scratching the wheel paint with the covers;
you can take masking tape and put it around the inside of the wheel cover, and that will help out quite a bit.

Won't that make it easier for them to fly off?
charge69     I'm assuming you have the turbine style wheelcovers.
Looks good with the redlines,actually with your cars color combo you could have gone with white as well.

[charge69]

UFO:  Yep, they are the Hemicar 15" Turbines. I gotta think they will look really nice on the Charger! On certain cars, the whitewall tires look fine but, because the build sheet says it was born with redline F70-15 Wide Ovals, that is what I bought. 

You have a point about the tape possibly making the wheel covers easier to fly off! I feel the paranoia setting in again! Ha!

For my taste, a black wall tire or a redline is what my Charger needs.  Just cannot imagine my car with whitewalls.

[Mytur Binsdirti]

UFO:  Yep, they are the Hemicar 15" Turbines.

A 22" turban adds more bling.

[charge69]

UFO:  Yep, they are the Hemicar 15" Turbines.

A 22" turban adds more bling.

Ha!  If you saw my Charger, you would say it doesn't need any more bling!

[Lord Warlock]

I know when I bought my RT SE in 78 they were only asking 1k for it and I paid 800 for it with the slot mags thrown in  it was all original, numbers matching and had 76k on it then.  I know back then, that the hemi powered cars didn't bring much more than a 440 car did, gas prices had driven the prices into the basement, I would think it would have cost about 1500 or so back then, as it was a couple years before i got mine.  The gas price argument is somewhat silly when people were only paying .49 a gallon in 77, think it hit a dollar in 79 once or twice, but that was for premium.  I'd drive a good distance to get dollar a gallon gas these days.  I could buy a complete new hemi engine for 600, and I had a friend that owned a hemi roadrunner he got for less than a grand.  I do wish I hadn't passed on that hemi engine deal, the replacement 440 cost me 400, the hemi was 200 extra, but i got a transmission with the deal.  

Your wheels look great by the way.  

[charge69]

Hey Thanks, Lord Warlock.

You are so right about the prices hitting the basement in the mid to late '70's. It would dumbfound people to see the prices back then on ANY muscle car. They were still roaming the streets back then and could be found in very nice condition for unbelievably low prices. My Charger cost me well under a grand in 1976 and, although I got it for a steal of a price back then, they really did not command higher prices like today. Someone might have gotten a higher price for a 318 car than a R/T because of the better gas mileage !   Crazy times and I wish I could go back!

[charge69]

charge69     I'm assuming you have the turbine style wheelcovers.
Looks good with the redlines,actually with your cars color combo you could have gone with white as well.
[/quote]

I forgot I had this picture someone sent me a while back of the wheel covers on a     GTX!  I can tell from the picture that I definitely do not like RWL tires with them. Sorry about the quality of the picture!   

[crj1968]

You have a point about the tape possibly making the wheel covers easier to fly off! I feel the paranoia setting in again! Ha!

They still are a pain to get on with the tape. Had them like this on a 63 polara for years, I pretty much was doing burnouts around every corner in that car. I don't think I've ever seen a poverty cap fly off, trim rings...different story.

  Try it on a couple beater caps first or just don't try it at all, I don't wanna get in trouble if you lose one anyways.      

[charge69]

Mine are WHEEL COVERS, not poverty caps.  They fit the wheel just like a trim ring would fit. Metal fingers holding on to the outer diameter portion of the wheel!  And that is why I am worried about putting them on.  Scratching up my wheel AND possibly flying off the Charger and destroying itself.

If they look nice, I can  see me putting them on for the rare show I would take it too but,  after the show, the Cragars and radials go back on.  Even driving it to a show fairly close by would worry me with the wheel covers installed. Probably would not put them on until I was parked at the show and I would take them off before leaving!

[Ghoste]

The Cragars look so amazing on your car I can't even imagine considering another option anyway.

[charge69]

Hello Ghoste:   I am in love with the look of the Cragars myself but, for the sake of originality, I restored all 5 original 15 x 6 wheels that came on the Charger and put back the redline repros they make today. Bias-ply F70-15 Firestone Wide Ovals really do not drive bad at all to me but, the look of the skinny meat on the rear is almost comical!

For driving around town and day-to-day living with the Charger, the Cragars will stay.

In case you are wondering, my friend painted my brake drums with leftover HEMI Orange paint he had leftover from painting my engine mixed up. Him and I know it is not correct but I am surprised how well it turned out. At least for me and if I wanted to change it, painting over the orange would be very simple! For now, they stay HEMI-Orange!

[Ghoste]

I never even noticed until you posted the closeup pic.  It does pop with the orange.

[JB400]

And here I thought it was just my computer making red look orange

[472 R/T SE]

I know I've mentioned it here before but I've passed on cars that didn't have 4 wheel drum brakes cause I wanted to paint the drums to match the body color like my Dad used to do.

My '68 Coronet R/T was the last car I did it to.  I had it hauled up here in '92 & sold in '95.

While we were installing my Hemi my buddy said I should paint my rear drums like the factory did with styled wheels with the Torq Thrusts.  It would have only been the rear so I said no & painted them an off black instead.

[charge69]

I was actually surprised how much of the brake drum shows with the Cragars installed. When the original wheels are installed, you do not see any of the drums. However,  that "glint" of chrome the A12 lugs give it, without the wheel covers installed, do give it a little "sinister" look!

By the way, these are the newer 610-series Cragars that are cast one-piece aluminum wheels that are drilled for a 4 1/2" bolt pattern!  Light and no unilugs! They are beautifully chromed and I hope they stay that way!

I got these wheels (15x8 rear and 15x7 front) with B.F. Goodrich fronts and Nitto Extreme Drag Radial rear installed, balanced (so far, they seem perfect) and shipped to my door from JEGS for about $1560.00.  Install and balance only cost $40.00 more so, it was a no-brainer to have them do it before shipping. All I had to do was put them on the Charger and pop on the center caps!  Sweeeeeettttt!

[472 R/T SE]

My last body color drums car.  Barely see the white on the front.  Cool back then but don't know about now.   

[UFO]

If your just going to use the wheelcovers for show duty.
You could leave the wheel covers in the trunk.Just like as delivered.
Not so sure if it's a good idea to leave stuff like that in a open trunk now a days.
Had cragars on mine for a while as well.Should have been a factory option as they just look right.

[charge69]

I would be pretty paranoid about leaving the wheel covers in my open trunk, even with me sitting and watching!  Might work, though and it is an option.

Funny but, I have never tried to put the wheel covers on with the A12 chrome lug nuts installed. They are obviously longer as they have closed ends so, I am not even sure the wheel covers would go on the wheel without the lugs being too long!  Huh?  Might have to buy some new regular lug nuts to use on the Charger when the wheel covers are going on! I do have one original wheel cover to try before trying to put the new ones on!

I guess I'll know soon enough!