Bicycle wheel how well the wheel transmits propulsive and braking forces, if applied at the hub, as in the case of hub or disc brakes. Several factors affect these stiffnesses to varying degrees. These include wheel radius, rim bending and torsional stiffness, number of spokes, spoke gauge, lacing pattern, hub stiffness, hub flange spacing, hub radius. In general lateral and radial stiffness decreases with the number of spoke crossings and torsional stiffness increases with the number of spoke crossings. One factor that has little influence on these stiffnesses is spoke tension. Too much spoke tension, however, can lead to catastrophic failure in
Hubcap decorating one car with the wheel covers from another was common. Two very desirable wheel covers were those of the 1950 Cadillac (called the "Sombrero") and that of the 1953 to 1955 Oldsmobile, which resembled a huge, three-tined spinner. Aftermarket suppliers included the "Mooneyes" brand (named after the firm's founder Dean Moon) hubcaps and wheel covers that were some of the first independently offered for hot rods and custom cars. Another variant of the wheel cover, known also as "wheel shrouds" or "rim blanking", is that commonly associated with the German wheelmaking brand BBS since the 1970s. These are attached