E-M-F Homepage - E-M-F Restoration

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Welcome to the E-M-F Wheels Restoration Page

So you want to how the restoration of the wheels for my E-M-F Automobile is going? Well, you have found the right page.

Sunday, November 11, 2001 4:49 PM


This is a Stanweld Wheel and Rim, the correct wheel and rim for the car. I have one of these. Click on the picture to see the full size.	I have no idea what kind of wheel and rim this is. Do You? I have three of these. Click on the picture to see the full size.

The wheels that were on this car when I bought it were actually off of a mid-30 car. But the parts car I bought in Nebraska had 4 wheels with it, one Stanweld (the picture on the left above) and three of an unknown brand (pictured on to the right above). If you have any idea of the brand of the wheel to the right above, please let me know.

I know that the 1912 E-M-F's could have come with Stanweld wheels and rims. Perhaps E-M-F Used different makes of wheels too, I don't know, but I have seen some other E-M-F's with this unknown type of wheel. But by far, the Stanweld has been on most of the 1912's I have seen. I have also seen two different types of Stanweld Rims, one like I have, which is a split rim, and one that the rim comes apart using an interlocking finger arrangement to hold the two sides of the rim together. This is how the tires are mounted on the rim. I believe I would like to find three more wheels like the one Stanweld I already have. I will try to post a picture of a Stanweld rim with the interlocking fingers. That is what my neighbors car has on it.

I can find no manufactures markings on the unknown wheels I have (three of them). If I could find a couple more of them I would at least have a set. The three I have are pretty rough and would need new wood and some metal work. If you can identify these wheels, please let me know so I will know what to look for.

If you have any wheels like either shown above and would be willing to sell them PLEASE let me know. It is kind of hard to drive a car like this without wheels and right now, they are the biggest missing link on this project. PLEASE HELP!!!

I am going to put some links to some more detailed pictures so you can get a closer look if you want too. The full wheels are shown above. Some of the pictures, especially the close up ones, are a little blurry. I am still trying to figure out how to take a close up with this camera.

NOTE that the original gray paint can be seen on several pictures, especially the close ups of the spokes at the hubs.

1912 E-M-F Wheels Close Up Photos
Click on the description to see the picture

Stanweld Wheel and Rim UNKNOWN Wheel and Rim

StanWeld Rim Retaining Block pic 1

StanWeld Rim Retaining Block pic 2

StanWeld Rim Retaining Blocks, group pic

Stanweld Retaining Block Bolt, Front Side pic

Stanweld Retaining Block Bolt, Back Side pic

Stanweld Fellow Joint pic

Stanweld Wheels Spokes at the hub

Stanweld Rim pic showing split

Stanweld Rim Inner-tube stem pic

Stanweld Wheel Fellow Band pic

Stanweld Wheel Fellow and Rim Retaining Lug

UNKNOWN Rim Retaining Block pic 1

UNKNOWN Rim Retaining Block pic 2

UNKNOWN Rim Retaining Blocks, group pic

UNKNOWN Retaining Block Bolt, Front Side pic

UNKNOWN Retaining Block Bolt, Back Side pic

UNKNOWN Fellow joint pic

UNKNOWN Wheels Spokes at the hub

UNKNOWN Wheels Rim showing split, pic 1

UNKNOWN Wheels Rim showing split, pic 2

UNKNOWN Wheel Fellow Band pic

Tuesday, January 15, 2002 12:00 PM

Though I have not yet found a set of wheels, or even one, I do have some leads. If you can help me with wheels, please let me know.

Here is some more info:

The Stanweld wheel I have has the following writing stamped into the fellow band in three groups of words. Group one says:

CONTINENTAL DEMOUNTABLE RIM
CONTINENTAL CAOUTCHOUC CO.
NEW YORK
U.S. PATENT NO 956611 MAY 3, 1910

Then it has the tire size : 32 x 3.5

Then is says:

MANUFACTURED BY
THE STANDARD WELDING Co.
CLEAVLAND, U. S. A.

Then there is a number :125

If you can help me get a set of these wheels, rims and hardware, I would appreciate it. Let me know what you have.

Thanks to all those who have responded so far.

Sunday, March 31, 2002 12:01 PM

I received an email from an E-M-F Homepage reader who had looked at the info on the wheels I have here and he has identified the "UNKNOWN type wheel above as a Firestone Type "E". If you have any of these you are willing to part with, please let me know.

Also, about the Standard wheel shown, this same reader informed me that the type of rim I have with my Standard wheel may not be a Standard, but possibly a Jaxon rim which may have been on Chev model FB 1919-20, Chev truck model T front 1920-2, or Gardner Touring and Roadster 1919-20.

What I may actually be looking for is the very rim I have passed up several times and that is the rim that splits into two halves and joins with an interlocking finger, or hook mechanism. These are the Standard Continental. That series of hooks was patented in Europe and made there . Sold there and here as CONTINENTAL, then made here under license by Stanweld. Funny thing is I have had a couple of these type of rims come by and let them go.

If you know of any of these type of wheels or rims (Firestone, Jaxon, Standard Continental), or even just wheel parts for the Standard, and are willing to sell them, please let me know. I would even be interested in the mounting bolts and steel hardware for the standard. I do not need hubs, those I have.

Thanks for your help and thanks for all who have sent me mail helping me learn.

Wednesday, April 19, 2006 12:01 PM


This is a Stanweld Rim Retaining lug. I need these to complete my wheels. Notice the raised lettering on the bottom side. If you have any you would be willing to sell, please let me know. Even one or two! Click on the picture to see the full size.	This is a Stanweld Rim Retaining bolt. I need these to complete my wheels. If you have any you would be willing to sell, please let me know. Even one or two would help! Click on the picture to see the full size.

Boy, I can not believe it has been so long since I put anything on this page. I have been looking for wheels or parts of wheels ever since. I have had some success in locating parts, but I still do not have a complete set. I have been concentrating on finding Stanweld type wheels like the car had on it when it was new.

I have found several wheel parts over the last few years. I found one complete wheel (no rim or rim lugs) on eBay about a year ago. I bought three 26" demountable split rims along with a 25" Stanweld Fellow Band from another E-M-F Owner. I know the 26" rims are not correct, but I think I can modify them to make them work. If I can not find anything else, that is what I will do. I hate to cut up the 26" Stanweld rims because I know they are hard to find also, but I will as a last resort.

This is a Stanweld Continental type rim. It is the type that came on the 1912 E-M-F's. Click on the picture to see the full size.

I have also acquired one of the correct type rims for my car. The picture to the right is of the Stanweld Continental type rim. It is a 25-inch rim that would have originally carried a 32 X 3.5 inch clincher tire. These tires are not manufactured any longer, so I am not heavily looking for this type of rim. I have heard they can be quite difficult to get apart. The two halves of the rim are held together by some interlocking fingers. To get the rim together and apart, you must rotate the two halves in opposite directions to get the locking mechanism to work. CLICK HERE to see a close-up of the interlocking fingers. If you have one you are willing to sell, I would be interested in purchasing it. I know how I can modify this type of rim to accept a straight side tire. I need three (3) to complete a set. Please let me know if you have any.

What I could really use!

What I could really use right now are the rim lugs and rim retaining bolts like those pictured at the start of this entry. If I had these items, I think I could assemble all of the wheels. I currently have 8 of the correct wheel lugs (I need 24 total). I currently have 12 of the rim retaining bolts (I need 24 total). I also know that some of the Stanweld bolts like these had no hole for a screw like the ones I have pictured above. I would be interested in the ones with and without this hold.

If you have any of these bolts or lugs and would be willing to sell them, PLEASE let me know. Even one or two will get me closer to my goal. I have MANY other types of wheel lugs I could trade. I even have some later model Stanweld lugs. Please contact me if you can help.

As a final set of pictures, I will show you the wheel parts I have and the rims I have. Again, please let me know if you can help with any wheel parts to help me complete a set for my car. It is kind of hard to drive a car without wheels!

These are the wheel parts I have managed to collect up to this point. Click on the picture to see the full size. These are the 26" Stanweld Split Rims I will cut up and use if nothing better comes along. Click on the picture to see the full size.

Monday, May 29, 2006 12:02 PM


This is the front side of the bolts that hold the demountable rim on. The original Stanweld is on the right. The new one I made is on the left. Click on the picture to see the full size.	This is the backside of the bolts that hold the demountable rim on. The original Stanweld is on the right. The new one I made is on the left. Click on the picture to see the full size.

Since the last post, the phones have been ringing off the hook with people who have dozens of wheel lugs and rim retaining bolts that they have tried to give away with no luck. Don't I wish! Actually, I have had no luck on any avenue I have tried in locating these items so I started exploring alternate ways of getting the pieces I need to complete my set of wheels. I think I can have the lugs themselves cast at a place my friend has used for small engine parts. The bolts I decided to try and make myself.

The thread size turned out to be a standard 7/16 with 20 TPI. I located a bolt of the correct size and started making one of my own by welding up and filing down and welding up and filing down and welding up and filing down etc, etc. I started it on Saturday, worked a bit on it yesterday and again today and now have a pretty good reproduction that does the job. Check out the pictures above and see what you think. The only problem is they won't have the "SW" marking. Oh well, I doubt anyone but me will ever notice.

I really enjoy making these kinds of things and reel real good when one is accomplished. Now I only have 11 more to make!

Saturday, January 2, 2010 11:20 AM


This is one of the front wheel hub flanges showing original paint and striping. Click on the picture to see the full size.	This is one of the rear wheel hubs with original paint and striping. Click on the picture to see the full size.

Thought I would post some pictures of the progress I have made on the wheels. In case you did not know up to this point, my car did not have the original wheels on it when I got it. I ahve been searching for almost 10 years for a complete set of Stanweld wheels and rims. I ahve been picking up the metal pieces piece-by-piece. Well I am happy to report that I have completed my quest. I now have all the metal peices I need to assemble a correct set of wheels for my car.

I did have to do some metal work on one of the fellow bands and one of the rims. The fellow band is the mtal ring which goes around the wood fellow. The spokes plug into the wood fellow. One of the fellow bands I am using was a little different than the others. So I moved things around a bit to make it like the other three I had.

The demountable rim also needed some changes to be like the other rims. I also had to fix the latching mechanism that holds the split part of the rim together.

So I think I have all the metal work done for the wheels. I still need to by some bolts to hold the hubs together, so I am looking for a source with the correct domed carriage bolts. I had a source at one time, but I'll be if I can find it now when I need it. I will find it.

The striping on the wheel hub flanges is documented on the new striping page. CLICK here to go to the new striping page.

to finish, I will post one more picture which shows all of the wheel parts I have displayed on my garage floor. This represents about 10 years of serarching.

All the wheel parts for my E-M-F - 10 Years of my life. Click on the picture to see the full size.

Sunday, February 14, 2010 9:52 PM

Worked on the front hubs this weekend. I have disassembled all of the front hubs from both the Demi Tonneau and the Nebraska parts car. With all of the bearing showing wear to the point of being no longer usable, I decided to convert from the origianl ball bearings to a modern tapered roller bearing. This will require some machining. I got the mechanical drawings from a fellow E-M-F Registry member and ordered the bearings from NAPA yesterday. They should be in on Wednesday. I removed the spindles from the axled of both the Demi and Parts chassis and sandblasted the parts. I thing while I am having machining work done for the wheels, I willhave the work done on the kingpins and bushings. We will see hoe my E-M-F Fund holds up.

I talked to a guy in church today that is going to help me with the machining work. I plan to bring the parts and drawings to church next week to show him what I need. Progress is being made.

Sunday, September 25, 2011 12:00 AM

Finally took the wheel parts out to Stutzman's Wheel shop in Baltic, OH for new wood. It was a great trip and I spent over an hour at the Stutzmans as he showed me all the things they could do. Need a new wood rim for your steering wheel? They can make one. Need wood rims for you old bicycle? They make them too. They are an Amish family which do great work. I have seen their wheels on several other E-M-Fs and they run straight and true. It was a great time. They had several other sets of old car wheels waiting for new wood. I do not know when I will get them back, but I am anxiously waiting. I told them I was in no hurry.

Friday, January 20, 2012 11:34 AM

The new wheels for the E-M-F as they came back from the Stutzman's. They are beautiful. Click on the picture to see the full size.

The 4 wheels for our E-M-F with new wood and ready for primer. These represent 10 years of searching for parts to build a correct set of wheels. All that came with our car were the hubs which were attached to some wheels from the 1930's. I had to find, and in some cases make, all the remaining pieces. Then sent the metal parts the Stutzman's Wheel shop in OH. This Amish wheel-right did a fantastic job putting new hickory fellows and spokes in them.

The next step will be to seal the new wood, prime and then paint E-M-F gray. The hubs will be E-M-F Blue and striped in Black (maybe blue) on the gray spokes.

I also have some used tires for the rims which I will mount and then put the car back on original wheels for the first time in many years. This will help me to align the fenders.

It will be a while before I can get to this though. Life keeps getting in the way.

Sunday, November 10, 2013 9:27 PM


These are the inserts I had made to allow me to switch the front wheels over to a modern tapered roller bearing. Click on the picture to see the full size.	I had to mill out the hubs to remove the inner curve which held the old bearing cups. I milled it to near a 90 degree angle. Click on the picture to see the full size.

Finally got around to playing with the front wheels and the bearing spacers I had made. My plan was to convert the front wheel bearings from the original ball-and-cup type bearing to a modern tapered roller bearing. The reason is that my bearing cups where all in bad shape with many stress fractures. Most of them came out in pieces and the ones that came out in one piece where not usable. My inquires with other E-M-F owners lead me to find out that these are almost always no good and in need of replacing. Another E-M-F owner sent me plans to convert to modern tapered roller bearing. To do so required making some inserts for the hubs of the wheels to accept new bearing races, and a sleeve for the spindle for the inner bearing to ride on.

Original Style Stanweld 25" wheels back on the front for the first time in 70 years. Click on the picture to see the full size.

I also found that in order for the new parts to fit in the wheels, I needed to carve out the stops for the old bearing cups to allow room for the new spacers. I did this with a die-grinder with a rotary rasp I like to call "Mr. Sliver Maker".

After machining the hubs, I drove the spacers into the hubs, along with the bearing races. I put the wheels onto the newly rebuild front axle to see how everything worked and it worked well. This is one more thing done on this project.

This is probably the first time in over 70 years this E-M-F has had the correct style Stanweld 25" wheels on it. It has been a long journey to get this car to this point, but it is nice to see the progress.

That is all for now.

How to contact me...
John M. Daly
Phone:	(815) 786-4824
Email: