[DeTomaso] Standard 2-Slot Wheel Quality?
MikeLDrew at aol.com
MikeLDrew at aol.com
Wed Oct 10 10:50:42 EDT 2007
In a message dated 10/10/07 6:07:48 AM, sales at transmittersrus.com writes:
> A couple of questions regarding these wheels from Pantera East.
>
> What is the quality like as compared to other aftermarket DT wheels as I
> like the design?
>
> Are there any other manufacturers of this design?
>
> Thanks.
>
There have been several different variations in Campy clones from Pantera
East. The current generation feature a forged (not machined) center and are of
the utmost high quality. They are available in a variety of sizes. Many
people tend to default to 17-inch all around, but due to the way the wheels are
manufactured, the front wheels wind up *looking* taller than the rear
wheels--and depending on tire choice, occasionally the front tires actually will be
taller than the rear ones, which is decidedly weird.
The original 'vision' for Campy clone wheels as put forth by Steve Wilkinson
featured 16-inch front and 17-inch rear wheels. When properly equipped with
245/45-16 front and 335/35-17 rear tires, the look is absolutely perfect.
You can see the current generation on Mike Dailey's website
(www.panteraplace.com) as he has them on his car. Chuck Melton's website also has (or had) a
feature contrasting several older-generation Campy clones.
Wilkinson still makes his Campy clone wheels, although he no longer offers
them in 16-inch.
Some of the Campy clones out there are made from flat, thin blanks (to keep
the costs down), and they look decidedly cheap and one-dimensional. The
original design was very complex, with numerous contrasting angles and curves, and
the forged Pantera East wheels do the best job of replicating that.
Then there are the 'rip-off' Campy wheels from Precision Pro-formance--to
avoid infringing on other's designs, they rotated the wheel center (the
pentagon-shaped portion) so that the points point at the two slots, instead of the
raised 'windows'. They look very weird.
Mike
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