Mountain-man

Update 5-12-11: The file is now directly attached to this thread! No more fooling around! File should be found at the end of this post.

A number of years ago, I wondered if my wheels would fit the Spoon Calipers. After searches, I found a lot of people had been wondering and asking what wheels fit, and that it was very difficult to get any kind of information as to what would fit. Several wheel vendors, and the vendors who sell Spoon monoblocks told me certain offsets would work. However, I found that offset is only the beginning of proper brake/wheel fitment. Wheel spoke design, wheel center hub design, offset, and wheel pad height ALL play a part in proper fitment.

I wondered why nobody had come up with a template similar to the one that Stoptech employs to help people determine the fitment of their product to one's wheels. So I started this project to make a fitment template for the Spoon 4POT Monoblock calipers. That way, anybody who wanted these, or had them would never be left in the dark again.

I was able to get my hands on a Spoon Caliper spec sheet done up for Work Wheels from OPAK Racing (Spoon USA), but after drawing up my initial template, found that it was merely a cross-section of the center of the caliper, and left out a lot of trouble-points. This was almost two and a half years ago, and I pretty much left the project on the back burner since then and forgot about it. Several people have PMed me asking what the progress of the template was, and if it was ready; most recently, just before Christmas. Since I had off from work, and my car was in storage within easy access, this last PM pushed me off my procrastinating butt to complete the project. I must thank markhs2 and give him credit for that last kick to get me moving again.

Several adjustments and some reverse engineering resulted in the completed product, free for anyone to use. I verified this on my own brakes and tested the template on my wheels. However, this has not yet been verified by an outside source. The link may be temporary and will be updated when/if needed.

I sincerely hope that this template helps anyone who is interested in the Spoon Calipers or has the calipers and is interested in a set of wheels. You can either use this template for your own use, or send it to a wheel vendor for fitment testing before you buy a new set of wheels. ... or buy both wheels and brakes.


When printing, make sure your scaling settings are set to 1:1. The file page size is set exactly to the same as the standard letter page; 8.5" X 11". Make sure you verify that the print out is to scale by matching a dimension in both height and width with a ruler or other measuring instrument.

PROOF OF CONCEPT:




TEMPLATE IN USE:
(Note: I run with 3mm spacers on my car, and they are NOT included in this picture)

AP2CRazy

Very Informative

Croc

thx a lot

Blendo

Good job Paul!

jonner

.....

MB

Nice work.

It would be great if people could start printing this off and checking against their wheels, to compile a go-no-go list for all the wheels out there. Maybe some of the site sponsors on here who stock a lot of the popular wheels can get involved?

The "Spoon fitment" thread is sadly just a list of people asking questions rather than providing answers.

Anyone want to start?

Mountain-man

Thanks for the kind words guys!

Some people have started this a long time ago. The beginning of the thread has a small list compiled with a list for wheels that do not need spacers and wheels that do. But I don't think the original poster did much after the first few posts. It's all the people asking questions about the fitment rather than providing answers that got me going on the project in the first place. Nobody was doing anything about the core problem. Nobody had any information to use other than offset. I have the link posted in that thread in hopes that people can start using to quell all the "will this fit?" Will that fit?" questions.

The more people who use it, and post up, the better and bigger the list will become.

The template can be downloaded and printed if the link is followed. I know it's cumbersome, but anyone can download it. Once downloaded, it can be sent via email attachment to any wheel vendor the customer wishes. But yeah, it would be great if something like a "master list" was compiled over time. That would take a lot of work though, as you're looking at a LOT of wheels to do this. I was made aware by another member that Makin Industries now has the template, so perhaps sometime in the future, a list will come together....

I think it's also important to understand that while the secondary problem is a bit easier to take care of, (make compromises would likely be a better term,) fitment to the fender is another fitment issue, but unrelated to the brake fitment. Finding a wheel that will fit the brakes is one thing, but finding a wheel that fits both brakes and the car is another. A wheel can stick out too far. I know people have used narrower tires and slammed a lot of negative camber in the front to get some wheels to fit, but unless you're seriously going for that "look" it's going to compromise the handling of the car and has other negative aspects as well.

So, in a way, there are wheels that fit and wheels that "fit" depending on the context that you use to view it.

If a car must be modified beyond OEM for a wheel to fit vs "fit" then that should also be mentioned in some sort of disclaimer in whatever thread/list that is started. While this may mean just a minor tweak in camber, it's something. Cars that are lowered will also have additional fitment issues because of tighter clearance on the fenders. But now we are getting into the realm of the wheels & tires form.

slociviccoupe

stupid question, dont have a set of stock wheels to put template up to. but think they would fit under oem ap1 wheels?

Mountain-man

They need something like a 12mm or 15mm spacer to fit. Not 100% sure though. You can find that information in the "wheels that fit spoon calipers" thread in the wheels & tires forum.

Mountain-man

UPDATE! The file can now be directly attached here! No more fooling around. File attached to Original Post.