Rear rim/tire clearance question

[edevlin]

I just got the same set of rims as Randallneighbor with cheaper Falken tires. The rims landed yesterday and like the numbnuts I can sometimes be, I took off my old 17" rims/tires and put on the new 18" rims/tires, torqued the bolts down to 97 ft/lbs, and away I rode....

I just caught up to this thread this morning and sure enough, I do have a cardboard-width clearance between the wheel and struts, but I am rubbing on the drivers-side brake cable housing, rubbed off some of the insulation. I will get a tie to pull back the cable housing a little.

I did have a question about centering the wheels, as the new wheels do not have the centering flange built into the wheel. Is there any trick to centering wheels that lack a flange? I just tried to line up the wheels on the bolt-holes as best I could, then slowly tightened them up.

Finally, because I have a modest clearance from the struts, I assume I do not need spacers, I perfer not to use them if I can avoid it, thanks,

Ed