Universal wheel pylon

1. A wheel pylon comprising:

a tubular mounting shaft adapted to be carried upon a wheel mounting fixture, said mounting shaft having an end stop formed upon a first end thereof;

a tubular support shaft having an end stop formed upon a first end thereof, one of said mounting shaft and said support shaft slidably received in the other; and

an expansion member disposed within said mounting shaft and said support shaft, said expansion member engaging a surface of said mounting shaft and a surface of said support shaft end stop, said expansion member operable to urge said support shaft in an axial direction away from said mounting shaft, such that the pylon can support any one of a plurality of vehicle wheels having differing wheel disc depths.

2. The wheel pylon of claim 1 wherein said support shaft is received by said mounting shaft, said support shaft end stop extending radially outward from said first end of said support shaft to slidably engage an interior surface of said mounting shaft, said mounting shaft end stop extending radially inward from said first end of said mounting shaft to slidably engage an exterior surface of said support shaft.

3. The wheel pylon of claim 2 wherein said tubular mounting shaft includes a mounting shaft end surface formed at a second end of the mounting shaft and said tubular support shaft includes a support shaft end surface formed at a second end of the mounting shaft, said mounting shaft end surface and said support shaft end surface engaging and retaining said expansion member within said shafts.

4. The wheel pylon of claim 3 wherein said expansion member includes a helical spring having a first end engaging said end surface of said mounting shaft and a second end engaging said end surface of said support shaft end surface, said helical spring being operable to urge said support shaft in an axial direction away from said mounting shaft.

5. The wheel pylon of claim 4 further including a stop formed from a resilient material carried upon a second end of said support shaft.

6. The wheel pylon of claim 5 wherein said stop has an annular recess formed therein that includes an annular lip flange and further wherein a retaining flange is formed upon a second end of said support shaft, said annular recess receiving said second end of said support shaft with said annular lip flange cooperating with said retaining flange to retain said stop upon said support shaft end.

7. The wheel pylon of claim 6 wherein said stop has a truncated conical shape.

8. The wheel pylon of claim 7 wherein said mounting shaft and annular support shaft end stops are formed as an annular flange.

9. A fixture for mounting a vehicle wheel comprising:

a support plate that is adapted to be attached to a wheel lathe spindle;

a clamping mechanism carried by said support plate, said clamping mechanism operable to releasably clamp a vehicle wheel upon said support plate; and

at least one wheel pylon, said wheel pylon including:

a tubular mounting shaft carried by said support plate, said mounting shaft having an end stop formed upon a first end thereof,

a tubular support shaft having an end stop formed upon a first end thereof, one of said mounting shaft and said support shaft slidably received within the other, and

an expansion member disposed within said mounting shaft and said support shaft, said expansion member engaging a surface of said mounting shaft and a surface of said support shaft, said expansion member being operable to urge said support shaft in an axial direction away from said mounting shaft, such that a plurality of vehicle wheels having differing wheel disc recess depths can be supported upon said wheel pylon and thereby be mounted upon the fixture.

10. The wheel pylon of claim 6 wherein said stop has a stepped shape.