So I have what I guess is an embarrassing question ...
I have just placed an order for a 20/21 setup to replace my OEM 19/285 (front) 20/335 (rear) for my C7Z ... the wheels are about the same weight but the tires are bigger/heavier.
I plan to track the car several times a year, so my plan was to use my new setup on the street and swap to the OEM setup with the DOT 'slicks' when I hit the track. It's a good strategy ... or so I thought.
I though to myself earlier today ... you have all these wonderful plans why don't you try to take off a wheel and see how hard it is before you commit beyond the point of no return when the wheels have been CNCed. So I put my ceramic brake covers on one of the back wheels, jacked up the car, pulled the wheel out, no problem.
Then it literally took me about an hour and a triathlon's worth of effort and sweat trying to get that mofo back in. The tire is so wide that it was impossible for me to get enough leverage to keep it straight into the lugs ... I couldn't get all the way under it to lift it straight up, and lifting it from the spokes made it tilt too much toward the back to have a straight shot. I really thought I wasn't going to manage ... eventually, try after try, I managed by chance to lift enough and get the right angle to get the wheel back on. I'm pretty sure I set a record on how fast a person can get lug nuts on the threads.
Granted, I'm neither an experienced mechanic nor a bodybuilder but it was almost impossible to get it back on there. I even had one of those HF wheel dollies (http://www.harborfreight.com/1250-lb...lly-61917.html) but it was useless on such a wide tire.
To make a long story longer, I am now super anxious about my ordered setup ... if I had this much trouble with one 20/335 wheel/tire I can't even imagine what a bigger/heavier wheel/tire combo is going to be like. So this whole idea of easily swapping from street to track setup in a jiffy seems flawed ... there's basically no way I will be able to do it in a practical and consistent way trying to lift it manually.
Before I cancel my order, is there any piece of hardware anyone knows about that can make this process easier so as to allow me to swap setups without losing a kidney? I've looked at wheel lifts but most of them seem to be professional hardware for cars that are on lifts, not for individuals in a regular garage with a car on a simple jack.
I hope all that made sense.
I appreciate any help.
I have just placed an order for a 20/21 setup to replace my OEM 19/285 (front) 20/335 (rear) for my C7Z ... the wheels are about the same weight but the tires are bigger/heavier.
I plan to track the car several times a year, so my plan was to use my new setup on the street and swap to the OEM setup with the DOT 'slicks' when I hit the track. It's a good strategy ... or so I thought.
I though to myself earlier today ... you have all these wonderful plans why don't you try to take off a wheel and see how hard it is before you commit beyond the point of no return when the wheels have been CNCed. So I put my ceramic brake covers on one of the back wheels, jacked up the car, pulled the wheel out, no problem.
Then it literally took me about an hour and a triathlon's worth of effort and sweat trying to get that mofo back in. The tire is so wide that it was impossible for me to get enough leverage to keep it straight into the lugs ... I couldn't get all the way under it to lift it straight up, and lifting it from the spokes made it tilt too much toward the back to have a straight shot. I really thought I wasn't going to manage ... eventually, try after try, I managed by chance to lift enough and get the right angle to get the wheel back on. I'm pretty sure I set a record on how fast a person can get lug nuts on the threads.
Granted, I'm neither an experienced mechanic nor a bodybuilder but it was almost impossible to get it back on there. I even had one of those HF wheel dollies (http://www.harborfreight.com/1250-lb...lly-61917.html) but it was useless on such a wide tire.
To make a long story longer, I am now super anxious about my ordered setup ... if I had this much trouble with one 20/335 wheel/tire I can't even imagine what a bigger/heavier wheel/tire combo is going to be like. So this whole idea of easily swapping from street to track setup in a jiffy seems flawed ... there's basically no way I will be able to do it in a practical and consistent way trying to lift it manually.
Before I cancel my order, is there any piece of hardware anyone knows about that can make this process easier so as to allow me to swap setups without losing a kidney? I've looked at wheel lifts but most of them seem to be professional hardware for cars that are on lifts, not for individuals in a regular garage with a car on a simple jack.
I hope all that made sense.
I appreciate any help.
