Month: May 2024

After a couple failed attempts in having my rim repaired by a company located in Sacramento I decided to ask around and find another service.

Through a common friend I was able to hookup with “Tony” a race car fabricator located at Jamestown, California. This is about 45 minutes from my location higher up the hills.

The previous TIG service tried to do the repair using MIG and did not prepare the rim correctly. The cracked areas required a bevel that allows TIG material to penetrate the material and adhere to the rim correctly. These beveled techniques are performed on both sides of the rim.

The completed TIG welded cracks are left with the excess and not grind down flush for additional strength.

The original tire size for the front measured at 255/30/22. This combination of specifics was a disaster for pothole damage. The replacement tire measurements were selected to increase the sidewall.

The gap between the rim edge and tire is significant compared to the new replacement tire which sit flush wiping the rim.

The new replacement tire size is 245x35x22. This will increase the sidewall by approximately 0.5”. This translates to more rubber between the rims lip and the asphalt.

The difference in the backside is huge. The front face of the wheel tire fitment has also improved.

More photos of the new tire installed 245/35/22.

As the after photos show, the tire seats on the rim lip much tighter. The overall look is more appealing and seems to be the correct size for the tire and rim combination.

EDIT: after riding on the new set of tires for at least 300 plus miles I can tell the difference 0.5” makes. I no longer feel every pebble or rock on the road I run over. The ride is noticeably smoother.

On our way to another show we went over a set of railroad tracks. I thought I was going over the tracks at a slow speed. I guess not, we hit it hard and the tire developed a “bubble”. At least at the time it looked like a bubble.

What it really turned out to be was the tire coming out of the lip of the rim a bit. Not enough to lose air but definitely deforming the sidewall.

I took it to the local tire repair shop again.

The 255/30/22 size is like a freakin’ rubber band on the rim. I had it replaced with the same size since it was readily available. I will be changing the tire dimensions in the near future to 245/35/22. This will give a little more sidewall between the rim and asphalt.