Just reading "New(?) wheels on my Vette" thread and that term "Period Correct" came up.

Are the fronts period correct for C2 vette street or strip car?

While at 1st I thought they were and rears weren't, after doing a little research I'd have to say the rears are Period correct while the fronts aren't IMHO, from what I remember about aftermarket wheels on street cars. I'd call them a mismatch of two periods.

Now the C2 in questions has B/MP on side of it, which would mean car was used for drag racing or a Pro Street look car. By 60s most of the street cars with after market wheels where using American/Western style Mag wheels which my memory seems to be backed up by second article about what wheels and tires you should use on Retro rods.

They are knockoff Halibrand Sprint style mag wheels that first appeared in mid 40's.



Part of Hemmings News Story

Sand-cast, and usually alloyed with aluminum and zinc, the first Halibrand magnesium wheels appeared in 1946, initially offered to customers in 18-inch diameters for championship race cars. Halibrands would be mounted on the car that won the 1946 Indianapolis 500, the Thorne Engineering Special driven by George Robson, and on every succeeding winner though 1963. Until the Halibrand's widespread adoption, the nearly universal wheel at Indy was a comparatively weak double-laced steel wire rim. The most immediately recognizable Halibrand wheel was the Sprint, known vernacularly as the "Big Window" wheel for the large, kidney-shaped cooling slots in between its structural ribs. Halibrand would also make major inroads as a wheel supplier for hot rodders, in drag racing and on the Bonneville Salt Flats, where its near-indestructibility and relative lack of mass made it all but mandatory. They were also specified for the original Shelby Cobras, the Ford GT-40, and numerous Can-Am sports racers. Briggs Cunningham used Halibrands almost exclusively on his Le Mans racers.

Article from Hot Rods website.

Whatever era of car you're building, once you have picked a theme for it, it's important to stay within that time frame. For example, a '50s car would have had a generator, not an alternator. To do it right, you're going to have to use bias-ply tires instead of radials. If you're building a car with a '50s or '60s (or even a '70s) theme, you'll want to avoid using parts like small block Chevy center-bolt valve covers, or any other parts that weren't available at the time. Hence the term "period correct". It's easy to miss the point in the eyes of purists. You have to stay with the theme.

More than any other parts on a hot rod, it's the wheels that set the theme for the car. Here's a brief overview of some of the wheels that have been popular on hot rods over the years.

Going all the way back to the birth of hot rodding and oval track racing in the 1920s, most hot rods were early Fords that used early Ford steel wheels that were stock or modified. By the early '50s, Ted Halibrand's magnesium wheels became the standard choice on Indy cars, sprint cars, and midget racers. Some, but not many, of his wheels were also run on the street. Chrome steel wheels and spun aluminum Moon discs were introduced later in the 1950s.

In the early '60s, the magnesium Halibrand Sprint provided the inspiration for the aluminum Ansen Sprint, which looked similar to the magnesium Halibrand but with a fully-machined face that eliminated the raised lips around the slots. The early '60s also saw the introduction of the aluminum American Racing Torq-Thrust five-spoke, and the Cragar S/S composite steel and aluminum five-spoke. In the mid-'60s, these were followed by the American Racing Torq-Thrust "D" for new '65 Corvettes with disc brakes. The late '60s saw the introduction of the E-T III.

Picture of some of the racing and street wheels of the 60s can be seen on url below, along with wheel history.

http://www.roadsters.com/wheels/

While doing research I also ran into Hot Rod vs Street Rod. Brought to mind the battle I see on this site about not using "Period Correct wheels" on some of the Resto-Rods built by members here.



Should a Resto-Rod build to either a Pro-Street or Pro-Touring style even think about using them?

While Pro-Street car to me is trying to maintain RETRO LOOK with it's body mods and engine/drivetrain mods RETRO style racing wheels can add to that look but so can some of the new style wheels.

When it comes to a Pro-Touring Resto-Mod car I'm more at odds with using Retro style wheels even if the car in question is a Mid Year vette that will have few if any body mods done to it, but the chassis/drive train can be totally upgraded.

Along with the chassis.drivetrain upgrades why do some think that you just have to use period correct wheels? Why are late model style wheels put down as taking away from the look of a C2 or even a C1 Restodrive-traindrive train-mod. Resto means upgraded to more modern standards, so why shouldn't the wheels be changed to match?

I can tell you this, if I walk up on a bunch of C2 vettes the ones I'm drawn to first are the ones that don't have "Period correct Wheels". If I can see that they have big brake rotors due to wheel design, I'm going over to check it out to see what else the owner may have done to it. But I'm also the type that would walk by a big block C2 if I saw a SB C2 with Fuelie emblems on the fenders.

I'm a beliver in do/use what you like and the effect/look you want to achieve.

A Resto-Rod Vette to me is like the definition of a Street Rod build vs a Hot Rod, built to try and achieve Original or Retro Look.

This would be a Resto redesign of a Original Halibrand Kidney Bean wheel to me.

Would it pass for you purist as close enough for the coveted "Period Correct Look" for a Resto-mod Pro Touring build? I'm trying to try and please all on this build:*****:



Below is rendering of 64 with Billet Specilaties Bonneville Halibrand kidney bean style wheels that were call period correct for comparison.