Why you should buy wheels from reputable companies...

[Herblenny]

Why sometimes its worth buying from those been in the business for awhile... read the S3 article..

http://s3mag.com/blog/?p=4237#more-4237

Specifically this quote from Mackin...
"In the United States, there are governmental agencies like the DOT that call out safety standards for wheels. However, in the aftermarket, there is no enforcement of these standards in America. In other countries like Germany and Japan, you must register each wheel for sale with the government to be allowed to put the wheel to market. That is why you see so many wheel brands popping up all over the place in the USA. In some cases, there could be substandard or even absolutely no testing when it comes to these wheels…"

YES.. its not just about cutting centers and putting on a barrels they get at a discount from substandard companies.. Sure, it might look cool/funky powder coating and they throw fancy words about what kind of metal they use etc... But bottomline is, they don't test!!! Its like buying FO-Rolex and thinking its better than real thing just because it shines more... Don't fall for small time wheel shops... ISS forged.. cough... LOL!

some videos of the real wheel processes..

RAYS - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqtXjjhdtjw
BBS - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-sjOg9Dyww

And

Here is an ISS Forged 2010 wheel catalogue presentation..

http://www.slideshare.net/issforged/...heel-catalogue

Now read this part...

"6 0 6 1 -T 6 A L U M I N U MAn ISS Forged wheel begins as a high quality 6061-T6 aluminum billetlog. The log is heated and placed into a precision die where it is forged toengineers’ specifications. The result due the forging process is aluminummade to aerospace precision. The processed forging is then heat-treated toa T6 temper to achieve the perfect blend of strength and ductility. It is thesemethods that make our quality second to none. ISS Forged quality productsare forged, machined, finished, and assembled in the USA.T E S T I N G P R O C E S SBefore manufacturing a wheel design, ISS Forged engineers perform variousfatigue and stress tests to analyze the strength of our wheels. Each ISS Forgedwheel design is then independently tested to meet or exceed DOT, SAE, JWL,and TUV standards for strength and fatigue requirements. These measuresensure a top quality product for your safety."

I do not know if they actually do these testings.. nor have equipments to do so.... nor which company they hire to test to "meet or exceed DOT, SAE, JWL, and TUV standards". If its false, I then question, do they actually use quality 6061-T6??


Also, here is a Great info on testing...

http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=353224

I'll let you guys read it and let you guys decide why quality and testing is important... and also question when some companies say they exceed these testing And far as I know, I believe each size wheels are tested to receive this rating.. ie, if you have a line up of 10 different size wheels, each of those sized wheels needs to be tested...


And More read :

http://www.rayswheels.co.jp/catalog/201110forginge/

http://www.rayswheels.co.jp/catalog/201110caste/

http://www.workwheelsusa.com/tech-article.php?article=5


Bottomline, in USA, there is NO regulation for small wheel shop to make wheels and sell them to you. Anyone with a CNC could cut a center, buy a barrel made by some chinese company or some company that do not test. Wheels and tires are one of the most import part of cars and I hope you realize what you are putting on your car.