1955 colour scheme??

[jagnut66]

Hi,
I have had a work colleague on at me about my brake lights not working, every time I tried them they did but he still insists.....
So tonight I changed the brake light switch for a new one, having already found the circuit to and the lights themselves to be okay. In the past on my old MGB I changed the switch and found I didn't need to bleed the brakes after, tonight on the Moggy, needless to say, I did. Fortunately I have a Gunson Eezibleed kit, which made light work of it, though I will have to create a fresh seal where the pipe goes into my 'adapted' master cylinder cap***, as under pressure it now 'squirts' a bit, however I digress........

Tonight though whilst using my spare wheel to pressurise the Eezibleed I noticed something which I wasn't expecting to see on a car as late as 1955, a detail line on the wheel of a contrasting colour, see picture.
My car was originally Empire Green but I thought the wheels would be plain body colour by this date??............. Does anyone have a definitive answer to this?
(I'm wondering whether the white is household emulsion given the state of it, perhaps they ran out of car paint after doing the other four.....)

The brake lights work exactly the same as before with the new switch, by the way. I have tried to explain that I'm not constantly riding my brakes but he doesn't seem to understand this.................................
Best wishes,
Mike.

*** Adapted to go with the kit not the one fitted when in use.

[palacebear]

Mike.
According to 'The Bible' the only Minors to have a detail line on the wheels were early low-light Series MM's. The wheels were always body colour and the detail line was always cream (debateably pale grey) to match the coach-line.

[jagnut66]

Thanks PB.
So possibly an Australian thing then?
I quite like it.......
Best wishes,
Mike

[palacebear]

Forgot your car is an Oz ex-pat. Maybe peculiar to CKD/Oz assembled... or a former owner who fancied emulating the MM look

[ManyMinors]

Mind you, the wheel you've pictured doesn't look like an original Series11 Minor wheel anyway so I wouldn't rely on it giving you much clue as to the original colour .......

[firedrake1942]

MM in what way? It has the factory hole for adjusting the brakes. I had believed that was the principal difference, but please correct me if belief misplaced.

[firedrake1942]

Just looked at the bible. It says that Series II wheels were the same as Series MM i.e. studs but without the brake adjuster holes. These ones have the holes but no studs. Apart from the hole it looks like a standard Series III wheel. Ray goes on to say of the series III where 'Unlike most Series II models. Minor1000 wheels have contoured moulding ....to locate the hub cap.' So perhaps some later Series II had Series III type wheels but reverted to a brake adjuster hole as well ???

[myoldjalopy]

My SII wheels have the adjustment hole and pins, rather than mouldings, to locate the chrome hub cap. But there are lots of deviations in production, presumably to use parts up - e.g. a 1956 Minor 1000 I once owned, had SII seats and two wheels with the pins and two with the mouldings!

[jaekl]

What size is the valve stem hole? It looks like half inch without the bump required with the bigger hole. The smaller hole makes it about 59 or newer.