Hubs

Towing hubs for my buddy's Camaro. He used to flat tow the car to the dragstrip, unbolt the tow bar and rear wheels, bolt on the slicks and go racing. I made these at least 40 years ago. He got some spindles and hubs from a '69 Chevelle at the junkyard and I cut the spindles out from the uprights, made a backing plate and machined everything up true. I was pretty proud of my self when I got them finished. I wouldn't even remotely have called myself a machinist at the time but they came out nice and they still work as designed. Lakewood sold a similar item at the time but I think he only had twenty bucks in these, and they actually were a little better. I did a search for towing hubs and the only ones I could find were on EBay. A guy is making custom ones for $980.00. These appear to be quite the bargain now. 

My buddy just put new axles in his car and they have longer studs. He wanted to dig the towing hubs out to see if they would work as is or if a spacer was required. I've made a bunch of similar things over the years using Camaro spindles because the spindles were pressed in, rather than being part of a forging. Made it a lot easier to get the spindles out and use them for a trailer axle or whatever. Something to keep in mind.

On an unrelated note, Harbor Freight has a prize/award program going for high school tech teachers and their programs. Part of the money goes to the individual and part of it goes to the school program. Info HERE. Looking at some real money here. Nominate a worthy teacher or pass the word along.