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You've probably read in the instructions of an occasional need to shave the outside edge of the caliper a tad to stop it catching the wheel rim when the pads are new. One I did the other day the rim caught and rubbed the caliper, not much, only enough to scrape some of the fresh paint off, but here's my point, ONLY over about a quarter of the circumference of the inner rim! the rest cleared by up to 1/4" The rim isn't buckled or anything and I tried it in all 4 positions to eliminate hub run out. It's just a not very round wheel. Probably accounts for the number of balance weights on it!
Steve
I'd have put that wheel on the back axle and used one that didn't interfere on the front!
If you'd seen the other wheels and the amount of weights on them (and stick on weights in EXACTLY the wrong place to boot) you would have known. I already picked the best 2 of 4 (least weights) to go on the front. I'm still going to have to have them rebalanced as I had to remove a handful of weights that were in the wrong place to provide ANY clearance on the calipers and replace them with old fashioned weights clipped to the outer rim in the traditional manner.
I find it best to build it so that ANY of the wheels can be fitted as you don't know what will happen in the future. A tyre shop might mix the wheels up or a proud owner may even follow the 70s service schedule and try rotating the wheels round the car as was common practice then to even out tyre wear.
To cleverusername, yes there is a risk in modifying safety critical parts and it's not one I take lightly. I only use a flapwheel sanding disc on the angle grinder to do the shaving, so only remove tiny amounts at a time and do it lightly and slowly to avoid heat buildup. Fortunately for me, there is also a tiny "step" in the bottom of every vertical link casting that gives a benchmark to work to, sand it back till the step JUST disappears and that will be enough! On caliper clearance the same applies, take off tiny amounts at a time and try fit frequently till all trace of bind is eliminated. It MIGHT be a better idea to shave the wheels more round, but i'm too leery of risking doing that on ancient, flimsy and not very well made alloys anyway. Truthfully, the wheel clearance problem IS only a problem on the thick and bulky Sprint alloys, even a stock 1850's 13" steel rim clears the calipers easily, a 14" or 15" alloy is no problem at all. But with Sprint owners (and a lot of other Dolomite owners) more attached to the GKN Sprint alloys than they are to their firstborn, its something I have to deal with. TJ Jon built a kit which is (JUST) small enough to go under MOST Sprint alloys. But even too many coats of paint applied by an overzealous rim reconditioner can tip the balance into a rub that I have to eliminate, it's part of the fun of the job! The problem goes away altogether once the pads get some wear under them as the caliper automatically moves inwards on the sliders with pad wear, away from the rim.
Steve