ID of original 4 1/2 inch Fuchs?

[mbruen]

How do. I tell if I have an authentic/original 4. 1/2 Fuchs alloy?
The spare that came with the car I am restoring 67s is approx 4 1/2 inch wide by 16 tall. There is no part number tha I can see on the front or the back. A tire is on so I can't see if there is some number inside. The outer edge of the rim (where it meets the tire) is slightly different from other fuchs I've seen in that the flat outer edge has a slight curve.

any ideas? The 4 Fuchs on the car appear to be about 6 inches deep, but it Is hard to measure with the tire on the car.

[davep]

There should be some casting marks inside the back side of the spokes. Clean carefully.

[mbruen]

Attached are a front and rear picture of my 4.5 inch fuchs. I cleaned the wheel and still can not find any part number. The only mark I found is a little 5 pointed impression in multiple places around the rim.

Can anyone tell if they are authentic? WHere should the part # be? If there is no part number (maybe it was painted over?) does that mean it is some kind of copy?

[mbruen]

I just found a little engraved graphic with an X like figure and a box. It is very fine engraving. It is up near the center hole at the top of a spoke in a little flat spot, not on the main part of the spoke. is this the engraving that Davep was talking about? Would it be normal for 4.5s to not have the part # engraved?

Where do you measure for the width and the height of the wheel (my tire is still on so it is difficult).

THanks!

[beh911]

I took liberty with your photo to give some pointers on where to look for Fuchs wheel stampings.

Inside the red box on one of the spokes you should find a part number and I believe size info.

Inside the black circle, you may find 3 or 4 numbers referencing a manufacturing month and year.

There are Fuchs experts on this site that forget more in a day than I will ever know about these things, but see what you find in those highlighted areas and report back

[mbruen]

Thanks.
I checked those spots - no numbers etc. It looks like the back of the wheel was repainted grey. Could a coat of paint have filled them in? Can you use a stripper to take off the paint on the back (assuming I will refinish at some point?
Also please note my questions above re- how to measure the width/ height with a tire on.

[Harvey Weidman]

Most 4.5s had the forging numbers ground off. They look like real 4.5s from the back. Measure the width of the wheel where the tire fits. You can approximate through the hole. The diameter is on the tire.
The overall will be about 5.25X16.25.
H

[mbruen]

Thanks H.
What you are saying seems to match what I see. In fact, there seem to be marks that could be grind marks where the numbers should be.
So, it appears that my spare is a 4.5 Fuchs. BTW, while investigating this, I checked 2 of 4 wheels on the car. They are deep sixes and both dated 5/70. So, although they are not the original wheels for a 67s they are from the era. Probably good until I can afford or trade for 3 or 4 4.5s.
Thanks for everyone's help!

[Sacto S]

The paint is all wrong for a 4.5 x 15 Fuchs. Should have "darts" not solid black.

[Louie]