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[[Image:Spinner rim.jpg|thumb|Spinner]]
A '''spinner''' is a type of [[hubcap]] that spins independently inside of a [[wheel]] itself when the vehicle is in motion, and continues to spin once the vehicle has come to a stop. Being an attachment to the car's wheel, spinners operate by using one or more [[roller bearing]]s to isolate the spinner from the [[wheel]], allowing it to turn while the wheel is at rest. The spinner's own momentum helps it overcome what little [[friction]] is transmitted through the bearing. When the car is in motion, the small amount of friction transmitted through the bearing sets the spinner in motion. Spinners were popular within the [[Hip hop music|hip-hop]] community of the [[United States]] and are gradually fading out of vogue in popular culture.


The '''spinner''' on automobile wheels historically refers to knock-off hub nuts or center caps. They may be the actual, or intended to simulate, the design used on antique vehicles or vintage [[sports car]]s. A "spinner wheel" in contemporary usage is a type of [[hubcap]] or inner wheel ornament, that spins independently inside of a [[wheel]] itself when the vehicle is in motion and continues to spin once the vehicle has come to a stop.
== Invention ==


==Original use==
In October 1992, a United States wheel spinner [[patent]] was filed by American inventor [http://www.omni-11.com James (J.D.) Gragg] from Tulsa, Oklahoma, who conceived and invented the original free-spinning spinner in the late 1980s. The [http://www.tru-spinners.com/main.php American Tru Spinners] Wheel Enhancer spinner patent [http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=5,290,094.PN.&OS=PN/5,290,094&RS=PN/5,290,094 United States Patent #5,290,094] was issued on March 1, 1994, making it the first free-spinning wheel spinner patent of its kind with foreign patents to follow, Patent #187,015 issued in October 1997.<ref>{{cite web |title=United States Patent Office |work=USPTO |url= http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=16&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PTXT&s1=5290094&OS=5290094&RS=5290094}}</ref> Gragg has over 100 inventions and has built many versions of spinning wheels including one that spun for over 18 minutes and Triple-Spinner with 27 different spinning mode capabilities and [http://www.OMNI-11.com/tfc/ Holographic Tru-Spinners]. Many imitation versions were made and sold. In 2003, Davin Wheels was issued a U.S. patent #6,554,370 for a non-adaptable spinning wheel only version called the continuous motion wheel.<ref>[http://www.freepatentsonline.com/6554370.html U.S. Patent 6,554,370], issued April 29, 2003</ref>
{{Main|Centerlock wheel}}


[[File:Riley Brooklands 1930,Belem02.jpg|thumb|right|Two bladed spinner on a wire wheel]]
== Introduction to market ==


⚫
[[File:1967 AMC Marlin white with red interior 07.jpg|thumb|right|1967 [[American Motors|AMC]] simulated wire wheel cover with spinner]]
American Tru-Spinners originally introduced its patented free-spinning wheel spinner in 1994 back when Tru-Spinners were only on an exclusive selected group of "Custom and Concept Cars", this is when Tru-Spinners were first viewed by the public and others saw the concept and then proceeded to pirate the technology. Tru-Spinners is known to be the leader in the field of the "Spinning Wheel Technology" with documented spin tests that stayed in motion for over 18 minutes and also has versions with multiple-spinners that have 27 different spinning mode capabilities and [http://www.OMNI-11.com/tfc/ Holographic Tru-Spinners]. The Tru-Spinner was so popular worldwide that the illegal pirating was on a massive scale and considered to be the largest case of patent infringement in legal history. American Tru-Spinners then formed a legal team in the United States and took 12 of the largest manufacturers and distributors into the [http://www.enotes.com/topic/American_Tru_Spinners U.S. Federal Courts of the Southern District of California, San Diego Division] and the [http://www.enotes.com/topic/American_Tru_Spinners U.S. Federal Courts of the Eastern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division], where American Tru-Spinners prevailed in 100% of it's cases for Patent Infringement & Trademark where Permanent Injunctions were issued against all the defendants. The awards are confidential as requested by the U.S. Federal Courts. Then over one-million U.S. Patents later, Davin Wheels introduced a non-adaptable wheel only version at the [[Los Angeles Auto Show]]. When Davin Wheels was unable to obtain a booth at the Auto Show, they were invited to join another vendor at the show, [[NBA]] star [[Latrell Sprewell]]'s Sprewell Racing. Coincidentally, Sprewell is a Milwaukee native. For this reason, spinners are sometimes also called "Sprewells", although Sprewell has stated that he was not the inventor of Sprewells.<ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B00E4DD113CF934A15751C1A9649C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2 Barron, James. "In Some Circles, A Man Is Judged By the Cut of His Wheel" The New York Times, December 27, 2002], retrieved on 2008-06-13.</ref>


The spinner or "knock-off" originated with [[Rudge-Whitworth]] center lock [[wire wheel]]s and hubs, which were first patented in 1908.<ref name=":0">{{cite magazine|last=Howard |first=Keith |date=May 2001 |title=Rudge-Whitworth hub |url= https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/may-2001/41/r-u-d-g-e-whit-worth-hub |magazine=Motor Sport |language=en-GB |access-date=18 March 2020}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{cite web|url= https://www.hemmings.com/blog/article/rudge-whitworth/ |title=Rudge-Whitworth |last=Shea |first=Terry |date=September 2012 |website=hemmings.com |access-date=2020-03-18}}</ref> The spinner was a threaded, winged nut designed to keep the wheel fastened to the hub. They were screwed on and "knocked on tightly" using a hammer, hence the name "knock-offs". Most setups will feature right-hand threads on the left side of the vehicle, and left-hand threads (rotate clockwise to remove) on the vehicle's right side so the screw-on spinner would stay tightened as the auto was in forward motion.<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=muyszoZbpNQC&q=setups+will+feature+right-hand+threads+on+the+vehicle+left+side,+and+left-hand+threads+on+the+vehicle+right+side&pg=PT253 |first=Mike |last=Mavrigian |title=High Performance Fasteners & Plumbing: A Guide to Nuts, Bolts, Fuel, Brake, Oil & Coolant Lines, Hoses, Clamps, Racinghardware and Plumbing Techniques |publisher=HP Books |year=2008 |isbn=9781557885234}}</ref> This style of "knock-off" wheel was common on road cars until the development of the [[lug nut]] method attaching the wheel.
The [[Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003)|Rolls-Royce Phantom]] has anti-spinners &mdash; the "RR" logo in the center of the hub is mounted on a spinner with an [[offset weight]] designed to ensure that the logo is always the right way up when the car is parked similar to one of Tru-Spinners spinning modes. The [[hubometer]]s used on large trucks and buses that appear to run stationary as to count their miles, are actually enclosed and float in a liquid with anti-freeze as to be functional in severe low temperatures without freezing..


== Popularity ==
== Spinner hubcaps ==
The spinner hubcap was introduced into the commercial vehicle and passenger automobile market in the 1930s.<ref name="browne">{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=U3rJxPYT32MC&q=spinner+hub+cap&pg=PA416 |title=The guide to United States popular culture |publisher=Bowling Green State University Popular Press |year=2001 |isbn=9780879728212 |editor-last=Browne |editor-first=Ray B. |page=416 |editor2-last=Browne |editor2-first=Pat}}</ref> Automotive designer [[Harley Earl]] expressed a brash philosophy behind his 1950s automobiles that included "glittering spinner hubcaps."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Yates |first1=Brock |title=Detroit Iron |journal=American Heritage |date=October 1991 |volume=42 |issue=6 |url= https://www.americanheritage.com/detroit-iron |access-date=30 September 2019}}</ref> During the 1950s and 1960s automobile manufacturers offered simulated wire wheel covers for a look of luxury that featured crisscrossing spokes designed to look like the real wire wheels that were used on vehicles in the 1920s and 1930s.<ref name="connor">{{cite web|title=A look back at simulated wire wheel covers. Part 2: the 1960s |first=Sean |last=Connor |date=22 January 2012 |publisher=Newark Classic Cars Examiner |url= https://www.classiccarstodayonline.com/2015/02/19/a-look-back-at-simulated-wire-wheel-covers-part-2-the-1960s/ |access-date=30 September 2019}}</ref> These "spinner-wheel covers" were available on standard as well as featured on custom cars, and [[lowriders]] quickly adapted them for their vehicles.<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Q_tB9qbFCigC&q=Wire+wheel+cover+spinner+1960&pg=PA199 |pages=199–200 |title=Lowriders in Chicano Culture: From Low to Slow to Show|first=Charles M. |last=Tatum |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2011 |isbn=9780313381492}}</ref>


During the early-1960s, the simulated wire wheel covers returned, but with a new look designed to emphasize sportiness with their radiating spokes and center "spinner caps."<ref name="connor"/><ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=TwcOO2OxujYC&q=AMC+spinner+wheel+cover&pg=PA10 |page=10 |last=Gunnell|first=John|title=Standard Catalog of American Muscle Cars 1960-1972 |year=2006 |publisher=Krause Publications |isbn=978-0-89689-433-4}}</ref> These classic center spinner caps feature a rigidly mounted propeller-like center element, usually with two or three projecting "blades."<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=WZ9bF45s1cMC&q=Wire+wheel+cover+spinner&pg=PA27 |page=27 |last=Corcoran |first=Tom |title=Mustang 1964½–1968 |year=1994 |publisher=MBI Publishing |isbn=978-0-87938-630-6}}</ref> They were intended to simulate the knock-off hubs that were used on vintage [[Auto racing|racing vehicle]]s and classic [[sports car]]s where a hammer or special wrench was used on the spinner to release or tighten the wheel to the [[Wheel hub assembly|hub]].<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=UbLua09mcjIC&q=Wire+wheel+cover+spinner+1960&pg=PA84 |page=84 |title=Original MGA |first=Anders Ditlev |last=Clausager |publisher=MBI Publishing |year=2003 |isbn=9780760314500}}</ref>
Spinners were popularized by the 2003 [[Three 6 Mafia]] single "[[Ridin' Spinners]]" featuring [[Lil' Flip]], and other popular songs by [[T.I.]], [[Nelly]], [[Lloyd Banks]], [[Chingy]], [[Jadakiss]], [[G-Unit]], [[50 Cent]], [[Master P]], [[DJ Quik]], [[Redman (rapper)|Redman]], [[Baby]], [[Twista]], [[Dem Franchize Boyz]], and [[Big Tymers]]. Multiple music videos have featured the use of spinners. Spinners have also been features in television shows such as MTV's "[[Cribs]]," [[ESPN]]'s "[[The Life]]," [[BET]]'s "[[How I'm Living]]," and "[[NBA Inside Stuff]]." Spinners have been further popularized by many celebrities who use them including, [[Latrell Sprewell]], [[Hulk Hogan]], [[Shaquille O'Neal]], [[Busta Rhymes]], [[Donovan McNabb]], and [[Allen Iverson]].


These spinner hubcaps were most often an optional appearance upgrade to the standard equipment [[hubcap]]s or full wheel covers that attached to stamped steel wheels.<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=y6DUvUpGmn0C&q=Wire+wheel+cover+spinner&pg=PA74 |page=74 |last=Cheetham |first=Craig |title=Ultimate Muscle Cars |publisher=MBI Publishing|year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7603-2834-7}}</ref> Top trim models sometimes included spinner wheel covers as standard equipment to appeal to youthful customers.<ref>{{cite book |last=Glatch |first=Tom |title=The Art of Mopar: Chrysler, Dodge, and Plymouth Muscle Cars |date=2017 |publisher=Motorbooks |isbn=9780760359716 |pages=22–28 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=LlcqDwAAQBAJ&q=Dodge+spinner+wheel+cover&pg=PA21}}</ref>
The [[monster truck]] [[Escalade (truck)|Escalade]] and [[Annihilator (truck)|Annihilator]] use spinners specially designed for their large wheels and to take the large amounts of abuse.


In the late 1960s, U.S. Federal safety standards banned the use of protruding bar spinners on automobiles.<ref name="browne"/>
==Historical==


==Other uses==
⚫
[[Image:1967 AMC Marlin wire wheel cover CZ.jpg|thumb|right|225px|1967 [[American Motors|AMC]] wheel cover with spinner]]
[[File:1956 Dodge La Femme fenderF.jpg|thumb|right|Dodge four-bladed "spinner" wheel cover]]
The mid-1950s Dodge four-bladed "spinner" wheel covers became an icon for the era and also became an item popular to owners to customize their cars.<ref>{{cite book|url= https://archive.org/details/standardguideto100john |url-access= registration |page= [https://archive.org/details/standardguideto100john/page/94 94] |quote= Dodge four bladed spinner wheel cover. |title=Standard guide to 1950s American cars |first=John |last=Gunnell |publisher=Krause Publications |year=2004 |isbn=9780873498685}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=2CqJ-oFA9CkC&q=Dodge+four+bladed+spinner+wheel+cover&pg=PA145 |title=Kustom Kemps of America: Commemorative Book |publisher=Turner Publishing |year=2003 |isbn=9781563119378}}</ref>


Spinners were an add-on accessory marketed during the 1950s to decorate regular wheel covers for a custom look.<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=pmlSQglkGokC&q=spinner+hub+cap&pg=PA209 |page=209 |title=Rod & Custom in the 1950s |first=Deette |last=Crow |publisher=Motorbooks International |year=2004 |isbn=9780760316306}}</ref> Center spinner hubcaps were also available as original equipment from automakers.<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=1sh3KnKIgIwC&q=spinner+hub+cap&pg=PA22 |page=22 |title=Chrysler Muscle: Detroit's Mightiest Machines |first1=Bill |last1=Holder |first2=Phil |last2=Kunz |publisher=Krause Publications |year=2003 |isbn=9780873496339}}</ref>
The term ''spinner hubcaps'' has been in use since the 1950s, but describes a different item from those used today.


Custom wheels for [[lowrider]]s also used naked ladies on wheel covers, and these were the first to feature a floating or spinner-type wheel device. A bracket was used to mount to the spindle, so while the lady stood still the wheel spun around.<ref>{{cite magazine |url= http://www.lowridermagazine.com/tech/0605_lrm_history_of_the_wheel/viewall.html |title=History of the Wheel: A loose look at the wheels and tires that lowriders have loved to roll on |first=Sammy J. |last=Perea |magazine=Lowrider |date=February 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120826080732/http://www.lowridermagazine.com/tech/0605_lrm_history_of_the_wheel/viewall.html |archive-date=26 August 2012 |access-date=30 September 2019}}</ref> Similarly, the [[Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003)|Rolls-Royce Phantom]] has anti-spinners – the "RR" logo in the center of the hub is mounted on a spinner or gyroscopic mechanism with an offset weight designed to ensure that the logo is always the right way up when the car is parked.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Evans |first1=Sean |last2=Hood |first2=Bryan |title=21 Fascinating Things You Didn’t Know About Rolls-Royce |url= https://robbreport.com/motors/cars/rolls-royce-facts-2900540/ |work=Robb Report |access-date=28 November 2023 |date=8 February 2022}}</ref>
These classic spinner caps feature a rigidly mounted propeller-like center element, usually with two or three projecting "blades", intended to simulate the knock-off hubs that were used on vintage [[Auto racing|racing vehicle]]s and classic [[sports car]]s.


The [[hubometer]]s used on large trucks, buses, and trailers that appear to be stationary while the wheel is turning to accurately measure the actual distance covered. They are enclosed and float in a liquid with anti-freeze to be functional in severe low temperatures without freezing.
These spinner hubcaps were most often an optional appearance upgrade to the standard equipment [[hubcap]]s or full wheel covers that attached to stamped steel wheels.


==Modern concept ==
These hubcaps were the inspiration for a Detroit-area [[R&B]]/[[soul music|soul]] group, The Domingoes, to rename themselves [[The Spinners (soul music)|The Spinners]] in the late 1950s. A second-tier [[Motown]] act in the 1960s, the Spinners would go on, in the early 1970s, to score a string of hits in the [[Philly soul]] style.
⚫
[[File:Spinner rim.jpg|thumb|Rotating spinner wheel]]

The modern spinner device is a decorative kinetic attachment to the [[wheel]] of an automobile.<ref name="fieldguide">{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=lqSkD9cxTmMC&q=Spinner+automobile+wheel&pg=PA28 |page=28 |title=A Field Guide to Automotive Technology |first=Ed |last=Sobe |publisher=Chicago Review Press |year=2009 |isbn= 9781613741719}}</ref> The spinner covers the center of a car's wheel and is designed to independently rotate by using one or more [[roller bearing]]s to isolate the spinner from the wheel, enabling it to turn while the wheel is at rest.<ref name="fieldguide"/>

Legislative bills were proposed in several US states to ban spinner-type wheels and hubcaps that simulate movement even when a vehicle is stopped because they could be disconcerting to other motorists and present a safety hazard.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www2.sema.org/Main/SemaOrgHome.aspx?ID=53066 |title=Spinner wheels and hubcaps face bans in several states |publisher=SEMA Market Snapshot |location=US |date=15 June 2005 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150223174142/http://www2.sema.org/Main/SemaOrgHome.aspx?ID=53066 |archive-date=23 February 2015 |access-date=30 September 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Shunk |first1=Chris |title=New York State moves to ban spinner wheels |url= https://www.autoblog.com/2007/02/17/new-york-state-moves-to-ban-spinner-wheels/ |work=Autoblog |date=17 February 2007 |access-date=30 September 2019}}</ref>

Spinners were popular during the early-2000s within the [[Hip hop music|hip-hop]] community of the [[United States]]. Since the mid-2000s, they are gradually fading out of vogue in popular culture.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.smartguy.com/index.asp?id=2354 |title=Choosing the Best Tires for Your Car |publisher=Smartguy.com |year=2008 |access-date=11 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.kophi.org/page/10/ |title=How to Select New Rims and Tires for Your Car |date=19 August 2012 |publisher=Auto Parts & Accessories |access-date=11 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130723174154/http://www.kophi.org/page/10/ |archive-date=23 July 2013 }}</ref>

==Music==
The spinner-type automobile hubcaps were the inspiration for a Detroit-area [[R&B]]/[[soul music|soul]] group, The Domingoes, to rename themselves [[The Spinners (American group)|The Spinners]] in the late 1950s.<ref>{{cite journal|url= http://www.rnbshowcasemag.com/spinners.html |title=The 'One of a Kind' Sound of The Spinners |journal=R&B Showcase News |issue=7|first=Tim |last=Marshall |access-date=9 October 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=McCollum |first=Brian |title=Bobby Smith, lead singer of The Spinners, dies |url= https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2013/03/19/spinners-lead-singer-bobby-smith-dies/2000219/ |agency=Detroit Free Press |work=USA Today |date=19 March 2013 |access-date=30 September 2019}}</ref>

In 1960, Pat Davis recorded the song "Spinner Hub Caps".<ref>{{cite web|first=Tyrone |last=Schmidling |url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AQtzaenRhY |archive-url= https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/8AQtzaenRhY |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=Pat Davis "Spinner Hub Caps" 1960 |via=YouTube |date=26 April 2009 |access-date=11 June 2013}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In 2003, as spinning rims were in the height of their popularity in hip-hop culture, [[Three 6 Mafia]] released the song "Ridin' Spinners". The song title refers to driving while having spinning rims installed on the car. In the first line of the song, DJ Paul urges all the "players out there ridin' spinners" to "stop, and let 'em keep spinnin' baby", and the chorus repeatedly proclaims that the spinners "don't stop".<ref>{{cite web |title=Three 6 Mafia - Ridin' Spinners Lyrics |url=https://genius.com/Three-6-mafia-ridin-spinners-lyrics |website=Genius.com |access-date=26 January 2024}}</ref> The song was on the album [[Da Unbreakables]], which was certified gold by the [[RIAA]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=three+6+mafia#search_section|title=Gold & Platinum - RIAA|work=RIAA|access-date=2018-06-26|language=en-US}}</ref>

[["Weird Al" Yankovic]]'s 2006 song [[White & Nerdy]] contains the lines "My rims never spin to the contrary / You'll find that they're quite stationary"<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/9139268/Weird+Al+Yankovic/White+%26+Nerdy |title=White & Nerdy lyrics |website=lyrics.com}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
*[[Custom wheel]]
*[[Custom wheel]]
⚫
*[[Hubcap]]
*[[Donk (automobile)|Donk]]
⚫
* [[Hubcap]]


==References==
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}
4. United States #5,290,094 issued March 4, 1994[http://www.freepatentsonline.com/5290094.html Tru Spinners]
5. Foreign Patent #187,015

==External links==


{{Powertrain}}


[[Category:Automotive accessories]]
[[Category:Automotive accessories]]
[[Category:Automotive styling features]]
[[Category:Automotive styling features]]
[[Category:Auto parts]]
[[Category:Auto parts]]
[[Category:Vehicle modification]]
[[Category:Vehicle modifications]]
[[Category:American inventions]]

[[de:Spinning Wheels]]

Latest revision as of 21:44, 27 September 2024

The spinner on automobile wheels historically refers to knock-off hub nuts or center caps. They may be the actual, or intended to simulate, the design used on antique vehicles or vintage sports cars. A "spinner wheel" in contemporary usage is a type of hubcap or inner wheel ornament, that spins independently inside of a wheel itself when the vehicle is in motion and continues to spin once the vehicle has come to a stop.

Original use

[edit]
Main article: Centerlock wheel
Two bladed spinner on a wire wheel
1967 AMC simulated wire wheel cover with spinner

The spinner or "knock-off" originated with Rudge-Whitworth center lock wire wheels and hubs, which were first patented in 1908.[1][2] The spinner was a threaded, winged nut designed to keep the wheel fastened to the hub. They were screwed on and "knocked on tightly" using a hammer, hence the name "knock-offs". Most setups will feature right-hand threads on the left side of the vehicle, and left-hand threads (rotate clockwise to remove) on the vehicle's right side so the screw-on spinner would stay tightened as the auto was in forward motion.[3] This style of "knock-off" wheel was common on road cars until the development of the lug nut method attaching the wheel.

Spinner hubcaps

[edit]

The spinner hubcap was introduced into the commercial vehicle and passenger automobile market in the 1930s.[4] Automotive designer Harley Earl expressed a brash philosophy behind his 1950s automobiles that included "glittering spinner hubcaps."[5] During the 1950s and 1960s automobile manufacturers offered simulated wire wheel covers for a look of luxury that featured crisscrossing spokes designed to look like the real wire wheels that were used on vehicles in the 1920s and 1930s.[6] These "spinner-wheel covers" were available on standard as well as featured on custom cars, and lowriders quickly adapted them for their vehicles.[7]

During the early-1960s, the simulated wire wheel covers returned, but with a new look designed to emphasize sportiness with their radiating spokes and center "spinner caps."[6][8] These classic center spinner caps feature a rigidly mounted propeller-like center element, usually with two or three projecting "blades."[9] They were intended to simulate the knock-off hubs that were used on vintage racing vehicles and classic sports cars where a hammer or special wrench was used on the spinner to release or tighten the wheel to the hub.[10]

These spinner hubcaps were most often an optional appearance upgrade to the standard equipment hubcaps or full wheel covers that attached to stamped steel wheels.[11] Top trim models sometimes included spinner wheel covers as standard equipment to appeal to youthful customers.[12]

In the late 1960s, U.S. Federal safety standards banned the use of protruding bar spinners on automobiles.[4]

Other uses

[edit]
Dodge four-bladed "spinner" wheel cover

The mid-1950s Dodge four-bladed "spinner" wheel covers became an icon for the era and also became an item popular to owners to customize their cars.[13][14]

Spinners were an add-on accessory marketed during the 1950s to decorate regular wheel covers for a custom look.[15] Center spinner hubcaps were also available as original equipment from automakers.[16]

Custom wheels for lowriders also used naked ladies on wheel covers, and these were the first to feature a floating or spinner-type wheel device. A bracket was used to mount to the spindle, so while the lady stood still the wheel spun around.[17] Similarly, the Rolls-Royce Phantom has anti-spinners – the "RR" logo in the center of the hub is mounted on a spinner or gyroscopic mechanism with an offset weight designed to ensure that the logo is always the right way up when the car is parked.[18]

The hubometers used on large trucks, buses, and trailers that appear to be stationary while the wheel is turning to accurately measure the actual distance covered. They are enclosed and float in a liquid with anti-freeze to be functional in severe low temperatures without freezing.

Modern concept

[edit]
Rotating spinner wheel

The modern spinner device is a decorative kinetic attachment to the wheel of an automobile.[19] The spinner covers the center of a car's wheel and is designed to independently rotate by using one or more roller bearings to isolate the spinner from the wheel, enabling it to turn while the wheel is at rest.[19]

Legislative bills were proposed in several US states to ban spinner-type wheels and hubcaps that simulate movement even when a vehicle is stopped because they could be disconcerting to other motorists and present a safety hazard.[20][21]

Spinners were popular during the early-2000s within the hip-hop community of the United States. Since the mid-2000s, they are gradually fading out of vogue in popular culture.[22][23]

Music

[edit]

The spinner-type automobile hubcaps were the inspiration for a Detroit-area R&B/soul group, The Domingoes, to rename themselves The Spinners in the late 1950s.[24][25]

In 1960, Pat Davis recorded the song "Spinner Hub Caps".[26]

In 2003, as spinning rims were in the height of their popularity in hip-hop culture, Three 6 Mafia released the song "Ridin' Spinners". The song title refers to driving while having spinning rims installed on the car. In the first line of the song, DJ Paul urges all the "players out there ridin' spinners" to "stop, and let 'em keep spinnin' baby", and the chorus repeatedly proclaims that the spinners "don't stop".[27] The song was on the album Da Unbreakables, which was certified gold by the RIAA.[28]

"Weird Al" Yankovic's 2006 song White & Nerdy contains the lines "My rims never spin to the contrary / You'll find that they're quite stationary"[29]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Howard, Keith (May 2001). "Rudge-Whitworth hub". Motor Sport. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  2. ^ Shea, Terry (September 2012). "Rudge-Whitworth". hemmings.com. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
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