Snow chain bracket for vehicle wheel

A bracket for mounting snow chains to a vehicle wheel comprising:

• a member having a first end portion and a second end portion and being extendable through a vehicle wheel to position said first end portion and said second end portion on opposite sides of said wheel;
• first means including fasteners on said first end portion and said second end portion operable to engage and hold opposite ends of a snow chain extending radially around the vehicle wheel;
• second means on said member extending from said first end portion and positionable against said vehicle wheel;
• third means to releasably secure said second means to said vehicle wheel and limit relative motion therebetween and wherein:
• said second means is a wall with a proximal end portion fixedly secured to said member;
• said wall has a distal end portion with spaced-apart opposite edge portions, each forming a nut-engaging stop surface positioned a given distance from said member;
• said wall further includes a lug bolt hole positioned a distance from said member less than said given distance;
• said member has a radius of curvature forming a concave plate as viewed from said distal end portion toward said member;
• said distal end portion includes a curved edge extending from one of said opposite edge portions toward said lug bolt hole and back to the other of said opposite edge portions forming an axle relief.

The combination of:

• a vehicle wheel securable to an axle by fasteners and having a rim and spider fixedly mounted thereto, said spider including a central axle hole and a plurality of mounting bosses spaced around said axle hole to receive said fasteners;
• a tire mounted on said rim;
• at least one snow chain extending around said tire and having opposite ends located on opposite sides of said wheel;
• first mounting means extending through said wheel between said rim and spider and having opposite end portions;
• connecting means connecting said opposite ends to said opposite end portions and operable to allow release of at least one of said ends from one of said end portions;
• and
• a second mounting means extending from said first mounting means to at least one of said mounting bosses to be secured thereto by one of said fasteners.

A snow chain bracket combination for mounting to a vehicle wheel having a rim with attached spider comprising:

• a first wall with opposite end portions and extendable through said wheel between said rim and spider;
• at least one chain extending radially around said wheel and having opposite ends connected to said first wall;
• connecting means connecting said opposite ends of said chain to said opposite end portions of said first wall and operable to allow at least one of said ends to be unconnected from one of said end portions;
• a second wall having a proximal end portion, an intermediate portion, and a distal end portion with said proximal end portion connected to said first wall adjacent one of said end portions, said second wall extends at said proximal end portion from said first wall toward said distal end portion which is joined thereto by said intermediate portion, said distal end portion includes a lug bolt hole and a pair of lug-engaging corners to cooperatively limit relative motion of said second wall relative to the wheel.