MSA regs on Wheels spacers - help!

[Duke Thrust]

I'm building a Triumph TR7 for Hill-climbing and am tying myself in knots over the MSA regs

5.8.2 states:

Not be fitted with any wheel spacer exceeding 2.5cm in thickness or of less than hub diameter. Multiple or Laminated Spacers and extended studs are prohibited.

Couple of questions on this, you can't have a spacer thicker than 2.5cm, understood. "Or less than hub diameter"?? So it can't be less thick than the hub??

I feel there's something fundamental here I'm being thick about an not getting...

Also: Multiple (understood) or laminated - what's a laminated spacer??

I'm taking extended studs to mean longer or welded to make them longer??

Long story short, I want to use 8" rims (instead of 10", tyre prices...) on my works bodied TR7 and need to push them out in the arches to fill. I'll need a spacer about 20mm so was thinking about a hub-centric one like this:



But am not sure about the wording and how it applies. Anyone had experience of this? Any scrutineers care to share their wisdom?

Thanks!

[marshalla]

On the first bit - I read it as spacers can be no more than 2.5cm thick and must have a diameter which is at least as big as the hub's.

As for laminated - I'd interpret that as a spacer made of multiple layers (i.e. effectively thin spacers stuck together), so the regs. seem to require that it's a solid piece of metal.

[Duke Thrust]

marshalla said:

On the first bit - I read it as spacers can be no more than 2.5cm thick and must have a diameter which is at least as big as the hub's.

Ha! Yes, I understand that bit now, thanks!

Christ, sometimes it just takes someone else to word it slightly differently.

Right, who can help with the next bit?

[NJH]

20mm hub centric, knock the studs out of the hubs and replace with longer ones. Pretty much every 944 or 968 race car I know of over the past 10 years or so has run a setup like that so I suspect many other types of cars they have been doing similar to maximise track widths.

[mph1977]

marshalla said:

On the first bit - I read it as spacers can be no more than 2.5cm thick and must have a diameter which is at least as big as the hub's.

As for laminated - I'd interpret that as a spacer made of multiple layers (i.e. effectively thin spacers stuck together), so the regs. seem to require that it's a solid piece of metal.

Yep, I suspect that is the intention of the regulation, even if those who suffer with regulation related semantic-pragmatic language disorders are trying to confuse themselves.

The spacers the regulation seem to envisage are the diameter of the hub and made from a single piece of material.

[AWRacing]

If you are buying new wheels (im assuming you are here) why not get them with the offset you need to get the look youvare after?
Saves messing around with spacers.

Obviously if you already have the wheels then spacers will be the cheaper option

[Duke Thrust]

NJH said:

20mm hub centric, knock the studs out of the hubs and replace with longer ones. Pretty much every 944 or 968 race car I know of over the past 10 years or so has run a setup like that so I suspect many other types of cars they have been doing similar to maximise track widths.

Yes, I think I'll go down this route.

The more I read extended studs the more I think it means studs that have been made longer (welded etc) as opposed to studs that are longer to begin with.

I've already got 2 sets of wheels to use, hence why I'm not ordering them with different offsets to begin with, only need to adjust the rears.

[stevieturbo]

Duke Thrust said:

Yes, I think I'll go down this route.

The more I read extended studs the more I think it means studs that have been made longer (welded etc) as opposed to studs that are longer to begin with.

I've already got 2 sets of wheels to use, hence why I'm not ordering them with different offsets to begin with, only need to adjust the rears.

Years ago you could buy stud extensions. Cant say it's something I would ever consider on any vehicle. Even teh image below comes from Grayston...as they offered it with some wheel spacers.

eg

[Duke Thrust]

Thanks for that, yes you're absolutely right, look:



Okay, that must be what's meant by extended studs or it'd say extended or longer

[notax]

When using spacers I would strongly recommend using upgraded motorsport spec wheel studs. I initially bought longer standard ones and had an entire rear wheel sheer off during testing. I replaced them with more expensive US sourced ones through Turner Motorsport and haven't had any issues in the 5 years since.

[Skyedriver]

Duke Thrust said:

Thanks for that, yes you're absolutely right, look:



Okay, that must be what's meant by extended studs or it'd say extended or longer

Had these on a Clan I bought and ran many years ago. The extender screws onto the existing stud BUT when tight the hex doesn't always fit the slot in the spacer, so in my youthful ignorance I slackened them off to fit the slot.........

Strangely I never had a wheel fall off