THE PORTAL HUB - Pinzgauers, Haflingers, Volvo 303s and more!

I've been talking with a wheel manufacturer about their providing 8"X16" wheels for the Pinz. An additional feature would be a small hole that could provide access for brake cleaning after serious mud encounters.

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If they can provide something that's cost effective and designed to fit correctly with no damage to whel bearings or drive train components, would that be something you would be interested in purchasing?

YES

Perhaps I am an lacking "puter skills,can't pull up image.

Tex,

Another nice feature could be hub-centric balancing, if so designed. That way you could balance 'em without the adaptor.

Have you got any read on pricing yet (recognizing that that's probably dependant on demand!)?

And by the way, thanks for pursuing another avenue for others.


Mike,

FWIW, on mine, the pics suddenly popped up, somewhat after I expected them to...???

Mike (and everyone else) - this is not some project I'm pursuing personally. I've simply approached a major firm (where I have a relationship) suggesting there may be demand for this item.

I won't be selling them, I'm just helping to identify a niche. Everything about the wheel design and its functionality is being directly my Thilo Kass. Everyone has their favorite Pinz expert and I guess he's mine. This is something we've discussed in the past so we'll see if this wheel manufacturer steps up or doesn't.

I'll keep everyone posted.

David

David,

Sorry. My comments were based on your initial post. My thanks apply equally to Thilo, of course.

I have no problems with Thilo being involved in the design. He's got a sound reputation, however I've never dealt with him personally.

But regardless of who's selling 'em, I can only speak for myself in that my interest in purchasing such wheels would pretty much depend on who's definition of "cost effective" is used. I was just curious if there had been any price range in mind. (For those of us with 712s, the expense of 7 wheels is potentially pretty substantial.)

$100 bucks each? Yeah, I'd likely bite. $200+ would be less likely.

Good luck, and hope this helps.

undysworld wrote:
$100 bucks each? Yeah, I'd likely bite. $200+ would be less likely.

Good luck, and hope this helps.

Sounds like a great idea and price range as well.... looking forward to whoever sells them...

Just be cautious about drilling holes in the wheels.

From time to time over the years I have posted pictures of wheels that have had holes drilled in them for exactly that same purpose and ALL have cracked over time.
The Australian Pinzgauer importer did that same thing on his demonstrator vehicle which I later purchased and I had to repair all 7 wheels.
The stresses and strains on Pinzgauer wheels can be very strange given the suspension setup on the vehicle and radial cracks eminating from the holes can be difficult (and labour intensive/costly) to repair.

As the professor noted, with the possible problem of stress on the rim is it really that difficult to remove the wheel to adjust the brakes? ...and is it worth the problem down the line? I ask this because having listened to this forum for some time it is apparent that the design of this machine has been well thought out and taking short cuts is problematic.