Ok here is the story... well MY story.
Sidecar on motorbike...chows a normal bike tyre and at R 3000.00 a shot it is not the way to go.
Then the search was on to find a 17 inch NARROW tyre to fit on my rim.
Shit not in Zuma heaven.
Overseas you can get them plenty, but try and bring it in is also too expensive.
What happens if one of these imported tyres must be replaced... yes import some more at a price.
So the decision was made to go VW Beetle tyres. 165 / 80 / 15. Still available here in our beloved country.
Then it was on to find somebody to MAKE a custom wheel or 4 for me.
Shit it is difficult to get anything like this done locally at an affordable price.
Thought the VW Beetle rims were going to work, but the hub is too big.
Then it was a mission to find some company to make a rim, but with all the cheap Chinese imports, all the local rim manufactures closed shop.
The chaps still making rims are the truck boys and some smaller outfits doing rims for slow moving earth moving equipment.
They will not attempt it because they cannot balance the rim and at bike speeds it will shake everything apart they say.
Eventually I got hold of a guy that gave me a lead.... Phoned the chaps at De Villiers Bande in 658 Pres. Steyn Str Pretoria North. ow one 2 54 six 4469
Spoke to Renier over there and he can and will make me a rim.
Also found a chap that does a lot of work for the Veteran Car chaps and he will make the new hub from a solid ALU billet.
This wooden hub is the sample to get the centerline flange in the correct position.
Designed my new rim inner part and that will be lasercut next week.
Then my friend Draad will send me some VW Beetle rims from Durban and when I have all the parts I will go to Pretoria where Reier will cut out the old VW Beetle inners and weld my new inners onto the rims.
So ja die nie 'n donderse ossewa nie.
