RC Components Drag Race Wheels—Light And Right
By Evan J. Smith
Drag racers are constantly on the hunt for performance gains and a drop in ET. These gains can come from many places including adding horsepower, which is the obvious thing to go after, but reducing weight, namely unsprung and rotating mass is another thing to do.
As the name implies, unsprung weight includes anything that is not supported by the vehicle’s springs. Sprung weight can generally be used to an advantage, especially if you can move the ballast for the best traction on launch. Unsprung weight is like dead weight and is simply along for the ride. Rotating mass (including wheels) must be accelerated, which takes power from the engine. This includes wheels, clutch, flywheel, driveshaft and axles, etc. Any item that falls into this category needs to be as light as possible, albeit, without giving up strength and durability.
That’s where RC Component’s wheels come into play. RC Components offers a complete line of front and rear wheels for drag racing and street/strip applications.
One example is the Comp Series wheels that built strong enough to withstand the rigorous demands of drag racing. Comp Series wheels are available in four stylish and unique designs with your choice of multiple finishes. Front wheels are available in 15-inch and 17-inch diameters. The 15-inch fronts are 4-inches wide and the 17s comes in 2.15-inch or 4.5-inch widths. The rear wheels are 15-inches in diameter with widths from 9- to 16-inches. Comp Series wheels are available in a variety of offsets with multiple bolt patterns and spindle mount options to fit many applications.
According to RC Components, the Hammer polished wheels are great for blinding your opponents and bringing extra attention to your race car. They have oblong windows in each of their five spokes, are available in a variety of offsets, and are SFI 15.2 certified. Front race wheels are one-piece forged from 6061 T-6 aluminum for strength and trueness and rank among the lightest wheels in the industry. The rear race wheels use tabs to interlock the 6061 T-6 forged centers in place, putting the majority of the torque on the center section and 2-piece spun forged rims, instead of the bolts. Units are available with or without billet aluminum inner nubby beadlock rings. For amazing strength, reduced unsprung weight, and extra shine, install RC Components Hammer polished wheels.
RC Components also offers its line of Street King wheels. “These are Flow-Forged street wheels. Thanks to the process by which our blanks are made, the end product is a stronger street wheel with similar properties to a forged wheel, perfect for the street and the drag strip.”
Due to popular demand from the racing community, RC Components is now offering the RC design beadlocks to convert your 15-,16- and 17-inch non-beadlock wheels into a single- or double-beadlocks. “Our beadlock race wheels have been tested and tortured on the drag strip and now you can have the same technology and performance added to your wheels. Our inner and outer beadlock rings feature a unique offset tooth pattern that bites into the tire’s bead when bolted together, helping to eliminating tire slippage. Choose between a polished or Eclipse (black and machined) finish on the beadlock ring to tie everything together.
To compliment you’re RC wheels, check out the RC Comp 12-Point Billet Aluminum Lug Nuts that are manufactured from domestic 7075 material and come in polished aluminum and black anodized with a machined contrast cut. These billet lug nuts are available in a wide range of sizes and are sold in sets of 10 Lug Nuts.
Each set includes 10 Lug Nuts:
½-inch and 7/16-inch Lug Nuts use a standard ¾-inch 12 point socket.
5/8-inch Lug Nuts use a standard 15/16-inch 12-point socket.
Lug Nut Tips
Make sure the threads on your studs are clean and not damaged in any way.
Nuts should be started by hand to prevent cross-threading.
Stud threads should protrude a minimum of 1/8-inch out of the lug nut when fully torqued.
Do NOT over torque your lug nuts as this can create an unsafe situation.
Aluminum lug nuts are for racing applications only and not recommended for OEM/Street use.
Recommended Torque Values
7/16 Lug Nuts - 85 ft lbs
1/2 Lug Nuts - 85 ft lbs
12 mm Lug Nuts - 85 ft lbs
14 mm Lug Nuts - 85 ft lbs
5/8 Lug Nuts - 100 ft lbs
By Evan J. Smith
Drag racers are constantly on the hunt for performance gains and a drop in ET. These gains can come from many places including adding horsepower, which is the obvious thing to go after, but reducing weight, namely unsprung and rotating mass is another thing to do.
As the name implies, unsprung weight includes anything that is not supported by the vehicle’s springs. Sprung weight can generally be used to an advantage, especially if you can move the ballast for the best traction on launch. Unsprung weight is like dead weight and is simply along for the ride. Rotating mass (including wheels) must be accelerated, which takes power from the engine. This includes wheels, clutch, flywheel, driveshaft and axles, etc. Any item that falls into this category needs to be as light as possible, albeit, without giving up strength and durability.
That’s where RC Component’s wheels come into play. RC Components offers a complete line of front and rear wheels for drag racing and street/strip applications.
One example is the Comp Series wheels that built strong enough to withstand the rigorous demands of drag racing. Comp Series wheels are available in four stylish and unique designs with your choice of multiple finishes. Front wheels are available in 15-inch and 17-inch diameters. The 15-inch fronts are 4-inches wide and the 17s comes in 2.15-inch or 4.5-inch widths. The rear wheels are 15-inches in diameter with widths from 9- to 16-inches. Comp Series wheels are available in a variety of offsets with multiple bolt patterns and spindle mount options to fit many applications.
According to RC Components, the Hammer polished wheels are great for blinding your opponents and bringing extra attention to your race car. They have oblong windows in each of their five spokes, are available in a variety of offsets, and are SFI 15.2 certified. Front race wheels are one-piece forged from 6061 T-6 aluminum for strength and trueness and rank among the lightest wheels in the industry. The rear race wheels use tabs to interlock the 6061 T-6 forged centers in place, putting the majority of the torque on the center section and 2-piece spun forged rims, instead of the bolts. Units are available with or without billet aluminum inner nubby beadlock rings. For amazing strength, reduced unsprung weight, and extra shine, install RC Components Hammer polished wheels.
RC Components also offers its line of Street King wheels. “These are Flow-Forged street wheels. Thanks to the process by which our blanks are made, the end product is a stronger street wheel with similar properties to a forged wheel, perfect for the street and the drag strip.”
Due to popular demand from the racing community, RC Components is now offering the RC design beadlocks to convert your 15-,16- and 17-inch non-beadlock wheels into a single- or double-beadlocks. “Our beadlock race wheels have been tested and tortured on the drag strip and now you can have the same technology and performance added to your wheels. Our inner and outer beadlock rings feature a unique offset tooth pattern that bites into the tire’s bead when bolted together, helping to eliminating tire slippage. Choose between a polished or Eclipse (black and machined) finish on the beadlock ring to tie everything together.
To compliment you’re RC wheels, check out the RC Comp 12-Point Billet Aluminum Lug Nuts that are manufactured from domestic 7075 material and come in polished aluminum and black anodized with a machined contrast cut. These billet lug nuts are available in a wide range of sizes and are sold in sets of 10 Lug Nuts.
Each set includes 10 Lug Nuts:
½-inch and 7/16-inch Lug Nuts use a standard ¾-inch 12 point socket.
5/8-inch Lug Nuts use a standard 15/16-inch 12-point socket.
Lug Nut Tips
Make sure the threads on your studs are clean and not damaged in any way.
Nuts should be started by hand to prevent cross-threading.
Stud threads should protrude a minimum of 1/8-inch out of the lug nut when fully torqued.
Do NOT over torque your lug nuts as this can create an unsafe situation.
Aluminum lug nuts are for racing applications only and not recommended for OEM/Street use.
Recommended Torque Values
7/16 Lug Nuts - 85 ft lbs
1/2 Lug Nuts - 85 ft lbs
12 mm Lug Nuts - 85 ft lbs
14 mm Lug Nuts - 85 ft lbs
5/8 Lug Nuts - 100 ft lbs