Looking for ways to precisely cut apart 3 piece aluminum car wheels

Just to be clear, I wasn't trying to suggest it can't be done. I was suggesting that you do your homework first to make sure it's done right.

As for buying a lathe, that of course can be done as well. Without knowing how much you can spend on something like that, it's hard to know
what the answer would be. If you want own a big lathe, by all means buy one. But if you want to just get some wheels machined, there are easier and cheaper
ways to get it done.
 
Sounds like a job for a "Gap Bed " lathe. I have changed the back set on steel wheels before but have never tried AL. As stated be very certain no magnesium is in the alloy. Fire hazard high , only way to extinguish is Co2 or Halon gas. Not fun ask how I know.
**G**





 
That looks to be about an 8" chuck by the tape measure - and it looks like close to an 8" swing over the bed. The rim might clear the bed but getting to the center of the rim to cut the weld would be difficult. Looks like the asking price is around $3210.
As has been suggested it would be easier and cheaper to have the welds cut for you. Then all you have to do is the welding.
 
As mentioned above, it will take a lathe with enough 'swing' to accommodate the largest wheel you will need to turn. To turn large diameters like that, it will also take a lot of torque to power the cut. So we are talking more about an industrial lathe than a hobby lathe. That might also mean that your electrical supply has to be industrial as opposed to domestic.

My 12x36 gap bed lathe with a 2 HP motor (220 V single phase) would not be able to do this kind of work. The suggestion above that you visit local machine shops that are equipped to do that kind of work makes a lot of sense. This would also give you a visual on what kind of lathe to look for and it might even turn up a used lathe that you know would work at a price you could afford.
 
Another approach could possibly be with a brake disc turning machine.
OR, if it was me and the bolt pattern fit my car, I would look at parting the wheels on the car using a large hacksaw blade in a homemade jig. There would be enough torque running the car at idle.
The idea of parting off with a hacksaw blade has been shown in other threads here. The jig would float on the floor and be positioned with adjustable rollers against the rim. All the operator would have to do is squirt WD40 on the cut.

By large hacksaw blade I mean the Sandvik as opposed to a manual size blade.
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Lots of great responses (as expected from this group!)

The gap bed lathe suggestion is a great one.

I would think a 2hp lathe would do it, but getting that big swing could be costly.

Note with a diameter that large the surface feet per minute(sfpm) of the work piece sailing past the tool would be high even with moderate spindle rpms. For a high-speed steel (HSS) tool you'd want around 110 sfpm, or only about 30 rpm for that 15" diameter!
I don't have recommended sfpm for cutting Al with carbide tools in front of me, more homework for you......

Tooling up to do this yourself would be expensive (likely more than the cost of the new rims), but it is possible.
Only you can decide if the cost is worth it.

I tweaked my post #19 above. Aligning the two pieces for welding will be critical. It would likely require some sort of large jig. A nice big slow welding lathe would also help.

Maybe you've found a niche market to fill in your part of the world...... "All Horizon Rims and Wheels of Osaka"
Please let us know how it goes!

-brino
 
A Vertical Turrett Lathe would make short work of that such as those produced by Bullard. Since you are not planning on running parts longer then automotive wheels, (long shafting for example), they take up far less floor space then an engine lathe of appropriate size, also they are easier to load.
They have many uses in turning large diameter short parts so I suspect that there are Japanese companies that produced them as well.
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The best answer I've seen so far is a waterjet. A large fiber laser could do it, but they are extremely expensive and not something a corner shop would have. They would likely charge less to waterjet cut them than a machinist who has a lathe that could handle this operation and it would be cut in a fraction of the time and effort.
As far as using an angle grinder like the video the heat would be minimal and you can always mist to cool. If you have to weld in the band to widen the wheel the TIG welding is going to produce a heck of a lot more heat than the angle grinder. The quality of the welds will determine it's safety... not the cuts. In the US most places would not even touch a wheel like this to modify it due to liability issues. I don't know about Japan. I'm sure you could weld it yourself or have a friend do so, but I would think you'd want to ensure you/they knew what they were doing. With a decent weld I think there is very little chance of the wheel ever "separating" at the weld. Balancing the wheel would be the issue.
Good luck!
 
I'm thinking if it were me I would consider having the first one done by a machine shop while I watched. Watching how a pro does it will answer a lot of questions about how this can be accomplished and what machinery you may need to consider purchasing/borrowing/making. With a project with pieces as large as wheels, the injury risk is pretty high if you've never tried this before if you consider how much mass a spinning wheel ring can create once cut off and free to roam around your shop (or foot, or arm, or.....). I like to DIY my projects, but I've learned the hard way to ask lots of questions of people who have accomplished the same task or similar tasks in person so I understand clearly what is meant. Sometimes machinist terms can sound like an alien language to someone with little experience, IMHO.
A lot of great suggestions above, but the most helpful IMO are the ones about safety and considering hiring someone to do this while you start out on smaller projects on a lathe just to learn the ins and outs of lathe operation.

Bob
 
Do you know how were these wheels originally manufactured? The thru hole bolt/nut arrangement is very intriguing, and may come into play here. 3 piece "lookalikes" usually just have the outside bolts threaded into the wheel centers.

It looks like the inner and outer rims locate on the center. So were these things bolted together and then only the rim halves welded together? Or does that weld penetrate into the center?

Apologies if this line of questions isn't relevant as I'm on my phone and can't see the pics very well.

This question could make a HUGE difference in how you could proceed.
 
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