
Introduction
Many years ago FM editor Mikelonis said something about this
hobby that I realize now was a fairly profound statement.
He was commenting how for many auto enthusiasts the motivation
and excitement about their rides fades over time, and eventually
results in the owner selling the car and buying a new project,
only to repeat the cycle again in a couple years. It is easy
to get years deep into a project car only to become frustrated
at the slow rate of progress or the lack of light at the end
of the tunnel. If you share my weakness than you likely go
through this cycle every two years - time spent wrenching
turns into hours browsing classifieds and local used car lots.
The next thing you know you have taken on a new project car
and sold off or forgotten about the old one. It's an addiction
of sorts and in the long run it can become a very expensive
habit.
This article isn't about how to cure yourself. In fact we're
not even sure this behavior needs to be cured because after
all, what would this hobby be without the anticipation and
excitement of the next project car? However, Mikelonis' sage
advise was simply that perhaps guys should buy a new set of
wheels and tires when they feel their interests in their car
wane. Women buy shoes, guys can buy wheels. A set of wheels
and tires can fully change the look, stance, and demeanor
of your car. It is a quick and relatively inexpensive way
to make a prominent and bold change to your ride every few
years. If the dragstrip look of fats out back and skinnys
up front is wearing thin perhaps you ought to shake things
up and slap on some 20" spinners. Just kidding.
To bring the story closer to home, we recently went through
a similar bout of "depression" with Project '67.
For those of you who have been following along with this project
you surely know this is the original FM project car. Most
of our projects
over the past few years (400 Horsepower 302 Buildup; 331
Stroker; High on Carbs) have obviously been focussed at under-hood
enhancements. We haven't done much to change the outward appearance
of the car. In fact, since 1994 the car has had the same Cragar
SS wheels and Cooper Cobra tires. Sure Cragars SS' have a
legitimate history and are 60's period correct, but let's
face it, they are a favorite impulse buy for new muscle car
owners desperate to rid their rides of its' stock rims. Local
speed shops love the SS for their multi-lug design, allowing
them to stock one part number yet target most of the local
Chevy, Mopar or Ford novices. We didn't know better back then,
but now we do and so it is time to step up to something more
Mustang specific.
Selecting a new set of wheels is tough considering the hundreds
of possible styles available. Do you go retro, drag, road
racer or bling-bling. Clearly the last category is out. The
road racer look is pretty sweet, but also the most pricey.
To pull off a road racer look on vintage Mustang you need
no less than a 16x8"wheel. We contemplated a set of 16"
Torq-Thrust's but eventually were not convinced that a gray/brushed
aluminum wheel would go well with our black vinyl top. Ultimately
we decided on a classic look that you simply cannot go wrong
with on any early Ford, the Magnum 500.
Custom Wheels
Magnum's are generally sold in 15x8 with a 4.5" backspacing.
On our '67 Mustang this dimension with a 245-60R15 tire on
the rear wheels would result in the fender lip cutting into
the sidewall when the suspension compressed. As a result we
wanted a 5" backspacing to move the wheel and tire slightly
inboard, and even allow a 255 wide tire in the future. Up
front we opted for a 15x7 with the standard 4.25" back
spacing. This will keep the inner tire off the ball joint,
and work well with the 215-60R15 tire we are running in the
front.
We sourced our Magnums from Specialty Wheels in Portland,
Oregon. If you recall, they produced the dozen custom Magnum
500's for Jon Hancocks' Shelby-trio
of '66 Galaxie wagon, trailer and '66 Shelby clone. In fact
if you have ever wondered where all the classic reproduction
wheels come from, now you know. Specialty also make the Mustang
"Styled-Steel" wheel, the '68-'69 GT wheel, and
the rare '67 Shelby
Magstar. (Our first choice was the Magstar, however Specialty
advised us that the riveted center is not recommended for
high horsepower applications and sticky tires.) Cougar guys
will be pleased to learn that Specialty also produces the
67-70 Cougar wheels. All the wheels are available in up to
10" widths and whatever backspacing you desire.

Backspacing
Measure backspacing from the mounting pad to the
outer edge of the wheel. We had Specialty Wheels produce
our Magnum's in 15x8" with a 5" back spacing
for the rears. The fronts are standard 15x7" with
4.25" backspacing. |

Width
Measure rim width from inside of the bead edge. We
would have liked a 10" wide wheel out back, and while
it would bolt on, a typical tire for a 10" wheel
(e.g. 275 wide) would surely rub the leaf springs or fender
on a 67-68 Mustang. The 8" and 5.5" rim will
let us go to a 255 width down the line. |

Clearance
On early Mustangs the A-arm ball joint can interfere
with the rim and tire. A 15x7" rim with 4.25"
backspacing gives 3/8" clearance as shown here. Always
bolt the rims up before mounting the tires, as most wheel
companies will not accept the rims back once they have
had tires on them. |

Balancing
Specialty Wheels suggests using a balancing machine
which holds the wheel through the lug holes, rather than
a hub-centric balancer as shown here. This is because
the center hole may not be at dead center after the welding
process. We weren't able to locate a tire shop with the
recommended machine, however we haven't noticed any balance
issues either. |

Installation
The wheels are installed and lug-nuts torqued to
100ft.lbs. |

Stance
Enough said! 
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