Dumb Hub Centric Ring Question

[aroundomaha]

I plan to swap wheels/tires for monthly events. Is it better to get aluminum hub centric rings rather than polycarbonate rings?

Is there any difference between them for reuse when swapping between stock (Austins) and my RPF1s?

My concern is having plastic ones melt or having aluminum ones weld themselves in place.

 

[Faceman]

Apply a generous amount of anti-seize to the hubs and the metal ones will not weld themselves to your car.

 

[aroundomaha]

Apply a generous amount of anti-seize to the hubs and the metal ones will not weld themselves to your car.

Thanks. That's what I'll go with!

 

[jimlloyd40]

I've had the plastic ones for 60,000 miles and they haven't melted.

 

[aroundomaha]

I've had the plastic ones for 60,000 miles and they haven't melted.

Do you swap wheels pretty regularly?

 

[jimlloyd40]

Do you swap wheels pretty regularly?

Rotate and balance every 5000 miles.

 

[aroundomaha]

Rotate and balance every 5000 miles.

Cool that helps. Sounds like either way will work, especially since autox isn't as extreme as track.

 

[RacingManiac]

I used plastic ones the entire time too, only time I had metal ones are the ones Tire Rack installed on the wheels and they pretty much stayed with the wheels. I'd more worry about the aluminum one getting stuck to the hub overtime, probably less of an issue if you remove them frequently and inspect and reapply anti-seize as needed.

I replace my plastic ones maybe once every couple years.

 

[GTIfan99]

I have aluminum ones, but my wheels are off the car 2 to 3 times a month, so not an issue. For long term use on a street car, I'd use plastic. I tried plastic on my old non-PP car and the heat from track use melted the center cap and plastic hub ring.

It comes down to use case.

 

[MeltedSolid]

I have plastic ones that are aging a bit (came with my wheels, and were used on a dedicated track car), and most of them have started to crumble. Almost all of them are cracked or split in some way, and they still need anti-seize. Personally aluminum makes more sense to me so you don't need to replace them over time.

 

[jmblur]

I have plastic ones that are aging a bit (came with my wheels, and were used on a dedicated track car), and most of them have started to crumble. Almost all of them are cracked or split in some way, and they still need anti-seize. Personally aluminum makes more sense to me so you don't need to replace them over time.

Plastic doesn't need antiseize, full stop. It's actually possible the antiseize actually caused stress corrosion cracking, which would explain the crumbling/cracking PC spacers (polycarbonate is VERY sensitive to many chemicals). Or you hit em with brakekleen at some point...

 

[Faceman]

I have plastic ones that are aging a bit (came with my wheels, and were used on a dedicated track car), and most of them have started to crumble. Almost all of them are cracked or split in some way, and they still need anti-seize. Personally aluminum makes more sense to me so you don't need to replace them over time.

Metal made more sense to me, until I was in my driveway, in the dark, with a mallet and chisel, trying to remove a metal ring that wouldn't budge. I ended up using a very large flathead screwdriver, prying it between the ring and hub, and twisting it to release the ring. Not fun when you have an early snow storm coming and summer wheels/tires are still on the car, lol.

 

[GTIfan99]

Metal made more sense to me, until I was in my driveway, in the dark, with a mallet and chisel, trying to remove a metal ring that wouldn't budge. I ended up using a very large flathead screwdriver, prying it between the ring and hub, and twisting it to release the ring. Not fun when you have an early snow storm coming and summer wheels/tires are still on the car, lol.

Metal is a bad idea for a DD. Metal is the right answer for people that track/autocross and wheels are swapped often.

 

[MeltedSolid]

Plastic doesn't need antiseize, full stop. It's actually possible the antiseize actually caused stress corrosion cracking, which would explain the crumbling/cracking PC spacers (polycarbonate is VERY sensitive to many chemicals). Or you hit em with brakekleen at some point...

I never used anti-seize, but they still stuck to my wheel hub so bad I needed to break them off with a chisel and hammer after soaking them in WD40 (in a very similar situation to Faceman). Maybe anti-seize is a bad idea for other reasons, so never mind on that, but just because they're plastic won't prevent them from sticking to your hub.