Any downsides to wheel spacers (15mm)?
08-16-2021, 01:31 AM
#31
Rennlist Member
Originally Posted by peterp;[url=tel:17608672
17608672[/url]]I think if the weight was distributed on the outside of the wheel, you'd feel it. Since all the weight is on the hub, you don't feel it at all (at least I don't).
08-16-2021, 01:56 PM
#32
Drifting
Thread Starter
Nobody mentioned the biggest downside of all: vibration! Crappy spacers that don’t fit perfectly and precisely can easily cause a vibration while driving. Many people have posted about this, only to have to remove and scrap their spacers altogether. Really poorly constructed spacers can break, and if you don’t use the proper bolts, your wheel could fall off, lol.
I think one (very subtle) area that could introduce vibration, even with quality spacers, is the crustiness that builds up on the brake hub face over time. The hub face will always be clean and smooth in the areas where the wheels are flush against the hub (effectively sealing those areas), but the unprotected areas surrounding the sealed areas tend to have surface rust and crust built up over many years and baked on at very high temperatures. If you don't remove the crustiness in the exposed areas of the hub, I think there is a good potential for the spacer to not seat evenly because, unlike the wheel, the spacer is a completely solid circle with no open areas.
I used a razor blade gasket remover to scrape off the unprotected areas so they were perfectly flush with the protected areas. I think this step is necessary to be certain the spacers are absolutely flat against the surface. I also use a very thin film of aluminum anti-seize on the 3 tangs that the wheel hangs on, and on the mating surface of the wheel and spacer to help everything seat properly. I could easily see spacers not seating perfectly evenly if they are simply applied over the crust on the hub face with out cleaning all of it out. It seem logical to think that the torqued down wheel will simply crush it, but I don't think this is a safe assumption because the crust doesn't have anywhere to go.
I agree with the risk if anyone tries to use the original lug bolts, even with thin spacers. For the 15mm spacers, the 15mm longer lug bolts weigh 27 grams more per lug bolt (101g to 128g), so that's another 135 grams added (in addition to the 765 grams for the spacer itself) -- but those are grams well spent
.The Venom spacers/bolts are not expensive and I am very impressed with the quality. The spacer is very well machined and made in the US (bolts are from Germany). Definitely worth researching the brand before choosing one though.
Last edited by peterp; 08-16-2021 at 06:54 PM.
The following users liked this post:
Mike Murphy (08-16-2021)
