Need authentic wheels for 60's-70's stock cars

[slothead]

I'm adding cars to my Grand National-NASCAR series (ARCA & USAC stock cars too) mostly using Revell-Monogram bodies. I also have a '71 Torino resin cast body and a few more Proxie '71 Mercury Cyclone bodies. Whenever possible I'm using R-M, Pioneer, or Carrera chassis & parts for consistency of performance and style. The '71 Torino body has a 3 1/2" wheelbase which is shorter than those chassis, but Scalextric Challenger and Cougar chassis do fit it. The problem is those chassis have wheels that are out of place on a racing stock car from this era which had painted steel wheels.

All the cars in the series are box stock RTR with the only upgrade being silicone rear tires. Allowing after market metal wheels and axles would likely provide a performance advantage that's against the rules. I found a dealer that has plastic Pioneer 'steelie' wheels in stock, but not on axles. So the issue now becomes, is there a reliable way to remove press on plastic wheels and replace them with different ones? Over the years I've used super glue to replace two plastic wheels that came off, but it wasn't planned. I think in both cases the wheel that came off was on the spur gear side of a sidewinder rear axle and when replacing it I was able to glue it to the axle and the gear to fully secure them.



To put style correct wheels on this car, and others I might build, will mean replacing all 4 original wheels with Pioneer ones. Is this likely to work and if so, what recommendations do you have to help me out?

[1fozziebear]

A problem I can relate to. I had a guy who was going to resin cast me a bunch of Carerra steel wheels, like you my preferred choice. He went radio silent (I think cancer).

I've since then having just been sacrificing complete chassis and making them work vs not having enough wheel/tire combos. We all have that nagging voice inside our head when we see a 1960s stock car rolling
around the track on showroom wheels.

A jig wouldn't be hard to make for wheel to axle perpendicularity. I use epoxy on this before. CA for me adds realism when the wheel comes off after a hard de-slot which looks cool, but the car is now a DNF.

[slothead]

Once upon a time you could buy complete spare axles from Revell-Monogram and Carrera. I bought a bunch 10 years ago or so, used some and gave some away as they became harder to find. No regrets there, it was to HRW guys needing parts for builds. At that time I never expected to need these type of parts again. Now that I'm building some classic stock cars not available as RTR cars, I'm looking for ways to have correct wheels on them.

Since the R-M classic NASCARS are popular among us ol' dudes, hopefully someone will cast or print usable versions. OR, buy some of the less expensive newer Carrera releases and harvest axles from them.

[TuscoTodd]

You may want to try reaching out to Bruce at CincySlots - I know in the past he had the stock car wheels available and may be able to assist?

[Wobble]

I didn't realise Pioneer made these 'steelies' so this thread is a bonus for me. In the past I have made many replacement axles with K&S 3/32" piano wire and had no problems gluing pioneer hubs on to that using ca glue.

[slothead]

How do you align the wheels so they go on straight and don't wobble (no pun intended)?

[slothead]

I ordered 6 pair of the Pioneer 'steelie' wheels from Electric Dreams at the end of last week. along with a Revell-Monogram car.

2 x Pioneer WH204433 - Grand-Am 'Steelie' Wheels, Front & Rear, gray, pair (WH204433) = $10.98
2 x Pioneer WH204434 - Grand-Am 'Steelie' Wheels, Front & Rear, gold, pair (WH204434) = $10.98
2 x Pioneer WH204435 - Grand-Am 'Steelie' Wheels, Front & Rear, white, pair (WH204435) = $10.98

I'm still waiting to receive notice the order has been shipped.

[HomeRacingWorld]

The Pioneer wheels, or rather the axles, are not knurled. So the wheels fit very snugly on a 3/32 axle. Pressing them on a knurled Scalextric will take some patience.

As far as the wobble...well that's not so simple. Do you have a tire machine? Or a drill press to mount one wheel at a time? THis way you can go very slow and check for aligment.

Not that there is much you can do. The hub and mold is where the wobble will come from. You can use hand pressure to bend them ever so slightly. But not very much and you risk cracking the hub.

As for gluing....try lightly scoring/sanding the axles ends and using a slow curing adhesive like standard Testors model glue. This will give you more time to work.

Carrera wheels are closer to 17x8 than 15 x8 like the Monograms.

I don't know what "rules" you are under....but sometimes I think folks put themselves through more frustration than need be. If it's worth doing.....well ya know the saying. Of course there is cost involved, but well worth the investment once you begin driving the models.

Good luck.

[slothead]

The cars in the series I've been focusing on are mostly Carrera and Revell-Monogram RTR classics and I keep adding more. Four cars have Pioneer RTR chassis, a Dodge Charger and 3 Mercury Cyclones. All these cars have similar authentic looking wheels from the 60's - early 70's. The outsider is a Scalextric Dodge Charger RTR that pretends to be an authentic NASCAR replica.



Since the class is almost totally RTR cars my only 'rule' is no aftermarket parts (except rear tires) or other upgrades. I'm building a few cars using RTR parts as a way to diversify the field as I've been able to do with the Proxie Cyclone bodied cars. I used a Professor Motor '67 Fairlane body to start a Foyt car, and have another I plan to use for a replica of the #66 Fairlane Jim Clark drove. I also have a PM '65 Galaxie body for a build. I have enough bare R-M plastic chassis for these cars but not enough axles. The resin '71 Torino is a nice addition I just need to find a suitable chassis for it, including running gear. Unfortunately, it has a shorter wheelbase (3 1/2") than Pioneer, Carrera, or R-M chassis so that's what I'm trying to figure out now.

[HomeRacingWorld]

Could you not cut/slice and then glue a stock chassis to meet the wheelbase? I have seen many slice the Pioneer down the center, sand what the need and then use styrene as braces and re-attach.
This could still meet your build requirements. Doing so would not give it any advantage.

[slothead]

As always, I greatly appreciate all feedback, especially from Harry.

The option of modifying an existing chassis that otherwise fits the bill is an ideal solution. As far as I know, running Carrera or Revell-Monogram chassis are not available. I didn't see any appropriate Pioneer Charger chassis on INASLOT either. However, thanks to Harry's post I just checked the Proxie Models website and ordered 2 complete Pioneer Charger chassis with 'steelie' wheels for $32 each. Chassis with white & gray wheels are available. [FYI - Ken Proxie also still has '71 Mercury Cyclone bodies for $20.]

Entire Carrera cars can be had for basically the same price and I'm trying to obtain some for this purpose too. If that happens I might even find the courage to repaint duplicate cars and create replicas of classic stock cars not otherwise available.

Since I've been spending a lot of $ on classic Revell-Monogram cars recently I'd like to be able to use those chassis under new builds, but the cars are too expensive now to buy just for parts. R-M slot cars don't get a lot of love as racers but they are very nice authentic looking replicas. And, when raced against each other everything works out fine. It's like being transported back in time to the 1971 Daytona 500.

[slothead]

This thread began as a way to explore ways to have authentic 'steelie' wheels on 1:32 scale 60's & 70's stock car builds. While addressing what chassis to use under a '71 Torino Cobra body I found a Scalextric Challenger chassis that had the right wheelbase (3 1/2"), but the wheels on it are not correct for that era stock car. I bought enough of the Pioneer wheels shown above for 3 cars but then (thanks to Harry) realized it would be difficult to use them on Scalextric axles.

I took Harry's suggestion and got Pioneer Charger chassis with period correct 'steelie' wheels that could be shortened to have the needed wheelbase. THEN, while placing another large order with Electric Dreams and looking for a last few items to qualify for free shipping I found Pioneer 'steelie' axles for not much more than a pair of wheels.



The Torino body and Scalextric chassis with Pioneer rear axle is shown above. I also have a complete front axle to install.



In retrospect this is the way I should have gone, but I didn't know these axles were available. I'll probably order bare axles from Pioneer to have on hand for when I need to use the individual wheels. They are available at Electric Dreams and INASLOT.

The rear axle snapped right in. Now the issue is what's the best way to install the front axle since it goes through hoops on the chassis. To do this I'd have to pop a wheel off the existing axle to remove it and then take one off the new axle to install it. OR, would it be better to cut the hoops on the chassis and re-glue them afterwards? Suggestions?

[Brad_T]

I've never had an issue removing and reinstalling a front wheel, just twist as you are pulling it off. There is no need to glue the fronts back on, the friction fit will be fine.
If you have a tire truer that will accept an assembled axle you may want to true the front tires before removing the bushings.

[Wobble]

X2 ... and because the Pioneer axles are plain their wheels won't be a problem to fit. No need to cut the chassis.