Tire cradles
 

Okay,

So I've been trying to find tire cradles to park the SVX on. I'm worried about getting flat spots in my tires.

Tire cradles (I'll explain what they are, since NOBODY seems to have heard of them) are curved blocks you park your car on. You put one under each wheel so the tires aren't sitting on a flat surface months on end.

I wouldn't have heard about them, either, but for an episode of 'My Classic Car' or 'Dream Car Garage.' They were recommended for storing a car for the winter, but...

...I CAN'T FIND ANY!

So if anybody has seen them...please tell me where... :(

I found 'em...

http://www.tirecradle.com/

...for $300 a set.

Ow.

Apparently they're not curved plastic - they're some sort of polymer that, I assume, compacts and spreads out the pressure instead of mashing the tire flat in one spot.

Why doesn't somebody just make a set of curved plastic cradles? Yeah, you'd have to mold different sizes for different OD tires, but for $50 apiece you could undercut this guy by $250.

Do any of the engineers in the club think this wouldn't work?

I would think that with some landscaping timber and a band saw you could whip a set out in 15 minutes or so. For probably about 15 bucks.

:D

As would I. I just wonder if there's any reason it wouldn't work...

Piece 'o cake.

1. Steal one tire from Lincoln Navigator.
2. Cut tire into quarters.
3. Pour concrete into four sturdy cardboard boxes.
4. Push tire quarters into concrete slurry (Yes, tread side down).
5. Drink case of beer 'til concrete hardens.
6. Position new cradles on driveway.
7. Rent crane to lift SVX onto cradles.
8. Drink more beer.
9. Explain to wife what you've just done.
10. Explain to wife's lawyer what you've just done .

You're welcome, Ron.

Beer?? you're losing class here, Ron... What happened to the box-o-wine?

-Mike

or.... you could drive the car once in a while.... that seems to keep my tires from flatspotting .....

The wine would be gone before the concrete would harden.
Your mileage may vary.
Ron.

If you're truly worried about it you could buy four cheap jackstands....

I left my convertible sitting outside in the Colorado mountains every winter for 13 years with no more prep than a $30 car cover - never a problem, other than a dead battery each spring.

Beav

...or you could just roll it over on its side for the duration...

Here is one site Nick
 

http://www.eastwoodcompany.com/cgi-bin/sgsh0101.exe

You can also find them at Griots Garage. I have seen a basic set at another place as well, but can't remember the name of the company.

As far as that polymer thing goes. Plastic does not lend itself to easily (and cheaply) to making large goods. Yes, they do exist, but they are made from a mold of some sort which is where the majority of the cost comes from. A plastic part, for example a headlamp lens, may only have $1.00 woth of plastic material by weight, but it is made ina a $120,000 mold which requires a $275,000 injection molding machine to inject the plastic. This machine subsequesntly requires a raft of support equipment. Plastic does not lend itself to machining or fabricating like most metals. Also, it's a material which does not do well under long term loads. Under constant stress the material deforms over time (a condition known as creep) which is a phenomena not seen in metals. If the part is designed correctly, large parts are doable, just not as a structural member like the dollies shown above.

I would like to apologize to any ME's out there for anything they may find incorrect in my description of stress-strain performance of polymeric materials. Just wanted to describe why this couldn't be done as Nick requested. Also had a couple of Guinness with a friend this evening before posting. I love that stuff!

Todd

Just found this one as well
http://home.att.net/~wizardauto/watd.htm

Here is a SE Mich company for you Nick
 

http://www.car-dolly.com/

Right in your backyard in South Lyon. I saw their display at a car performance show I attended today.

Todd

Re: Here is a SE Mich company for you Nick
 

Thanks, Todd - but I have so little clearance in front of and behind my car, I don't know that I want it to be able to roll anywhere. :)

But they ARE cool - I'll still keep 'em in mind. :)