Device for securing spare wheels

Claim 1

Apparatus for securing a spare wheel engaged with a floor and a sidewall of a truck bed comprising: a baseplate, said baseplate being removably mounted on the sidewall; means for retaining the baseplate on one side of the sidewall, said means including first and second members attached to the baseplate, said first member extending from said baseplate for engagement with a top edge of the sidewall, said second member having a first end threaded into the baseplate on one side of the sidewall and extending therefrom through an opening in said sidewall and terminating at a second end on the other side of the sidewall for extending through a hub hole of an associated spare wheel, said opening being at a distance from the floor less than the radius of the spare wheel; anti-rotating means fixedly secured to the second member including a portion extending substantially parallel with the second member and through a lug hole for anti-rotating engagement with the lug hole upon rotation of the second member; means for retaining the spare on the second end of the second member, said means being a spanner member mounted on the second end being of a construction sufficient for engaging a rim of the hub hole; and means for urging the spanner into abutting engagement with the spare, said means being a member threaded on the second end wherein the apparatus is easily removed from the sidewall of the trunk bed when not in use because there are no fasteners attaching the apparatus to the truck.