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I'm wondering about aluminum wheels

Mighty.Mighty_XJ

Mighty.Mighty_XJ

NAXJA Forum User
Location
VA ... in the dark
So I got rid of the steelies when I got 33" rubber so that I can do my own tire changes (couldn't lift them). I'm pretty pleased with running the Outlaw 2 wheels, but they haven't held up well on the rocks. No, they're not bent, but even tho I have aired down as low as 8psi at times, the edges (rims) of the wheels keep getting chewed up pretty badly. Seems the metal is real soft or I suck at this. Or is that just how they roll? (pun intended, LOL )Either way, I'm afraid that soon I might not have enough rim left to hold a bead.

Does anyone else have this problem with aluminum wheels?
Mine are American Racing altho there are other brands with the same design. Is there another style/brand that will hold up better? I'd like to stick with the same style if at all possible since I also run Outlaw 2 on my ATs in the winter.
Suggestions? Pics would really help - and if you have a (cheap) set for sale I might even consider getting them ...
 
Mine do the same will upgrade to steel beadlocks eventually
 
Buy them from 4-wheel parts and get the extra warranty... you can then return them for any "defects" for life... I have that on my MT Side Bitters Rims... I have a few gouges but nothing major...

Get a bead lock type rim the outer rings are usually steel..
 
What width of wheel are you running? On a 12.5 wide tire you can run a 8 or 7 inch wide wheel that will protect the lip more than running a 10 inch wide wheel.
 
Though it is costly, you can get the rims machined for protective outer rings. If you are going to invest that much money though, you might as well get beadlocks.
 
Hooper - working on getting pics. Got a new pc & I'm still working on getting all my software set up.

Chris - I'm running 15x8 with 33x12.50. I'm looking for 13.50 rubber, so 10" wheels could be on the horizon.

jeeperjohn - I have considered protective rings. It would make more sense for me to just buy wheels with such a ring rather than getting them added. I did have the Cragar Street locks, but they were so doggone heavy, they were the last set of steelies I owned.

As far as getting rings added to the wheels I already have, I considered that, but I dunno if I have enough metal left. Can you weld steel to aluminum anyway?
 
Try sticking with the 8 inch wide wheels you have if you are going to a 13.50. It will only have that much more tire sticking out to protect the rim.

crimsondragon said:
No you can't weld aluminum to steel.
Click to expand...

According to my welding instructor, explosion welding is used to weld aluminum to steel. It's done in caves with explosives and was used to join sheets of aluminum to sheets of steel when building a large ship like an aircraft carrier (the top of the ship is aluminum and the bottom is steel).

So it can be done, but they'd probably laugh you out of the cave if you brought them your wheels.
 
^ That's the craziest thing I've ever heard.



My Al wheels are getting pretty beat up on the trail, but the lip on them is pretty thick since they are fake beadlocks.
 
i've heard of explosive welding. it's technically not welding though. it's more of a forging process. it's the extreme pressure that bonds the two different materials together.

it is cool as hell to watch. i think they talked about it once on the show modern marvels.
 
Hmm this might be a dumb question but does forged vs cast make a huge difference i seem to remember one of the 4wd mags doing a test where they ran different types of rims with no tire on the rocks and if i remember correctly the forged aluminum did Very well and the cast was the only rim too totally fail..
Ill see if i can find a link

Here ya go
http://www.4wheeloffroad.com/techarticles/wheel_performance_test_aluminum_steel_wheels/index.html

after rereading the cast was the only one to crack they did say the shop they took it to said it was repairable.. but still the only one that cracked..
 
Last edited:
Forge is always stronger than cast. If I remember correctly, in the forging process, they put pressure on the metal and forces the grain to align together and all go one way. With cast, it's pretty much just pour and forget about it and the grain is uncontrolled.
 
crimsondragon said:
No you can't weld aluminum to steel.
Click to expand...

Actually, I recently found out it can be done! I was amazed myself.

The sample piece was a bit of CRES rod butt-welded to 2024-T4 rod.

The catch? It was friction-welded. I don't know if you can find a shop that can spin an alloy wheel hard enough to get that done...

Me, I just prefer steel wheels.
 
chris_amrein said:
According to my welding instructor, explosion welding is used to weld aluminum to steel. It's done in caves with explosives and was used to join sheets of aluminum to sheets of steel when building a large ship like an aircraft carrier (the top of the ship is aluminum and the bottom is steel).
Click to expand...

Really...there are no caves here, and I work where they build aircraft carriers every day.

BTW, the top half are not aluminum. Aluminum wouldn't hold up too well to planes landing on it every few minutes. The elevators are aluminum, and many of the internal structures are aluminum, and they are all bolted or riveted in, but the hull & deck are steel...very thick and hard steel.

Have you ever seen a pic of an aircraft carrier returning from a deployment...lots of rust on that there aluminum top half.
 
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