RE: [alfa] Minilite Wheel question

[White Anthony <anthony.white@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>I just scored a set of Minilite wheels off a '74 GTV. They are the original 
>pattern, meaning the spokes do not come to a point at the hub. 4-76 is cast in 
>the wheel, is this a date? The finish is gray, but it does not appear to be 
>paint. Is there any easy test to see if these are magnesium?
>Tom Faust
>

If you're keen enough to know, you could do a weight/displacement test, using the old Archimedes method -- drop them in a tub of water, measure the change in displacement, calculate what that displacement would weigh if it were a magnesium alloy, compare the weight of your wheel with the theoretical weight.  The trick will be establishing the composition of the magnesium alloy that has been used, though if you wheels are lighter than their displacement in aluminium, you can probably be pretty confident that they're some kind of magnesium alloy.  

Regards,
Anthony White
Wellington, NZ
--
to be removed from alfa, see /bin/digest-subs.cgi
or email "unsubscribe alfa" to majordomo@domain.elided