Magnum 500 Wheel Shopping

[Machspeed 219]

I’m in the market for a set of Magnum 500 wheels, 15x8 rear and 15x7 front. Surfing the web, I get a lot of mixed reviews on different wheel manufacturers….i.e. chrome sucks, wheels don’t run true, can’t balance, etc. Most of this comes from older posts, so I don’t know if anything has changed in regards to the quality of these wheels over the years. I read last night on the web that Coker Tire bought out all manufactures and now are the sole originator of these wheels. From their website, they state that their wheels are made in California with triple plate chrome.  They also state there are others that manufacture the Magnum 500 wheel, which debunks the earlier statement that only Coker provides this wheel.  Here’s a cut and paste from their website:   “These Magnum 500 wheels are manufactured by Specialty Wheel right here in the USA. There are other Magnum 500 wheels for sale built elsewhere in the world, but these premium wheels are built in California using modern tooling and high strength steel. They feature a great warranty for trueness, roundness and chrome quality. Each wheel is treated to a triple chrome-plating process. The lug wells are painted with high quality black paint.” All this said, can anyone who has bought a set of Magnums recently attest to the quality of their wheels? Also, whom did you purchase your wheels from and would you do it again?

Along similar lines, I have also been looking at Legendary Wheel Co.’s  Magnum 500 Alloy Wheel. Their wheel is a machined one piece all aluminum wheel and from what little I can find on them, they appear to have good reviews. I desire a wheel exact to the Magnum 500 in shape, which I think these are but I can’t tell from pictures how bright metal is. I would want a polished look that comes close to chrome. Also wondering what the durability is of these aluminum wheels. I’ve seen aluminum wheels go to crap over time, like those on my kid’s Hondas. Can anyone advise on these wheels?

Thanks,

John

 

 

[69ShelbyGT350H 61]

Drake Automotive Group / Legendary Wheels makes the Magnum 500 alloy wheel in 15", 16" and 17" sizes. I've heard they are not made in the USA though. I'd imagine if you kept them up, regular cleanings, polishings, you can keep them shiny and new looking for a long time. I've been waiting to see what their 17" 69 Shelby rims look like for a while now myself.

 

https://www.legendarywheel.com/magnum-500

[moodster 55]

I purchased two 15x10s from summit racing less than a year ago and they are great.  About three years ago I bought four 15x7's from Mustangs Unlimited and had no problem with those either.  The chrome is great and they balanced fine.

david

[69ShelbyGT350H 61]

9 minutes ago, moodster said:

I purchased two 15x10s from summit racing less than a year ago and they are great.  About three years ago I bought four 15x7's from Mustangs Unlimited and had no problem with those either.  The chrome is great and they balanced fine.

david

 

Do you know the brand/manufacturer of these two sets of rims?

[Rsanter 152]

I have bought rims from Coker and have had no issues with them.

 

what I did was have the tire shop spin the rims to verify true before pushing tires on them. You could also ask them to check for balance. They don’t have to be perfect but need to be close.

if the rims are true and the balance is decent then you should be good. If there are balance issues from there then it’s the tire not the rim

[Bob & Sue 110]

Cragar makes a nice made in the USA wheel goto the Vintage Style 2 different wheels 510 Magnum & 32 Keystone. The quality of Cragar is 2nd to none I have some SS wheels dated 1971 that still look new. They are warrantied for life for any structural failure for life. 

https://www.cragarwheel.com/wheels

https://www.cragarwheel.com/#!visualizer&year=1969&make=Ford&model=Mustang&submodel=1135&go=1&body=1&tab=wheels&page=1&color=7927&wheel=5001&wheelimage=15844

[stangs-R-me 120]

I've got the Legendary Wheel GT9's which I mounted on my car in October.   They are replicas of the 1969 Shelby wheel, are 15x7" size, have a natural center, and polished rim.   The center is clear-coated and I'm assuming the rim is too.   The polished rim is nice and shiny, not quite like chrome plating, but likely as close as you can get with clear coated aluminum.

I was tempted to go with their Magnum 500's but wanted something a little different.

They are made in CHINA, but quality is very high.   As far as how well are they going to hold up over time, we'll just have to wait and see ... only got a few weeks of driving in before putting car away for the winter.

They balanced just fine and are lighter than a steel wheel would be ... with 225/60-15 BFG Tires, they ended up being 1.14 lbs. lighter per corner than my OE 14x6 steel GT wheels and 225/70-14 tires.   Had I gone from an equiv. 15x7" wheel, I'm sure the weight difference would have been more.

Here is the thread I started on these wheels with plenty of pics ...

 

If you do decide to go with Legendary Magnum 500's, you should seriously consider going with the 16x8" size and either 225/55-16 or 245/50-16 tires.   Lots of real performance tire choices in these sizes (vs. basically NONE in 15") and a decent side wall height ... 4.87" or 4.82" ... that (I think) looks good on a classic car.   Check out the '70 B-302 on the Legendary Wheel site with the 16's ... https://www.legendarywheel.com/gallery ... IIRC, these are the satin rim with satin black center versions.

 

Doug

[larryc94 38]

Your right about Coker buying Wheel Vintique and Specialty.  Last year I replaced my 28 yr old Specialty Mag 500's, I got the Wheel Vintique mag 500's from CJ's with new tires mounted and balanced.  They ride good and are smooth to 95-100 mph.

 

I also looked at the aluminum version and the features and shine are different. I know I wouldn't be happy because they just don't look right. I know everybody has the chrome mag 500 but it is a great looking wheel IMHO.

Also I'm not a fan of the "wagon wheel look" on a classic, I have to see some tire.  I have 235/60-15 all around and my car is lowered so the wheels are "tucked"

 

[Machspeed 219]

Lots of good information here, thank you fellas! I wished I could see some of these wheels before purchase.  Both the recommended Cragars and the Legendary wheels interest me. However, I don't think the aluminium look will please me on the Legendary wheels. Still looking at the Cragars though. Larry, you and I share the same sentiments on these wheels, as we both like the classic look. I may just call Coker and see what's up with their Magnums wheels these days.

[shelbyshelby 52]

Larryc94, with 235/60-15, is rubbing an issue front or back? Do you remember the the back space and the rim size, 15x7?

[Shep69 149]

Machspeed , 

I have the wheel vintiques magnums. Pretty average. Go with someone else in my opinion. 

I do like the cragars . Im thinking about getting those for my 56 F100.

[Bob & Sue 110]

13 hours ago, Machspeed said:

Lots of good information here, thank you fellas! I wished I could see some of these wheels before purchase.  Both the recommended Cragars and the Legendary wheels interest me. However, I don't think the aluminium look will please me on the Legendary wheels. Still looking at the Cragars though. Larry, you and I share the same sentiments on these wheels, as we both like the classic look. I may just call Coker and see what's up with their Magnums wheels these days.

Any chance you have a speed shop near you or car clubs maybe someone has the Cragars mounted you could look at maybe even Discount Tires or a large wheel distributor. Give Cragar a call they may be able to locate someone local.

I'm kinda prejudice towards Cragar they supplied all the wheels on our race cars, tow rigs & trailers after plenty of abuse & 100,000's of miles never had a failure with any of their wheels plus free wheels as long as our cars & trailers had large Cragar lettering. Did have a few destroyed flipping funny cars at 200 mph.

I liked their 500 style the wife liked the Vintage SS Chrome style so that's what we have. 

[Machspeed 219]

Hey Bob, Thanks! I may check with my local Discount tire on these. Have you seen these Cragar Magnums up close and in person? According to their website, they are 2 piece composite Aluminum center with a steel rim. Wondering how that's all melded together. The center section looks good and the spokes appear to look like the chrome rim. Wondering too, if the Mustang center caps will fit. 

John 

 

[moodster 55]

The Cragar spokes look flat to me... not quite as deep as the all steel magnum 500s... but I could be wrong.  Aluminum centers are often riveted to the steel exteriors.

david

[Machspeed 219]

13 hours ago, Shep69 said:

Machspeed , 

I have the wheel vintiques magnums. Pretty average. Go with someone else in my opinion. 

I do like the cragars . Im thinking about getting those for my 56 F100.

Thanks, Shep! 

[larryc94 38]

22 hours ago, shelbyshelby said:

Larryc94, with 235/60-15, is rubbing an issue front or back? Do you remember the the back space and the rim size, 15x7?

They are 15x7 and 4.25 BS.   I have a bit of unusual set up, the front springs are "620's" for a 65-66 which are 1" lower than a 67-70 spring.  So 1" shorter  because 65-66+ 1" shorter because 620's are 1" lower+2" lower.  Guy's usually end up cutting the 67-70 spring because it's to high, with setup no need to cut springs and springs works as designed.  Use 3/4 poly spacer on top spring to tower.  If I used 1/4"poly spacer the springs became loose when jacked up or put on a lift.  The 3/4" keeps spring in place.

 

  Springs are not cut and have roller perches, it sit's as low as it can with out effecting ride or bottoming out.  It rides really well can take speed bumps at like 5-10 mph.  fenders not rolled and and no hint of rubbing.  The tires front and rear are tucked

 

Have the Shelby drop with  -0.75* camber and  3.2* caster

 

Rear have SD 4.5 mid eye with 1" blocks.  The back only has  about 3" clearance between rear and bumper.  The back will hit the stop on good dip but not touching 1/4 or wheelhouse

[Machspeed 219]

Beautiful car, Larry!

[larryc94 38]

Thanks

[shelbyshelby 52]

Thanks for the info larryc. Your car is gorgeous. Mine isn’t road worthy yet, looking for a usable door so I can paint it. Anyway, I may copy your wheel / tire / spring combo, you nailed sir :)

[Mach1 Driver 560]

I agree that's a beautiful car Larry, with a perfect ride height.  I reviewed the CJPony video about the 4.5 Scott Drake mid eyes. He says they are intended for light duty use on 64.5 to 66 six cylinder cars, or on V8s for a softer ride. I'm just wondering if you get  wheel hop? Of course we need to know more about your drive train also- are you making good HP or is it more of a cruiser?

My Mach is currently completely stock and only a 351w 2V, but it lights up the tires and hops all over the place in second gear. I intend to improve the HP considerably and will need to stiffen-up my rear springs. Your help is greatly appreciated. 

[Bob & Sue 110]

19 hours ago, Machspeed said:

Hey Bob, Thanks! I may check with my local Discount tire on these. Have you seen these Cragar Magnums up close and in person? According to their website, they are 2 piece composite Aluminum center with a steel rim. Wondering how that's all melded together. The center section looks good and the spokes appear to look like the chrome rim. Wondering too, if the Mustang center caps will fit. 

John 

 

I have seen them mounted on a 68 but not off the car where I could see how they're manufactured. The chrome plating is excellent up close. All the Cragars I've owned the center cap has a round plate going through a machined bore that bolts to the cap. I doubt the Mustang centers will fit but there's always a way to machine them to fit

Tooooo many choices out there.. 

[Machspeed 219]

2 hours ago, Bob & Sue said:

I have seen them mounted on a 68 but not off the car where I could see how they're manufactured. The chrome plating is excellent up close. All the Cragars I've owned the center cap has a round plate going through a machined bore that bolts to the cap. I doubt the Mustang centers will fit but there's always a way to machine them to fit

Tooooo many choices out there.. 

Bob, I've looked at the Cragar Magnums in some other online pictures and agree with moodster's comment about them looking too flat and not quite right in the spoke area. I just love the dang Magnums and don't want to deviate any from them. I'm thinking more and more now on just getting a set of Specialty Wheel Magnums direct from Coker tire. Gonna have to negotiate their shipping, as I loaded up a cart to see what I'd be looking at and the shipping was $340....ouch!   

[stangs-R-me 120]

3 minutes ago, Machspeed said:

I'm thinking more and more now on just getting a set of Specialty Wheel Magnums direct from Coker tire. Gonna have to negotiate their shipping, as I loaded up a cart to see what I'd be looking at and the shipping was $340....ouch!   

Buy Coker through Summit or Jegs and get FREE SHIPPING.   Both list their Magnums as Wheel Vintiques brand, but since they are part of Coker, I'd guess you would be getting the exact same wheel no matter who you buy from. 

I bought Coker branded BFG Radial T/A's from Jegs this past fall and price was the same on both sites ... just free shipping on Jegs and some insane shipping cost as you found on Coker.

Doug 

[Machspeed 219]

8 minutes ago, stangs-R-me said:

Buy Coker through Summit or Jegs and get FREE SHIPPING.   Both list their Magnums as Wheel Vintiques brand, but since they are part of Coker, I'd guess you would be getting the exact same wheel no matter who you buy from. 

I bought Coker branded BFG Radial T/A's from Jegs this past fall and price was the same on both sites ... just free shipping on Jegs and some insane shipping cost as you found on Coker.

Doug 

Thanks Doug! I thought about that. Also thought about acquiring them through CJ, but my concern is getting some old stock Wheel Vintiques which from what I've read are not the same quality as the Specialty Wheel. Lots of mixed reviews on both wheels but many more issues with the Wheel Vintiques. 

[Bob & Sue 110]

Someone is either selling a cheaper wheel ie Jegs, Summit to make any profit or making up for it somehow. $340 shipping is what it costs calculate it with the UPS calculator.

Good luck hope you find what you want.