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Tue Jun 26, 2012 10:44 am

I’m probly gonna get chastised for this question, but I have to ask, keep in mind I’m new to the “splitty world”… What is the big hoopla about crow’s feet and the yr stamp? Are they not all the same? I have custom wheels on my other VWs, but I was thinking about putting stock wheels on my 57 SC, it has 14” wheels now from PO. I found 2 stamped 59.. still looking for 2 more.. or is there a thread on this already? I could not find if there is.. I don’t wanna start another “Holy War” over this, I’m just asking… :roll:

Tue Jun 26, 2012 11:10 am

This is a "crows foot" rim. See where the lug bolt attaches? See how it's got a raised reinforcement that looks like a crows foot?

Tue Jun 26, 2012 11:25 am

Ahhh, I see now.... Thanks..

Tue Jun 26, 2012 3:38 pm

FYI: VW Dictionary

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/dic/

Tue Jun 26, 2012 4:09 pm

Crows Foot wheel... doesn't really matter.

Date stamp... doesn't really matter but I have done the search before because I had 4 wheels that I knew were original so I wanted a 5th one to match. Why not...

Have sold wheels to people who want the same.
Just sold a '61 wheel yesterday in fact.

Tue Jun 26, 2012 5:44 pm

EverettB wrote:
Just sold a '61 wheel yesterday in fact.

What is the going rate for a nice crows foot wheel these days?

Tue Jun 26, 2012 6:00 pm

EverettB wrote: Crows Foot wheel... doesn't really matter.

Date stamp... doesn't really matter but I have done the search before because I had 4 wheels that I knew were original so I wanted a 5th one to match. Why not...

All four date stamps on the wheels on my '59 match (month/year), as well as the spare. In the grand scheme of things, the dates don't matter as long as the wheel is proper for the vehicle and year. (Sure is nice, though, when all 5 wheels match and bear the exact same date, stamped within a month prior to the production date of the vehicle :) )

Tue Jun 26, 2012 10:38 pm

nlorntson wrote: EverettB wrote:
Just sold a '61 wheel yesterday in fact.

What is the going rate for a nice crows foot wheel these days?

I should have stated that it was not a crow's foot wheel that I sold.

Wed Jun 27, 2012 7:32 am

Thanks y'all for laying some new knowledge on me 8)

Wed Jun 27, 2012 7:44 am

EverettB wrote: nlorntson wrote: EverettB wrote:
Just sold a '61 wheel yesterday in fact.

What is the going rate for a nice crows foot wheel these days?

I should have stated that it was not a crow's foot wheel that I sold.

Thanks Everett. I'm still curious about a going rate. I've read all the posts about them, but It's not clear if they were just another manufacturers version of the wheel or are they really that special and thus demand a premium?

I'm looking for three more just so I can have a set that is all the same, but maybe a set of non- crows foot rims is equally correct for my 57?

Wed Jun 27, 2012 7:49 am

I think Crows feet wheels have more of an appeal because they are different than the other wheel manufacturers. They look cool. I've bought them for as little as $30 and have seen them for over $100 each. Price seems to be going up some. With the hub cap on, you cant tell

Wed Jun 27, 2012 7:51 am

chrisflstf wrote: I think Crows feet wheels have more of an appeal because they are different than the other wheel manufacturers. They look cool. I've bought them for as little as $30 and have seen them for over $100 each. Price seems to be going up some. With the hub cap on, you cant tell
I just bought 2 (59') for $150 shipped trying to get 3 more not too concerned about the yr stamp.. :lol:

Wed Jun 27, 2012 8:14 am

chrisflstf wrote: I think Crows feet wheels have more of an appeal because they are different than the other wheel manufacturers. They look cool.

I agree with the cool factor even though with the hubcap on you cannot tell the difference (nor the date code).

I'm torn between all crows foot but different dates or all the same dates. Right now I have the following and would be at a minimum looking for all of one style or the other in case there are any offset differences.

4/57 Crow
9/59 Crow
4/57 Non-crow
4/63 Non-crow

Maybe we need a wheel traders thread (like the engine traders thread) :)

Wed Jun 27, 2012 8:23 am

Quote: Thanks Everett. I'm still curious about a going rate. I've read all the posts about them, but It's not clear if they were just another manufacturers version of the wheel or are they really that special and thus demand a premium?

I'm looking for three more just so I can have a set that is all the same, but maybe a set of non- crows foot rims is equally correct for my 57?

Yes, my best guess is they are $50-60 or so in the "real world" for decent ones.

They are KPZ instead of Lemmerz so just a different manufacturer.

I don't know if they are "correct" for 57.
Most of the crows foot wheels I have here are 59s.
I think I sold the earlier ones though.

On the 57 and 58 Buses I owned in the past, both of them had 4 crows foot wheels and the spare was a non-crows foot.

I don't know if this is normal but I have heard of other 57/58 Buses with the same arrangement.

Wed Jun 27, 2012 11:15 am

I have seen nice crows foot rims sell for $75 ea. I have also seen them go for $25 ea.

Crows foot have a slightly different offset than non, which makes them more desirable in some uses. (rears of lowered buses IIRC) Often I see higher prices on crows foot rims.

Greg's special color 58 westy came with 4 original to the bus rims, 2 crows foot, 2 non.
All were the special westy color blue and the same date code, which is why I think the mismatched set were og to the bus.

Lemmertz and KP rims were both used for some years, so either could be correct for that time (late fifties). VW didn't care.

Having correct dated parts on your bus is just a cool thing. There are date stamps on a bunch of parts, not just wheels. electrical parts, such as the generator. Bosch has a different dating code. speedometer is stamped with month/year date. Generally the date stamp is the month a bus was made, or a few before the bus was made. My April 18, 1961 westy came with 4 crappy mismatched rims on it, but the spare was a nice og paint non crows 4/61 dated rim. On the April 4th westy, I would expect the original rims to be dated 3/61 or maybe 2/61. Some months had more production of rims. There are a LOT of 4/55 rims out there.

I have the correct lug nuts on my 53, but after slapping hubcaps on, you can't see them.

It seems more important on a unmolested, fairly og bus, but when restoring a bus sometimes you want to find the right date coded parts. Then again, sometimes you just want a decent set of matching rims, and don't worry about the date code.

Wed Jun 27, 2012 11:28 am

Clara wrote: I have seen nice crows foot rims sell for $75 ea. I have also seen them go for $25 ea.

Crows foot have a slightly different offset than non, which makes them more desirable in some uses. (rears of lowered buses IIRC) Often I see higher prices on crows foot rims.

Greg's special color 58 westy came with 4 original to the bus rims, 2 crows foot, 2 non.
All were the special westy color blue and the same date code, which is why I think the mismatched set were og to the bus.

Lemmertz and KP rims were both used for some years, so either could be correct for that time (late fifties). VW didn't care.

Having correct dated parts on your bus is just a cool thing. There are date stamps on a bunch of parts, not just wheels. electrical parts, such as the generator. Bosch has a different dating code. speedometer is stamped with month/year date. Generally the date stamp is the month a bus was made, or a few before the bus was made. My April 18, 1961 westy came with 4 crappy mismatched rims on it, but the spare was a nice og paint non crows 4/61 dated rim. On the April 4th westy, I would expect the original rims to be dated 3/61 or maybe 2/61. Some months had more production of rims. There are a LOT of 4/55 rims out there.

I have the correct lug nuts on my 53, but after slapping hubcaps on, you can't see them.

It seems more important on a unmolested, fairly og bus, but when restoring a bus sometimes you want to find the right date coded parts. Then again, sometimes you just want a decent set of matching rims, and don't worry about the date code.
Thanks, well put... I just want a set to get started, maybe later i will try to match date stamps, but i hear 57' crows feet are hard to come by :shock:

Wed Jun 27, 2012 12:53 pm

my early 57' 23, has 1 crows foot- but I've never checked dates on any of them.

Wed Jun 27, 2012 2:01 pm

Clara wrote: Some months had more production of rims. There are a LOT of 4/55 rims out there.

x2!

My 56 23 Window came with 5 x "4/55" rims. Probably not original to the bus but that's alot of crows feet from the same month/year.

Mon Jul 02, 2012 3:31 pm

I looked at the wheels on my bus yesterday and noted that 3 of them are crow's foot style and two are not. Interestingly, all 5 of them are date stamped 6/59. My bus' production date was June 30,1959, so I would assume that they are original to the bus (the coincidence of finding a replacement wheel, not to mention TWO stamped 6/59 would be pretty remarkable!) I also base this assumption on the condition and completeness of all the components and accessories that my bus had when I bought it. Is it possible that when my bus was coming down the assembly line they just ran out of crow's foot style and started using the "newer" style? I have heard that the crow's foot style ended around '59.

Mon Jul 02, 2012 4:11 pm

Clara wrote:

Crows foot have a slightly different offset than non, which makes them more desirable in some uses. (rears of lowered buses IIRC)

Incorrect. I have measured crows vs non crows side by side and there is no noticeable difference (-1/16"). It is a myth