McCauley 3 pc. wheel help.
I have heard of these coming apart, and I’ve seen these take abuse to the point of bent lips from hitting things
Like logs and rocks in high grass and still stay together for years. I think they are subject to over torque too.

Here is a way to greatly improve these, You Know, If your using these wheels for an ATV trailer.
Having inspected some sets, I see the threads could be better, as the pilot holes are too big by .015.
and the bolt moves side to side, from years of side load and bad threads. and "BOLTS ARE TOO SHORT"
The pilot hole is already thru on most center sections,some stop short. So drill out the trash with an F drill=.257 dia.
Tap 5/16-18 x 1.5 deep "by hand", not using a vari drill,as any runout will damage the original threads.
Use a 2 flute Tap , "not a 4 flute tap from the auto parts store" and a cutting oil to tap.

Are all these made wrong ?. What a shame on cessna,
IF 1.5" instead of 1"screws were used with the proper pilot hole
all these years, It could have saved allot of trouble. I have seen pilot holes on other things drilled oversize by shops ,
as they were worried about braking off a tap, So the result is a thread below thread grade.
1'"screws minus the washer & flange leaves you with an effective thread of maybe .800 long in the wheel.

The alum wheels were designed and cast OK, but this is a typical example of laziness and fast mfg.
#1= It's allot easier to tap threadds in one pass without worry of a broken tap when you cheat on the pilot hole.
#2= worried about having to remove a broken tap or scrap a wheel, It takes time to do it right, costs more.

The pic. shows a flat on the minor dia. of the thread. It contacts nothing since new, so it was made wrong.
It also shows what a 1.5 full thread SCHC looks like. Compare the 2 lengths next to wheel,see what you think.
Compare 2.7" Thread Lth. per hole=2 screws, to a single nut like some wheels. I don't see anything I'm crazy about.
If the threads are bad, One might research using NAS thru bolts and nuts. Has anyone done this ?

I made an ATV trailer out of these wheels with the longer bolts. I think they are 70% stronger.
Test=I had several thousand pounds of rocks on the trailer, I was going 70 MPH and missed a curve,
hit a large Oak tree with the side of the trailer, everything was destroyed,but the wheels were not even dirty.
Actually they were still spinning on the twisted frame the next day..
Was it the wind or Clyde ?
http://www.hunt101.com/watermark.php?file=637364
http://www.hunt101.com/watermark.php?file=637363

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I am not defending McCauley,
But keeping this in perspective, McCauley wheels arent always the week link in the gear.
Considering 3 or 6 -1/4 Inch Lth. of threads in a nut compared to
(12) 1.4 Inches thd. Lth's holding a wheel together.
There is no way in hell I would pay $2200.plus brakes, If I know the condition of my wheels.
6 bolt Cleveland.using nuts? 1/4" lenth of thread ? verses 2.8" thread lenth for every hole ?
I would love to see the destructive engineering failure numbers comparing wheels.
Bolts and nuts are used because once the threads were abused in the threaded wheel, its compromised
and there's no way to tell what you have , unless you have been doing your own wheels forever
and extended the threads and bolts. Even then, once abused Any wheel will never be the same..

Yes we here stories, like a 206 with cracked wheels, poor service .What do you expect running loose bolts ?
There is a reason for failure, wobbled out threads and cracks came from abuse and neglect.
If one considers evaluating the complete gear system, the NAS bolts at the bottom of the Skywagon gear
which don't line up, and the big one on the top are not checked or torqued very often, Hollow Ski axles ?
What is the condition of the gear boxes?
Have you seen pics on P-Ponk of gear box delaminating?
How many people know the history and the real condition of the plane they fly ?

There are bad parts made or used ones sold every day, So what ? watch out for yourself . Get involved,
Good luck finding a mechanic who you trust . And does he use a newer torque wrench ?
Happy Day