MAKING A WHEEL, forged vs. cast vs. replica

don't let me make you explain yourself. i am not even talking about getting rotas for my car... this is simply a question for those who understand what goes into making a wheel and the different techniques that are used. i talked to a couple people on pm about it and got great help and answers. i know from other threads you hate rota and give quick one word answers, that is not what i wanted. maybe i didn't specify enough, but it came across as if you were trying to be smart or cocky or something. or maybe i am just tired from looking and looking and looking and looking. anyhow, thanks for not stopping me from getting my knock offs

u asked, i answered. Quality. i wasnt trying to come off smart or cocky, intepret it as you wish

MAKING A WHEEL, forged vs. cast vs. replica

so if the gram lights 57c's are not forged, the buddy club p1 sf's are not forged, and the rotas are not forged.... yet gram lights cost a Whole lot more than the rotas and buddy club p1's... why buy gram light 57c's over... say... rotas or other replica wheels... like the TR emotion (work emotion replica). keep in mind all these rims (in a certain style) weigh about the same as the 16" 57C. hmmmm...

ur paying for the quality of gram lights. and i'll leave it at that

you get an F for that explanation

and i'll leave it at that

why pay extra? why pay extra for an AEM intake when you can get the same thing on ebay for half the price right? get the rotas for all i care. I was just trying to tell you that the gram lights are of a much better quality than rotas. There is a reason why rota has nothing but knock offs. Dont let me stop you from getting your knock offs.

i don't know what kind of explanation you are looking for but...<br />
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why buy the real thing over replicas? well there are a few points that i would like to bring up. if you are going to race your car, would you ever want your rim and tire to fail on you? i don't think anyone would. there are little things on higher quality wheels such as special lips to keep the tire from failing.<br />
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there are things that cheap companies forget to include in their wheel designs, such as accommodating big brake upgrades and other aftermarket brake upgrades with the proper clearance. a rim may look the same but they may not fit the same.<br />
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let me let you in on a little industry secret. cast rims cost peanuts to make for a company. forged rims cost a lot more and they make a lot less profit on rims. that is why sponsorships are thrown out to people with cast rims all day long, and forged are extremely difficult to get sponsored with.<br />
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if you understand how the forged process simply is way more difficult to use you can easily see why prices are always high for these rims. you can also see why companies get respect for producing quality forged products.<br />
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it is difficult to put into words that x product is 3 times the quality of y product. it is best to base it on the small features, materials, and production process of the rim.<br />
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keep in mind if you are planning on having your rims for a long time durability comes into play. you want your rim to hold up not just on how nice it looks but the strength and shape of the entire rim.<br />
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don't even get me started on unevenness of casting. a forged rim is even through the entire metal.<br />
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also your title is a bit strange. &quot;replica&quot; is not a rim making process. it just means the company makes a copy of the design. it has no requirements on how similar the rim is to the original, how strong the rim is compared to the original, etcetera.<br />
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i am not saying cast wheels are bad. i run cast rims myself and i wouldn't put anything on my car that didn't meet my specifications.<br />
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you pay more for a brand because you can trust that brand.<br />
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<a href="http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/tech/construc.jsp" target="_blank">http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/tech/construc.jsp</a><br />
<a href="http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/tech/quality.jsp" target="_blank">http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/tech/quality.jsp</a><br />
<a href="http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/tech/road_wheel_weights.jsp" target="_blank">http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/tech...eel_weights.jsp</a>

That tire rack website explains it the best! I used to have the lower qulaity wheels before, and the would bend in a few months. The ASA's that I purchased as my last wheels where constructed stronger, and it showed. Not only where they lighter than the Mille Miglia's I used to have, but they were a hell of a lot stronger!

I miss my car sometimes

X

actual casting processes differ too.. just to let you guys know..

you can get a lwo quality casting and a high quality casting.

does rota XRay their wheels before leaving the factory?

does Volk/Rays xray their wheels?

quality control.... think about that..

They can do gravity casting, which is better than normal casting.

your buying a name.

I say thats if your not doing anything ultra stressful, like having a track only car, the knock offs will work perfect. No need to bend a gram light on a pothole when you could bend a rota

i sincerely hope thats not the case.

you'd think the quality would be 3x better with gram lights or enkeis etc.

i want a rim that won't bend on potholes, thats why i went down to 16's. weight, strength, ride comfort, general function

It's kinda true. I would respect a person that is named Chris then a person just named Dude.

Companies use thier name to their advatage. You are to assume that it's better merely because it's made by a certain company. This can be true in most cases, but not all. And, since it's made by company X, they can get away with jacking the price on it.

If you can't tell the difference, good for you. Get the cheaper one.

knockoffs are knockoffs, u dont buy knock off closes, u dont buy knock off shoes, u dont buy knock off rims. it's that simple.

how do u know if your wheels are bent?

if they vibrate or aren't straight?

good discussions... good links

the gram lights are of good quality i can tell you that, i've had several sets of wheels before the gram lights and i bent the hell outa those cuz i have to drive 1 hour to my girlfriends house. After i got the gram lights i still make the same drive but none of the wheels are bent in any way yet.

if the pothole is big enough it will bend no matter what company you buy a rim from <br />
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Price also depends on the design. I can buy some high quality wheels for $100 each with awsome offsets and good width. I can even get 16x15 wheels... lol....... But the design is really simple.<br />
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People call them truck wheels &gt;_&lt;

I bent two of my 16&quot; Rotas, but then again, the pot hole was 3 lanes wide, 2-1/2' wide, and 1-1/2&quot; deep. Arg. Fortunately, I can get them straightened for $75 each which is less than buying a new wheel.

you don't necessarily have to feel vibrations to tell if a wheel is bent although if it is off balance i am sure you will feel vibrations. there are many different types of bends from different locations on the rim. the most common one is the lip which tends to bend easier than the rest of the rim.

the worst bends are if you loose air in your tire because the rim is not perfectly round anymore or you straight get the tire off of the bead.

keep in mind that loosing air in a tire is not a sure sign that a rim is bent because tires are much more delicate compared to the metal of a rim.