While working on an article for Sports Car Market Magazine on wire wheels for
British cars, I had occasion to talk to Alan Hendrix (Hendrix Wire Wheel),
Kelvin Dodds (Moss), Jim Judd (BWW), and Derek Caldwell of Dayton Wire Wheel.
One conclusion I came to was that there seems to be some confusion about
Dayton Wire Wheels and whether they should be run tubeless with tubeless tires.
There were several statements made regarding how dependable they would be,
which
were to some extent contradictory of one another.
Here's the info I got directly from Dayton Wire Wheel: Dayton wheels are
engineered to be run without tubes using tubeless tires. The spokes are
unchromed
polished stainless, and are trued using a process they have developed, called
PermaTrue, which they guarantee won't lose its trueness unless the wheel is
damaged, so that the spokes never need to be trued again. The spokes are then
sealed so that the wheel will retain air. The flanges on the rim are designed
to
properly mate with the tires to keep a tight seal.
The process is DOT certified, as well as being certified to meet Euro
standards on the wheels that are sold in Europe. Because of the safety
liability
involved, I'm inclined to believe their rep's claims, since he knew he was
speaking on the record to a journalist.
Since I wasn't able to speak to any representatives of the English company
that owns the rights to Dunlop's patterns and brand, and has their wheels
manufactured in India, I can't verify or contradict claims that their wheels
are
equally reliable, though I'm told by Kelvin that they haven't had any
complaints
of broken spokes on their Dunlop chrome wheels, nor is there any problem in
running them without tubes. (It should be noted that the Dunlop painted wheels
are not sealed for tubeless use, and I don't believe they're recommended for
that use.
And that's what I have been told.
Cheers
Gary
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