# how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat



## Hectordagreat11 (Apr 8, 2008)

how can i tell if my aftermarket wheels are cone or ball seat?


----------



## Hectordagreat11 (Apr 8, 2008)

anyone?


----------



## YikeGrymon (Sep 12, 2005)

*Re: (Hectordagreat11)*

Yeah really. Note my post to this effect as well.
I'm thinking the only way to tell is to drop a ball-seat bolt into one hole and a cone-seat bolt into another... and take note of which kind wobbles around more. Then use the other kind.


----------



## GT17V (Aug 7, 2001)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (Hectordagreat11)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Hectordagreat11* »_how can i tell if my aftermarket wheels are cone or ball seat?

most aftermarket wheels are cone seat. If they are OEM replicas, they may be ball seat. Check with the manufacturer of the wheels if you can.


----------



## teutoned (Jul 29, 2008)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (Hectordagreat11)*

grease seat in wheel w/ tire chalk or white out. place lug in hole and turn. look to see how much transfered to seat on lug. should be obvious.


----------



## Stetr24vw (Dec 20, 2006)

I have used play dough and clay before. Just press it in and compare the mold to a bolt.


----------



## Electric Pi (May 2, 2008)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (Hectordagreat11)*

Stick your finger in there and feel? Thats what I do.


----------



## mk2ricefighter (May 8, 2009)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (Electric Pi)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Electric Pi* »_Stick your finger in there and feel? Thats what I do.

same here. though if I wasent sure i'd check with the play dough


----------



## Electric Pi (May 2, 2008)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (mk2ricefighter)*

I like the play dough idea. It sounds easier and more reliable than any of the other rocket science solutions suggested here.
P.S. If you are looking for cone seat lug bolts, I pulled some from a BMW in a junk yard recently. Guy charged me $5 for half a dozen.


_Modified by Electric Pi at 9:24 AM 5-28-2009_


----------



## harley06 (Feb 28, 2007)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (Electric Pi)*

aftermarket wheels are mostly cone seat


----------



## Stetr24vw (Dec 20, 2006)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (Electric Pi)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Electric Pi* »_I like the play dough idea. It sounds easier and more reliable than any of the other rocket science solutions suggested here.
P.S. If you are looking for cone seat lug bolts, I pulled some from a BMW in a junk yard recently. Guy charged me $5 for half a dozen.

Sometime just feeling it doesn't quite work for me. Seeing the mold works 100% of the time.
Make sure the bolts you got are 14x1.5 and 28mm long. Not sure about BMW, but they may be a different thread size or length.


----------



## Electric Pi (May 2, 2008)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (iDub 1.8Weee)*


_Quote, originally posted by *iDub 1.8Weee* »_
Sometime just feeling it doesn't quite work for me. Seeing the mold works 100% of the time.
Make sure the bolts you got are 14x1.5 and 28mm long. Not sure about BMW, but they may be a different thread size or length.

TheBMW ones I pulled are 12 x 1.5, and I did not measure the length, but they were exactly the same length as the ones that were already on my Borbet wheels for my Scirocco, so I can confirm that older BMW bolts are an exact match for the cone seat bolts used on aftermarket wheels for older VWs. Newer BMWs may or may not match 14mm bolts found on wheels for newer VWs.


----------



## Stetr24vw (Dec 20, 2006)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (Electric Pi)*

So the older vw's had 12x1.5 hubs?


----------



## Electric Pi (May 2, 2008)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (iDub 1.8Weee)*

According to this: http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=3788673 the change coincided with the switch from 4 lug to 5 lug.


----------



## Stetr24vw (Dec 20, 2006)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (Electric Pi)*

That's weird because my 95 mk3 had the 14x1.5 threading in the hubs. I wounder if the 12x1.5 were 94 and older models...


----------



## Electric Pi (May 2, 2008)

*Re: how to tell if wheels are cone or ball seat (iDub 1.8Weee)*


_Quote, originally posted by *iDub 1.8Weee* »_That's weird because my 95 mk3 had the 14x1.5 threading in the hubs. I wounder if the 12x1.5 were 94 and older models...
[shrug] Is it possible that your mk3 was retapped to the larger thread size? with the same 1.5 threading it would be really easy to tap it to the larger size.


----------

