Hi, I haven't been on the board for quite some time now. For a while I was busy with school and other activities and for the first part of the summer I have had many projects to get wrapped up. Anywho, I thought I would give all of you an update on my '62 Invicta. First off, I have been working my butt off scraping/scrubbing the engine bay. 43 years of crime can really take a toll on toothbrushes :laugh: . Currently it is all original with the exception of a rebuilt engine and an aftermarket air cleaner. Currently I am selling off some toys (go-kart/dirt bike) to play with my other toy, the Invicta :Brow: . I plan to purchase a set of new wheels and tires, I haven't decided on the wheels yet. I also plan to purchase a few performance items for it as well. Now, for my questions. My first question is reguarding wheels. I would like to go with a wider wheel in the rear, somewhere around 8" wide. I was wondering if this is possible and what amount of backspacing will I need to achieve this? Secondly, what wheels do you think would look good on my car? It's Cameo Cream with an Arctic White roof. I'm open to any and all suggestions. Thirdly, where can I find some performance parts for my 401ci Nailhead? I was thinking intake manifold and headers and possibly ordering a custom ground cam from Comp Cams. The only problem is I can't find anyone that carries performance parts for the Nailhead and I do it won't fit my year. Thanks for all the help everyone, it's much apprecated :TU: !
American torq-thrusts make anything look good, and some old school Raiders(that's not spelled right)-5 spoke mag and some wheels with a bit of white side wall might look right on that vintage of car.
I fit 315/60-15s on 10" in the stock rear wheelwells of my '59 Invicta, but the rear frame rails were moved and a non-original axle is in there. A fatter tire on a 8" rim should fit unless Buick made the wheelwells tighter in '62. Backspacing is something you'll have to measure. You are going to be limited in wheel selection due to Buick's 5"x5" bolt circle more than anything.
The frame is not the main problem, it's the fins on the drums. You will not get a wider wheel than 6" without problems. Unless you use spacers between the wheel & drum. Spacers are not a good idea as far as I'm concerned because of the size & weight of our cars. I have trimmed down the fins on the drums to make rims fit, but it's a pain. Also I've had to cut a 45* angle on the axle shaft hubs & front drum hubs to have the center of the wheels fit which means you need to go to a machine shop unless you have a drum lathe & a bigger lathe for the axles.
Telriv, of course you have a great point in the front, but he specified 'wider in the rear'. I dunno if '62 had finned drums in the rear, but '59 sure doesn't. 16" rims would offer both more drum clearance and a greater choice of rim designs. BTW- your concern against wheel spacers is bringing the rim off the hub vs. the vehicle weight, correct? I would concur but I was noticing something on my '40 Ford commercial truck: the wheels 'float' around the hub and only bear the weight at the lugs... and my '40 was registered at 16,000 lbs (ex-oil tanker). 5 studs only, too (tho they're decently big: lug nuts take a 1.5" socket). Or was it something else?
Thanks for the replies guys. It's taken me awhile to reply becuase I am down in Florida visiting family. Anywho, I have a few more questions now. Is the Buick bolt pattern really 5x5? I thought that it was 5x4 3/4 because that's what the pattern of the Buick ralleys in the Summit catalog are. If that's the case I need to rethink all of the wheels I have already picked out. I know for a fact that I wont be able to fit a 10 inch rim in the wheel wells. The fins on the drums really do limit this. The stock 15x6's use approximatley 3 15/16 or 4 inches of backspacing. So, basically I couldn't use a wheel with more than 4 inches of backspacing or I would run into clearence issues. I have measured quite a bit and for reference I was trying to see if a 15x7 Weld Pro Star with 3.5 inches of backspacing would fit. They would fit without rubbing anywhere but it is fairly tight. I was thinking probably a 15x7 with 3.5-4 inches of backspacing would be my best bet. Then with this possibly a 255/60 or 255/70 BfGoodrich Radial T/A. Well, time to check out some some more wheels. Thanks for the help guys, it's much appreciated.
I think you're right on the bolt circle issue. Source I have says '55-59 is 5x5, but it must be wrong because I just carefully measured a '59 drum and it's 5x4.75. Cameo-- what about my suggestion to go to 16" rims to clear the fins and get wider rims back there? Are you planning to go with wider rims in front, too? And are your rear drums indeed finned?
Big Buicks have had a 5x5 bolt circle since I don't know when, the 40's sometime. WQ59B you must be measuring wrong as the '59 is also 5x5 unless the rear was changed to something else. Do you still have an enclosed driveshaft (torque tube)????? No you don't, someone changed it that's why you have a 4 3/4" bolt circle. Now you have worse brakes than you had before, which were 12" originally. You now have either 9 1/2" rear brakes or if the rear came out of an A body station wagon, 11" rear brakes. So in an emergency situation your brakes may not be up to the task. Hell of a time to find out brakes can't do the job when a situation arises!!!!! '62 does have finned drums in the rear, it started in '61. 16" may clear the rear fins or 17" would most likely definately clear. Then you have the problem of the exhaust unless you route it another way or use smaller pipes, then you hurt performance. Your also looking for more performance, Right??? The Buick Ralley wheels in the Summit catalog are for an A body car, like a Skylark. Then you have the problem of the diameter of the stock Buick hubs. No one I know makes the center diameter big enough. You will still have to cut the hubs of the drums & axles. WQ59B, the big Ford truck is something different. Most cars don't have hubs that "float". Problem is when someone uses spacers they don't lenghten the studs to compensate & have less lug nut threads holding on the wheel. Our cars are as BIG as TRUCKS, but are cars!!! Look at the size of your studs & nuts on the truck, designed to do a JOB!!!! On a BIG TRUCK!!!! Think about what the size of the vehicle you are working with. Make an intelligent choice & reap the benifits & pride of doing it right. Keep saftey in mind & if anything go larger, not smaller on brakes, it may be overkill in some instances but you DO need to stop & you DO need to have enough extra just in case an emergency arises. That's all I'm going to say on the subject.
Tom- appreciate your comments. RE: the '59 5x5-- I had sworn it was so. The online bolt circle template I found must've been wrong, but it was 2 3/8th from the center of the hub to the center of a stud hole. The source I found said it would have to measure 2.5" radius to equate to 5x5. BTW- I measured a front '59 drum. >>"'62 does have finned drums in the rear, it started in '61."<< Thought it might be something like that. The '59 Chassis Manual claims '59 rears are finned, but I haven't seen any. >>"Keep saftey in mind & if anything go larger, not smaller on brakes, it may be overkill in some instances but you DO need to stop & you DO need to have enough extra just in case an emergency arises."<< You are correct, of course. I do not have the TorqueTube anymore and I would not run A-body equipment on a B-body; it's a truck Dana 60 with thicker tubes, narrowed to my application. That's 11" rears- a smaller diameter, but the shoes are 1/4" wider, plus they're Kevlar-impregnated. I'm confident I have not compromised the rear brakes in any way. Fronts are stock 12" finned w/ Kevlar shoes so those are better than factory. Not to mention I don't have tall, squishy 5" bias ply tires, but 315 radials in the rear- way more stopping power than a factory set-up.
In fact, I'll be removing front AND rear aluminum drums from a '59 LeSabre on my next trip to my favorite closed junkyard to use on my '58. Also 5 x 5 is right, maybe until about 1970 on the full-size cars. The rallyes you saw are no doubt for use on Skylarks and smaller which all run the "Chevy" 4.75 bolt circle.
Thanks for the replies guys. Sorry it has taken me so long to reply but things have been a bit hectic down here in FL with the uncertainty of Hurricane Dennis. First off, thanks for correcting me in my bolt circle dilema. I just assumed it was 5 x 4 3/4, next time I better measure! And yes, my drums are finned. I was considering going with 16 and 17 inch wheels but like you said I still want to be able to route my exhaust over the axle. I also don't want to dump a whole lot of money into this thing, it's just a fun crusier. Also, I too was considered about the hubs fitting. Mabye I will just have my factory wheels widined (sp?)? So far that just seems alot simpiler. Anywho, thanks guys. Time to brace for Dennis!
