K-O Help Needed
I am trying to take the chrome trim center off my Knock off wheels. They appear to be glued on the aluminum. Can someone explain the removal process? I don't want to damage if possible.
thanks for any help,
brian
thanks for any help,
brian
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Re: K-O Help Needed
The chrome or polished center cone should be glued to the rim with a few beads of silicone. With a little bit of pressure they should pop off. They are not riveted or screwed.
-Dave -
Re: K-O Help Needed
Brian, when I bought my '65 a year ago, I couldn't get my center caps off the KO wheels, either. I took a small screwdriver to one and ruined it. I bought a tool from one of the vintage Corvette dealers that is basically a suction cup. They work like a charm, usually.
But, I had one that was stuck on that even the tool wouldn't work. My restoration shop got it off and ground down a burr on the center cap. They recommended that I use a small amount of petroleum jelly on the outside rim of the center caps. That way, the edges don't rust inside the spinner and makes them easier to remove. -ClarkComment
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Re: K-O Help Needed
Thanks,
Clark cn you tell me where you got the suction cup tool? I have tried heating the cap up and trying gentle pressure from the base as well as the back side but don't want to damage or bend the edges.
I appreciate the feed backComment
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Re: K-O Help Needed
Brian,
If you are refering to the cone, it may be removed with no damage as follows; use a wooden dowel that will fit through the holes in the back of the wheel, cut the dowel on an angle to increase it's contact area (this will reduce the chance of damage to the cone). Now heat the front surface of the cone with a hot air gun or hand held torch. When the cone it hot, tap on the dowel with a hammer. Cone will come off with no damage.
The above assumes (and you know what that means!) that you are working on an original wheel with the original mastic adhesive. If this is not the case, all bets are off! Good luck! BillComment
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Re: K-O Help Needed
Thanks all for the help. I angle cut an old broom handle and used a heat gun on the cone as Bill suggested. 3 easy taps later the cone was removed from the wheel.The material holding the cone on seems to a burnt orange putty. I'll try to post some photos later.
Thanks again for the great suggestions. Happy Thanksgiving.Comment
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Re: K-O Help Needed
Brian -- looking forward to your pics; I assume they will show the material remaining after the cone is removed; I was going to try a difficult shot through the bolt holes on the back of my original '66s (cones never removed). I agree that it seems to be some kind of epoxy-type adhesive (maybe similar to that used to join body panels) -- at least that's my opinion from looking thru the holes.Comment
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Re: K-O Help Needed
The material is about 1.25" wide and 3mm when compressed. it appears to have been installed on the cone and then applied to the wheel. hope the photos help.Comment
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Re: K-O Help Needed
Reading the above statement, I now get the impression that you are wanting to remove the cone from the wheel, not the center cap from the spinner. The last poster clarified something that I should have done. The suction cup tool is for the center cap, inside the spinner.
If you need a tool to remove the cone from the aluminum wheel, I know of no tool for that. My cones seem to be glued on the wheels. I remember reading a post a few months ago about removing the cone from the wheel. I recall that it takes considerable, persistent effort to remove the cone.
If, indeed, you need a suction cup tool for removal of the center cap, I got mine from Zip in Virginia. It is part #TL-124 and I paid $9.50 for it.
-ClarkComment
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