As the readers of Off-Road.com's project feature "Great White" know,the overall theme of our truck is of functionality and aggressiveness. You won't find a component on the vehicle that doesn't work as good as it looks. Of course, every good project needs to start from the ground up, and thats where the "Starburst II" Forged Aluminium Wheels from APP came in. In case you haven't heard of them before, don't feel bad.
The APP Starburst II Forged Wheels are brand new. In fact, we recieved one of the first sets shipped for review. The APP wheel is forged from a single piece of aluminum and can support a hefty 3500
pounds, giving our truck an potential gross vehicle weight of
14000. FYI - APP load ratings are verified by a series of cornering
fatigue, radial fatigue and impact tests. In english, they put them
through the wringer, and will handle just about anything you'd ever
want to throw at'em.
A perfect fit in style!
The eight spoke wheel pattern, sans the center
covers, matches the functional look of our truck. The mirror finish
of the wheels is show truck quality. I am glad that APP proudly
engraves their logo in each wheel so that I don't have to answer
the common "who made those" questions from the all too common
admirers of APP's craftsmanship. APP also offers the wheel finished
in satin aluminum, chrome or powder coated yellow, black silver or
white editions.
Each APP wheel starts here, a solid bar of high
strength aluminum
APP's massive forge turns the bar stock into the first
resemblance of a wheel
Why "one piece"? Why "forged"? Our truck leads a
hard, dual purpose life. Over a dozen times a year we prerun a
portion of the race course of Southwest and Baja desert races. On
any other weekend the truck will be expected to haul a huge load
consisting of a "Toy Hauler" trailer and it's captured toys
throughout the southwest. The increased impact load of aggressive,
off-road driving one weekend then the shear, sustained axle weight
imposed by the 38 foot trailer and accompanying load the next day
has been demonstrated to crack or completely halve the more common
two piece wheels. We simply can't have such a failure.
The basic wheel shape is placed into a custom built
spin forging machine to forge the rim section. Computer controlled
lathes and milling machines make the final wheel
configuration.
The forging process used by APP to produce one
piece wheels results in the highest quality wheel available for
both trucks and automobiles. This process came as a result of over
35 years of service in the commercial and areospace forging
arena.
Our Starburst II wheel ready for
polishing.
Technically, the forging process uses high
pressure and temperature, changing the weaker, loose structure of
simple cast aluminum to the tight, high integrity structure of
forgings. Various forging steps are made to place the greatest
strength where operating loads are most severe in the wheel
structure. Rocket science? Hey, you'd be surprised. As in the
wheels we chose, APP Forged Wheels have the additional benefit of a
polished mirror finish. This is achieved through the high integrity
of the metallic structure produced by the forging process. APP
Startburst II Wheels are available in: 17x8, 17x9.5 and 17x12
Sizes
8-lug 3500 lb. load rating
5 & 6-lug 3100 lb. load rating
STARBURST II
Other vehicle fitments are
available subject to inquiry.
Finishes available: Polished, Satin, Chrome.
Powder Coat Colors: Black, Yellow, White & Silver.
Off-Road Videos - Check out over ten years of extreme 4x4 action, product testing and the Off Road Nation at play. Baja racing to rock crawling, ATVs in the sand to motorcycles in the dirt, it's all here. Rate them, share them and upload your own.
ATV Reviews - Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, Polaris, Kawasaki, Can-Am. First rides to long-term tests, check out the latest in ATVs, UTVs and Side-by-Side vehicles of every make and model. Read expert opinions and follow custom project vehicles.
Axxxtion Sports..... Axxxtion Sports is heating things up with their 2010 Winter Heat snowmobile calendar! Simply Sexy!
