used honeycombs...
 

I have been on the fence about replacing my old man wheels with either aftermarket honeys or stock honeys.

I finally found some used ones locally here but they are missing rings, caps and need to be restored.

Is it worth restoring them (since they are missing stuff) or should I just save up for the aftermarket ones that cost an arm and a leg?

Also, is there a sticky on the restoration advice - can't find to save life...

I read somewhere that they are hub centric - does that mean that no modern tire shop would know what to do with them?

Thanks all

Discount tire has the equipment.
You ca t beat the new larger size ones, they say if they’re too big, your too old. lol

We just did a set not too long ago. Find a set where the urethane is in good condition to save yourself some trouble. The center cap section apparently likes to warp.

We sandblasted ours, used flexible primer and top coated with OER magnesium wheel coating. We haven't put tires on them yet, so I can't comment on how hard it is to find a shop to balance them.

Resto article: https://forums.maxperformanceinc.com...d.php?t=800267

Hub-centric wheels are balanced with cones on the center hole. There are several styles, but almost any shop with a balancer can handle that style. Lug-centric wheels center off the individual lug stud holes. This is the style that requires the multi-wheel adapters that many shops do not have. For my Coats balancer, that adapter is nearly $1500.00. To expensive for me. I do have a Pontiac 8-lug adapter thankfully. I do not know what the honeycomb wheels require.

I just did a set of 15" Honeys, they were soda blasted, then neutralized with vinegar and water solution, primed with flexible primer and then painted the correct color. I am still looking for 3 nice trim rings , but the rings I have work for now. I mounted a set of B F Goodrich's on them and had the problem with the hub centric balancers, I took them to a shop with a good old fashioned bubble balancer and they have come out very well, I am still looking for a shop with a lug centric balancer to get them done that way for the heck of it. Overall I like them better than the 14" Honeys that were on the car.

The one thing to keep in mind if you stick with 15’s is the serious lack of tire choices. If you want a 245/60 or 255/60 your only choices are BFG, Cooper Cobra’s & Hankook Kinergy ST’s. I’m sure Coker & others offer some reproduction tires but at double the cost.

I restored a set of honeys recently, same process as mentioned above, the OER paint looks very good in magnesium or gold, has a slight texture to it that looks close to original. I was going to use them on my 72 firebird but decided to go with rally 2 for street use... for both the honeys & rally 2's I prefer the no trim ring look, its correct for honeys in 72 and both wheels look better without them IMO. I have a set of NOS 15" honey trim rings I will be selling along with the wheels.

Most tire shops, especially older ones should have the lug centric adapter to balance them, just call ahead to confirm.

As for tire selection, 15" are limited compared to modern 17-18" tires but there are still many available RWL options besides the 3 listed above, 245 & 255/60 are popular 60 series but the factory size for later 2nd gens that look good are 225/70/15. 235/245/255/275 60 still have other options, Firestone Indy 500s are being made again that are a better tire than BFG for less $, same for the Mickey Thompson radial S/T, also many lesser known name brands like Mastercraft Avenger, Herculese H/P 4000, Galaxy radial G/t, & a few others. Also some black wall options & even a very high speed rated brand I cant recall right now that another member posted on a recent 15" tire thread. ,

This is great!

Ironically prolly have this issue in the basement archives as well - good ol' HPP.

I wonder if the products they mention are still available...researching

I'm in Canada so that could be an issue....

Yes, these may get me thru until I can afford the new style.

So...older the balancer equipment more likely they can do it?

Why did you use the douche water on them? Was there left-over plastic debris from the blast or some other reason?

Did you not like the year one rings or you just wanted the gm ones?

What did you use for flex? 3m?

Thanks

Very good point - being in Canada I'm assuming there are fewer choices.

I'll start a new thread for that issue... :(

Ok lug centric & OER FTW.

Starting new tire thread.

Took mine to wheel shop to make sure they were straight before paint, just sayin.


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Is there a link to a preferred lug centric balancer adapter?

sage advice....thx Dave

Unfortunately no, while most modern balancers share a 40mm shaft there are others on the market that don’t so it’s best to buy the adapter directly from the manufacturer. If you have an older balancer & want to measure the shaft there are some parts distributors online who offer the adapter based on shaft OD or mfr. Either way they’re typically around $500 or more for a lug centric adapter or pin plate.

Not really. That adapter was always an option and always expensive. As mentioned, call around and find a shop that has one if needed. If they have no idea what your talking about, they don't have one. I would guestimate less than 1% of all wheels require it. Manufacture the damn wheel with a precision hole in the center and you don't need one. It isn't rocket science! Rant over.

This doesn't sound promising at all.

So worse case scenario tires can't be mounted at all or they can but horrible jeep death wobble?

I just went through this. Yes first check wheels run true. As for balancing - a lug centric adapter is $100 on amazon but $500+ for a legit one. However putting the normal metal cone in the backside of the rim on the balancer and the 'plunger' like polymer cup hold down on the face will get you an accurate balance.