rlewi771

So I finally settled on some wheels, ordered them up and got them put on the car. I've been racking my brain for a long long time on what wheels to run.. Corvette wheels with adapters, CTW's, CCW's etc etc... Well I finally decided on the Weld RTS. It's a one piece forged aluminum wheel with lots of options in sizes. While not a completely custom built to your specs like HRE's and the likes, they come in at about half the price of some of the others. My car is primarily a track car so strength, lightness, and width were all of the major factors in my choice. I was surprised and very happy to find that the new larger diameter, wider wheels with tires came in at the exact same weight as my stock iroc wheels and 245-50-16's. So I get the benefit of 50mm of extra section width, and no weight penalty...gotta love that. The tires i'm running are 295-30-18 Hoosier R6's. I ordered the wheels in the same offset/backspace for all 4 so that I will be able to rotate them front and rear. I had to use a thin 6mm slip on spacer for the front in order to allow the backspace that fits the rear to fit the front. Motorsport-tech is right down the street from me and CNC'd a hubcentric/wheelcentric spacer that fits perfectly.

First track day is next weekend, cant wait to see what they do... now for a few pics
-Ryan

rlewi771

87350IROC

iTrader: (2)

Oh, the car looks great with those. Be sure to take some pictures outside when you get a chance.

How is the brake clearance?

John

rlewi771

TONS of clearance. 1.5'' or more.. I'll get some pics. They offer those wheels in three different pad heights, I went with the highest one just to be sure, I probably could have gotten away with the medium or even possibly low pad height. The low pad height has more straight spokes, medium pad has slightly curved, and high pad has the most curve... I actually like the look of the curved so it was win win there. Just got the car on the ground for the fist time yesterday, all is good. I'll get some more pictures outside for sure

CharcoalBird

iTrader: (4)

And have someone take some track-day pictures.

That or a video. Would love to see it in action. Wheels look great!

jbenge

iTrader: (2)

Great choice on the wheels!

drknow90rs_ss@y

iTrader: (3)

Those look great on your car. I love that you got something so wide to fit on the front. If you don't mind me asking, What offset/backspace are they? I will be having a set of forgelines made for my car and I'm really having trouble nailing down the offset/backspace for the front and rear. You don't have any trouble with rubbing, front or rear?

Bullydawg

iTrader: (7)

Those wheels look great! Lets see some pictures of it racing!

rlewi771

Thanks for the compliments everyone.

John- spoke to caliper clearance is nearly two inches

I will bring out the Go Pro and get some video, hopefully someone will be there to get some pictures of me on track. Usually there is somebody out there snappin pics.

I went with 6.6'' back space for all 4. Whether that will work for you or not i cant say for sure. I have a big brake kit up front which adds to the front track width, then I have two piece rotors which add a little more. 6.5'' seems to be the standard backspacing for stock rears for people trying to squeeze wide wheels/tires. I measured to make sure 6.6'' would work and then checked the fronts and knew it would be close but need a spacer. After receiving the wheels I just used some cheap slip on spacers i already had in order to determine what would work best on the front, then after knowing the exact diameter spacer i needed, I had a custom one made. Worked well for me...

So far no rubbing on the street. I can turn the front wheels lock to lock and dont have a rub. I've cycled the suspension through its entire range of motion and all appears to be ok. Now, out on the track with heavy cornering forces and tire growth, we will see. I assume to have some rubbing here and there but I dont think it will be enough to cut into a tire. If I were worried about rubbing issues, no way would I have put on a 295.

The 295-30-18 is only 25'' tall, which in my case is a benefit for the packaging purposes. If i'm at full bump and on the bumpstops, i'll have a little more clearance than a stock height or larger tire.

rlewi771

Here are a few pics outside. I really need a better camera than just my iphone, these pics dont do justice. I'm pretty damn happy with the look and i know i'll be happy with the performance.

rlewi771

LivinLarge

Those are my favorite multi purpose wheel out there!! Looks awesome dude

Johnny Blaze

iTrader: (15)

Car looks amazing!
Wheels look great!

Zach/90\irocZ

iTrader: (6)

I was wondering how those would look like 18x10 ish all around

neeb_usmc

iTrader: (2)

Those looks amazing. If I don't already have my wheels I'd be all over those

Lmancha96

Those look amazing!

So you didnt have to do any modification to get 10.5 I thought we couldnt fit that size?

Zach/90\irocZ

iTrader: (6)

You can if you do your homework lol

It's fairly easy I had 18x10 all around 285/35 you will love the new found handling

92z28outlaw

good job dude, that is a really nice car

paul_huryk

Good fit and looking good!

The difference will be night and day at the track with the new rollers - you might have to bring up your springs rates to keep up with all the grip you are going to have!

Enjoy!

rlewi771

Thanks, as far as spring rates I did up those as well. 1100 front, 250 rear with lowered panhard. I have a few other springs I can swap in as well to dial it in, really looking forward to seeing how it does.

Thanks all for the compliments everyone else!

DBLTKE

iTrader: (1)

Absolutely beautiful. These are on my short list of wheels that I'm considering for my own Camaro. Previously, I had only seen them on a 4th gen but now I know how badass they look on a third gen. Do you have any picture that show the fitment of the wheels and/or tire to the fender lip? Like almost facing head on.

rlewi771

I don't have any at the moment. I will get some though and put them up for you

paul_huryk

Check out this page on Chevy Hardcore - 17" size:

http://www.chevyhardcore.com/project...und-and-round/

Jim85IROC

iTrader: (2)

I really want to like these wheels, I just really wish that they used longer spokes so they don't need the double-thick hoop.

rlewi771

I completely agree. Anything smaller than an 18" just doesn't look right because of that. The 18's look acceptable to me, but any less I do not like. That is my one pet peeve with these wheels though, the double barrel. My guess is its stronger that way

Zach/90\irocZ

iTrader: (6)

i was thinking the same thing, it gives a illusion of the lip being alot larger depending on angle

i agree .. i would believe its for srength also and just how they forged the wheels , even the 20" version has it. tho it doesnt seem as dramatic as compared to the smaller size due to longer spokes

Ruckusz28

iTrader: (3)

Wow, those look great!

robertfrank

iTrader: (27)

Ok you've sold me!! where did you get these? link?

rlewi771

I bought them through Jegs. They were nearly $500 cheaper through Jegs for the set than Summit Racing...

rlewi771

Here are a few photos from this past weekend. The new wheels and tires made a tremendous difference. I unfortunately had also made a lot of suspension changes over the winter due to my drop spindle failure, so its hard to know for sure what did what, but damn does it feel great. I beat my previous personal best time by a little over 2 full seconds all while trying to figure out what tire pressures the Hoosiers like and attempting to dial in a brand new suspension setup. There is definitely more time to be had.. I brought my GoPro out but havent had a chance to check out any of the footage, once I get a chance i'll post a link..

Oh, and zero rubbing on the front tires, and I had a very slight rub on the left rear, but nothing a few whacks of a hammer and a panhard adjustment couldn't fix. Overall, it was great, no issues..

Here are a few on track pics:

BADNBLK

iTrader: (11)

WOW!!! Very sexy! Love the track pics

Johnny Blaze

iTrader: (15)

Like a Boss!!!!!!

So many "experts" and "pros" on here, not many post track pics.

What track is it? Do they gave like open time trials or are you racing in a class or something?

cosmick

Looks to me like you could make 11s fit, add it on the curb side of the wheels. If no change to tire size, you'd only move the tread outboard by 1/4". May have to limit jounce, however.

rlewi771

The track is Reno-Fernley raceway. It's a 4.2 mile road course that has multiple different configurations. This past weekend we were running a 2.2 mile config. It's an SCCA event and I run in the "Club Trials." It's a part of the SCCA's time trials. We are racing for fastest lap. During the club trials, all the different classes are out on track together and passing is limited to the straights so as not to slam each other up. Our region has a way of classing cars based on vehicle weight, engine displacement, power adders, variable valve timing etc etc and it does a pretty good job making for good competition amongst classes. This year I moved into a faster class than last year because I dropped some weight out of my car and due to that it bumped me into a faster class. Even with the jump in class, I took first place in my class for all 4 races over the weekend, and the second place E46 M3 was 5-6 seconds behind me. There is nothing more fun than disappointing car owners with far more expensive, and what should make better track cars. Most people dont pay much attention to the '86 Camaro in the pits, and then once out on track they say holy ****.

rlewi771

.

Johnny Blaze

iTrader: (15)

You are my hero!

Ant details on your drivetrain, suspension?

rlewi771

Haha. I've only raced in my Reno region, and have done well but we dont have a ton of great competition. I am looking into a truck and trailer for the near future and want to start hitting a lot more of the west coast tracks, we'll see how well I fair in larger regions..

The car weighs 3135lbs

Engine is a zz4 350. I just dyno'd it last week and it put down 292hp/350tq at the rear wheels... So nothing crazy motor-wise, but still pretty potent.
TKO600 trans
Stock 10bolt rear for now. 3.42 gears
Suspension:
Ground control weight jacks
1100in/lb springs up front
250in/lb in rear (i plan on upping both front and rear spring rates before next race)
34mm sway front
no rear sway bar
Koni yellows
Subframe connectors
6pt cage (will be re-doing it next winter to a full cage, and most likely cutting the t-tops off and welding on a hardtop)
aftermarket torque arm
rear lower control arms
rear lca lowering brackets
rear panhard bar lowered 3''
probably some other stuff i'm missing..

wilwood brakes up front
kore 3 7075 road race aluminum hubs
howe extended ball joints

oil cooler/power steering cooler. accusump. canton road race oil pan, large radiator (the necessary items to beat your car on track for 25 minutes at a time)

really nothing special, just most of the major bolt ons.

Johnny Blaze

iTrader: (15)

Small front sway bar and no rear? Is that due to the high rate of the springs?

What kind of TA and control arms? Poly or rod ends?

What rear brakes? Prop valve?

Great set up, sounds like it goes against what some say, but obviously works well!

carlos64030

iTrader: (1)

The wheel size and fitment is perfect!

Jim85IROC

iTrader: (2)

3100lbs? Wow! How did you accomplish that?

Johnny Blaze

iTrader: (15)

Looks like it has no ac or heat, no wiper motor, and I am sure a lot of other unnessicary items.

rlewi771

More or less, yes. Since ride quality isn't really of a concern to me, you can up the spring rates to control roll and end up using less sway bar. Even with lower spring rates, I've found that a rear sway bar on a solid rear just lifts the inside rear tire in corners. I've brought an array of sway bars out to the track and tested them back to back and this set up is what's currently working well for me.

Spohn Torque arm mounted on the crossmember. I think i'd like to attempt to use an Unbalance Engineering de-coupling torque arm in the future, we'll see though.

Rear LCA's are spohn adjustable with the delsphere joints on both ends. Panhard is Spohn Adjustable with Delspheres's also.

Front control arms have the global west delrin bushings.

Rear brakes are 12'' rotors. PBR calipers.

Prop valve is 1LE, I will be changing to an adjustable valve as there still isn't enough rear bite. The rear pads seem to last forever so that tells me they aren't doing a whole lot for me.

I just put Carbotech XP12 pads in the front wilwoods and good lord do those things have some initial bite. They are increadible, i'm definitely a fan of those.

rlewi771

Here is a shot of the engine bay... Everything that wasn't necessary was removed. Interior only has a driver seat and is stripped of carpet/sound deadening and most of the interior panels. Dash, and the door panels/windows are all still intact. Apparently there's about 75lbs in each door to lose by removing the glass/regulator assemblies.. I will go there eventually, but they are still in place at the moment.

Manic Z

iTrader: (1)

I see you`re running what appears to be a mechanical fuel pump with a return line.
Does it work well for you?
What part number is it?

rlewi771

No, there is actually an electric pump in the tank and that is just a Holley fuel pressure regulator down where the mechanical pump would be.

Johnny Blaze

iTrader: (15)

Looks great! Nice set up.

Thanks for the details.

I've always been intrigued by the Unbalanced decoupled TA as well.

robertfrank

iTrader: (27)

Wow...I can honestly say you have a cleaner engine bay than I did....beautiful man!!

onthedownlow

iTrader: (4)

Car looks terrific. The strut tower brace... looks like an Edelbrock one but where it bolts down to the strut towers is different. Is this the way you bought it? Or did you fabricate them?

rlewi771

Fabricated, the ones that came with the brace wouldn't fit on the towers with the Racecraft caster camber plates. And yes, it is an edelbrock brace

rlewi771

You're welcome.