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Lug centric v hub centric wheels

b56tc

Newbie
Joined
Jul 21, 2006
Messages
35
So I was quite excited that the 17" NV305s finally made it off the cargo ship after 3 months and made it to Discount Tire - but they are beveled on the inside of the center bore such that a hub spacer doesn't fit right. In other words they are hanging off the lug bolts and not off the center hub which seems to be suboptimal.

Are there 17" hub centric wheels out there; if no what are you all doing so they're not hanging off the lugs?
 

DirtDonk

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Nov 3, 2003
Messages
47,355
Your hubcentric versus lug centric argument is as much or more vehicle specific as it is wheel specific.
Broncos are lug centric. If you can find a wheel that fits perfectly over a four-wheel-drive hub that is completely different in the front than it is in the rear then more power to you. Hopefully the style of the wheel will be acceptable though.
But because of that difference, if you find one that is hubcentric for the front it won't be at the rear. Opposite of that if it's hubcentric for the rear it won't even fit over the front hub.

Of course I say all that and I have to admit I've never actually measured the axle register on the rear of our rigs. But with all the different brands of axles available to us, and many having been swapped in over the years, I'm not sure they are all the same either.

I may be off base with all that, but that's my initial impression.
 

DirtDonk

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I should've asked first, what do you mean by a hub spacer?
 
OP
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B

b56tc

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Jul 21, 2006
Messages
35
That's really helpful as I hadn't considered if it fits the front it won't the back.
By hub spacer I mean essentially the piece that fits over the hub to fill the space between it and the wheel, with a lip that fits on the inside of the wheel. Which doesn't work w these Methods as they are beveled on the inside of the center bore.

I sense I'm chasing an insolvable problem and I guess am looking for some reassurance that lug centric/no spacer is ok and a common practice with no ill effects on these trucks
 

DirtDonk

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While there probably were hubcentric wheels back in the day, it's more of a modern thing. All broncos, pickups, blazers, Jeep's, and most other cars I can think of ran lug centric wheels all those years.

Properly torqued and maintain wheels of this type are perfectly safe.
 

DirtDonk

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In fact I'd be curious to know which older vehicles were specifically hubcentric.
 

jamesroney

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Sep 11, 2007
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Fremont, CA
Hey Paul, 100% agree. Also, when I used to re-pattern big spindle 6 lug GM hubs to 5x5.5 I can tell you that the hub OD is nowhere near concentric to anything. Those things are all over the place. Since the rotor is mounted inboard of the wheel flange, the hub doesn't need to be round.

Modern cars use hub centric wheels now because the OEM's have captured the wheel market. There is no longer a standard wheel. I miss the old days where you had a 1/2 ton wheel, a 3/4 ton wheel, and a Budd standard 1 ton wheel. Any Ford, Dodge, IH, Jeep Studebaker, or trailer could share wheels. One lug pattern, one standard offset. But GM had to have 6 lugs...

Fast Forward to 2020...and nothing fits anything. There's Ford's infamous 3/4 ton 7 lug wheel, and now the F350 is an F250 with a lift block. Ford has 8 on 170mm, GM has the 8x180mm. I have to carry multiple spare tires for my trailer, and I can't share tires with other guys on the trail.

Rant is over. (Don't even get me started on common headlignts...)
 

DirtDonk

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But GM had to have 6 lugs...

And oddly enough it was always the GM six luggers that turned up with the broken studs. Especially with aftermarket wheels.
I guess even with the extra stud those little 7/16 sized things just weren't strong enough when things started to come loose, or you added bigger tires, or a lot more torque to the engine.
Then again, for all I know all the broken ones had simply been compromised previously by overexuberant tire installers with strong impact wrenches.
 

Apogee

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Nov 26, 2005
Messages
6,033
FWIW, I'm working on machining some aluminum hub-centric rings for my EB, not so much due to runout issue (which I don't have in a lug-centric configuration), but rather to aid in installing the wheels. I'm running a Ø17" Allied Monster beadlock with a 37" tire, and it's just plain heavy, making it a PITA to get lined up on the studs. By installing a pilot register that engages the center bore of the wheel prior to engaging the wheel studs, it allows me to get the wheel up and into place on the register, and then clock it and push it over the studs. Done. Now if only I had time to work on my EB...
 

Broncobowsher

Total hack
Joined
Jun 4, 2002
Messages
34,835
Really sucks with the old school shank style lugnuts. non-tapered seat with washer. Trying to hold the tire just right to get one started. When the wheel was as thick as the studs were long. The second one was still a pain even when you could pivot off the first. And leave them all loose until they are all started. Fighting that in the 80's.
 
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