[camarokidz28]

How to Widen Steel Wheels -

If you have a set of 5" wide wheels (measured on the inside lip of the rim), then 8" wide of rolled metal will need to be added in the wheels to make them 13" wide. To do this, you will need to...

Place a mark on the wheels where they need to be cut. And importantly, identify the two halves of each wheel so they will be put back together without getting them mixed up. (If this isn't done, one wheel could be wider than the other and/or the offset won't be right when the job is finished.)
To cut the wheels, chuck them in a large metal lathe with a minimum 14" swing. A Cub Cadet axle that's not bent can be used as a spindle to get a true cut. Or chuck the edge of the rim in the lathe's jaw chuck. The wheels can be cut on the inside or outside. Either way, just make sure they won't slip in the chuck when cutting them!
Acquire 33-3/8" length of flat steel, one for each wheel, approximately the same thickness as the metal in the wheels. Use either 12 gauge (.108" thickness), 13 gauge (.093" thickness) or 3/32" (.094" thickness). For 23-10.50x12 tires, the wheels will need to be 11" wide (inside lip to inside lip). And for 26-12.00x12 tires, the wheels will need to be 13" wide (inside lip to inside lip). To figure the width of the steel, if the wheel was originally 5" in width, for a 13" wide wheel, the piece of 33-3/8" long flat steel will need to be 8" wide (5" - 13" = 8"). If the wheel is originally 8-1/2" wide, the steel will need to be 4-1/5" wide, etc. (8.5" - 13" = 4.5") The width of all wheels are always measured from the inside lip from one rim to the other. See picture to the right.