Updated Magnesium Halibrand thread

[Lew Ledyard]

Since we have a new dedicated wheel/tire forum, I thought that I would revise/update this thread.

Many people would like to have new sets of magnesium wheels for their Cobras. They are significantly lighter than the currently available aluminum wheels. In addition, some of us feel that the magnesium wheels look better than the currently available aluminum wheels. Although the mag wheels are more pricey, some folks have spared no other expense in the build of their car. Two possible sources for the production of these wheels have been identified: Halibrand (The New Halibrand) (not sure exactly who that is now) and M&A Castings (High Performance Magnesium and Aluminum Castings - M & A Castings). According to M&A Castings, the quality of the magnesium and the coatings used today is much better than what was originally used, so corrosion is less of a factor.

Halibrand said that they occasionally make batches of their Cobra II (427 S/C) wheels in magnesium. Such batches are usually made in runs of 100 wheels per size. The wheels are 6 pin knock-offs in sizes of 15X8 (f) and 15X10 (r). See Elric's gallery for photos. The prices are $765 (f) and $795 (r). I do not know what the offset/backspacing is, but I believe it is the same as the Trigos.

I have also spoken with M&A Castings about producing these wheels. They have a great reputation and produce beautiful wheels. M&A said that they do not have molds already made, but that they could make them for about $12,000-15,000 per size and then after that, each wheel would be about $700. I have spoken with Ted at M&A quite a bit. He said that the quality of magnesium that M&A uses is much better than what was used in the original wheels. (I have not spoken to Halibrand about the quality of their materials.) Ted also said that he can apply a variety of protective finishes/coatings to produce a light gold finish, a black finish or a natural finish.

While I think that M&A would make terrific wheels, that price might be a little too steep for some of us. Therefore, it might make the most sense to convince Halibrand to run another batch of 50 sets. While we probably won't be able to get 50 confirmed pre-orders, we may be able to demonstrate that there is enough firm interest to convince Halibrand or M&A to produce a set. So far, the following has said that they would like a set:

Lew
Rodknock
Xracerbob
Cobra (Walter from Switzerland)
CSX3183
Brettco

I am sure that there are others, so please add yourself to the list. If any of the manufacturers (KMS, ERA, Shelby, SPF, etc.) are interested in offering this option to their customers, please also chime in. Nothing like a volume buyer to get a producer's interest.

I will ask both Halibrand and M&A to take a look at this post to help them determine the interest level.

[computerworks]

I'll move the old thread here for reference

[brettco]

I want a set also

[xracerbob]

Lew- Thanks for your efforts on this. M&A does indeed make a great product. Although something seems a little weird on the pricing. If M&A makes the wheels for Halibrand, how can they sell them at retail for 765/795 if they are going to pay somewhere near what we would pay for a lot of 200 wheels? Once we get a large order together for Ted is there some room to negotiate pricing?

[Lew Ledyard]

I did not know that M&A made wheels for Halibrand. I thought that they were more "freelance" and just had the ability to replicate them. Ted said that he did not have a pattern for the 427 wheel. He said that we would have to provide original front and rear wheels from which to make patterns/molds.

[xracerbob]

From "elric" last September-

hi, was told by halibrand that they made their wheels. they are magnesium and look great; check my gallery. i think they were around 675/wheel; not cheap but worth it to me.

I believe Ted couldn't use the pattern if owned by Halibrand. On this page of their website in the lower right corner you will see a wheel that looks very familiar.

The M & A Castings Advantage

[RodKnock]

Isn't the natural finish similar to the light gold finish? I assume if the manufacturers get involved they would want a discount over what us retail customers pay.

Lew, thanks for trying to make this happen.

[cobra]

Lew Ledyard

Any news ???

[Lew Ledyard]

Not yet. I was hoping that we would have a little more interest in order to make it more worth the while of the M&A or Halibrand.

[ZOERA-SC7XX]

Originally Posted by RodKnock

Isn't the natural finish similar to the light gold finish? I assume if the manufacturers get involved they would want a discount over what us retail customers pay.

Lew, thanks for trying to make this happen.

The gold finish is due to the anodize process, which protects the 'bright' natural magnesium, which gets tarnished pretty quickly.

[Lew Ledyard]

I just sent e-mail with a link to this thread to Karen at Halibrand and Ted at M&A Castings. I will let you know if I get any feedback from them.

Ted and Karen:

Please feel free to post here directly. Your direct feedback would be of interest to everyone.

Thanks

[Cobra Pack]

Another potential option. They advertised they will make other wheels on ebay in mag.

http://vintageeng.com/

[Lew Ledyard]

Sorry guys. Nothing new to report. No response from either M&A or Halibrand to my e-mails.

[RodKnock]

Lew, I actually sent Karen at Halibrand an email yesterday morning and I've not heard back from her yet.

[1985 CCX]

New Casting.........................

[xracerbob]

Jeff-

Are you rubbing it in for those of us in pursuit of these wheels?

[RodKnock]

Originally Posted by 1985 CCX

New Casting.........................

What does this mean?

[RodKnock]

I've sent another email to Halibrand looking for an update on these wheels, but still have had no response.

[RodKnock]

BTW, I might be able to get a set of these wheels that are new, but the gentleman selling them wants $1,100/wheel. Pricey.

[xracerbob]

Coincidently, I sent Halibrand an email yesterday as well asking for some kind of update. No response here either.