Even with wheels repaired, there was still work to do. The wheel-stud holes of the STAR wheels are much bigger than the holes in the standard LD wheels and are designed to take chamfered NOT spigot nuts (as found on the standard LD). There's also an issue with the inner face of the STAR wheels not interfacing correctly with the standard LD hub. Because of a slight dish, the STAR wheels, in standard form, will not mount flush to the hub across the entire interfacing surface. As well as the rim-width issue - physically fitting 14R20 tyres into the available gap is also quite tricky and exact rim offset and width are critical if major revisions of body work and air brake fittings are to be avoided. With absolutely optimum positioning (some) 14" tyres on STAR rims literally only just fit. There are several 'solutions' to these problems, some more involved than others.

The solution I (and a couple of other owners) employed was to have some 'top hat' style spacers made (thanks Andy). These perform multiple tasks. They space the rim correctly in the wheelwell, they ensure a flush interface between hub and wheel, and they act as wheel-stud sleeves to a) stop any potential unwanted rotation of the wheel on the hub, b) reduce strain on wheel studs and c) allow the original T244 spigot -style wheel nuts (including the 16 that sport quirky left-hand threads) to be retained. Altogether, the top hats work well; indeed if welded into the STAR rims and painted the same colour as the rim the whole assembly could almost pass off as a manufacturer-supplied two piece split rim wheel designed specifically for the T244.

A quick note on tyres: we selected Continental NATOs. Many brands of 14R20 are available but not all are manufactured to the same tolerances. Specifically, some have a greater diameter than others and some ‘taller’ 14R20s may not fit in the T244s wheelwells without interference issues: you have been warned… Even with ‘smaller 14” tyres, I personally still came across one interference issue: under suspension compression and with a bit of steering lock applied the leading edge of the front tyres would ‘thrum’ against the trailing edge of the front wing / mudguard. A session with the angle grinder and files saw the problem overcome - eventually.

So: was it all worth it? ABSOLUTELY! Here's a summary of the advantages: 1) The chosen tyres give a much smoother and quieter ride on tarmac than our standard 12" G188s did. 2) The infamous LD wobble is greatly reduced to the point of being genuinely negligible. 3) They serve well to improve suspension compliance, even before being aired down. 4) They roll through potholes and rough surfaces really well, they are less inclined to ‘crash’ through potholes than the standard 12s. 5) They allow comfortable autoroute cruising at a genuine 56mph. 6) Traction and 'float' are very good on loose surfaces. 7) Increased ground clearance (about 60mm).

Here are some downsides and general observations: 1) Some local hills that I used to be able to carry in top gear now require 4th. This could be compensated for by a tweak of the fuel pump to produce a little more power but I currently don’t care enough to bother faffing. 2) Overall height of the truck is raised by about 60mm - this can make itself known when stepping up to the cab etc. 3) No room for snowchains. 4) I took great care in assembly making sure the tyres, liners and rims were caked in tyre soap. This helps the tyres slide up on to the beads and seat properly under inflation. If assembled dry, the tyres can fail to seat properly and lead to an out-of-round scenario. 5) The pulse setting of the standard VDO speedo needs to be reset to 7400 for accurate speedo readings. 6) It actually feels ‘right’ when pottering through 30mph speed limits to be required to shift into 4th gear rather than just go absolutely everywhere in top! 7) Time will tell if the extra strain has any consequences on any of the drivetrain components but given the over-engineered nature of the T244, plus the fact we run at 7.5t, I’m confident we’ll be OK.