Land Rover Aluminum Wheels vs Steel Wheels

grasshopper104

Adventurer
What's the function of painting an alloy wheel? Other than you think it looks cool.

There is a reason why steel wheels are better. Go figure that out and we'll be on the same page ;)

And that's why I'm running steel wheels, not alloys. And yes - his alloys painted black, if done right - would look cool.
 

michaels

Explorer
What's the function of painting an alloy wheel? Other than you think it looks cool.

There is a reason why steel wheels are better. Go figure that out and we'll be on the same page ;)

what's wrong with changing the aesthetics of the wheels? they were painted silver from the factory. what's the big deal to paint them black? i for one won't ever paint my alloys a different color, but i certainly don't see a problem with it.

chris lives in florida... it's flat...with sand and maybe a trench or small hill here or there. steel wheels do nothing to help him, as he'll likely never damage a rim anyways.
 

benlittle

Adventurer
what's wrong with changing the aesthetics of the wheels? they were painted silver from the factory. what's the big deal to paint them black? i for one won't ever paint my alloys a different color, but i certainly don't see a problem with it.

chris lives in florida... it's flat...with sand and maybe a trench or small hill here or there. steel wheels do nothing to help him, as he'll likely never damage a rim anyways.

****... Here we go.

I'm asking him WHY he wants them black. Does he think that people with black steel wheels have them because they are..........Black?

Maybe if he was educated as to why steel wheels are better than alloy, that would change his mind.

Maybe he's just building his rover to look cool. I don't really ************* care.

Maybe if he were educated, he could take that $180 bucks and buy some steelies and be done. No worries of scratching the clear coat on his painted wheels or the powdercoat coming off.
 

benlittle

Adventurer
The post before:



Car enthusiasts have been painting allows something other than silver for about 10 years now. Why? Because they like the look, and actually WANT to look different than a set of factory alloys. It's so popular in fact, that Duplicolor has a line of wheel paints, all in something OTHER than black. Gunmetal, bronze, white, etc. But it's not a Land Rover factory option, so I guess that's why some don't know about it.

No ****?

There are those of us Rob who would rather see a person skip the ****ty steps like painting wheels and actually learn something.

Here's an analogy. Say you were to buy a ****ty jacket that isn't waterproof. You like the way it looks, very much. Boy it looks snazzy. But it's not waterproof :( Maybe you can just buy a can of some ****ty wash in waterproof agent and expect that to do the job. OR........You could skip that step and buy a ************* waterproof coat!
 

JeffRRC

Adventurer
Aren't the alloys lighter than the steelies? If so, it would seem that they would offer some performance improvement due to the decreased sprung weight. Not important crawling along a rock trail but useful on the highway.
 

R_Lefebvre

Expedition Leader
No, here's a better analogy Ben:

Say you have a jacket that suits your needs. It fits, it's adequately waterproof, and you already own it. But for whatever reason, you really want a black jacket, and the the one you have is silver. You find some black die that won't affect the peformance of the jacket, and will make it look just like it came out of the factory in black. So you die it. You're now happy in your black jacket.

Then one day, you're walking down the street, happy as a clam, and some guy comes up and yells at you "Hey moron, I'm a THE North Face purist, and I know that jacket never came in black. You're an idiot for ruining such a fine piece of sport wear."

You tell him to **** off, but he just keeps following you around yelling at you. Most other people around look at him like he's crazy, but otherwise don't say anything because they don't want to get involved.
 

stolenheron

Explorer
ben, cut the crap. i can't afford to buy 5 steelies and 5 new tires right now.

i dont care what color the steelies are if i got them. 16" and steel wheels and better tire choices in that size range is obviously a good thing. but money is an issue right now.

i have tons of duplicolor around left over from past projects, all i need is a few more cans, sand paper, masking tape, and rubbing alcohol. Its cheap, completely changes the LOOK of the truck (which is something some people may care about) and is a fun, simple project to fill up spare time. i never said it was functional. its just a simple DIY idea and is something that completely alters the look of the truck.

there is no need posting the same things you've said in my thread over and over again. you've got good points, but it seems you're the only one against a cheap way to improve looks, this isnt about alloys vs steelies. and I'm all for function over looks, but **** costs money.

so quit cluttering up my thread.
 

muskyman

Explorer
Aren't the alloys lighter than the steelies? If so, it would seem that they would offer some performance improvement due to the decreased sprung weight. Not important crawling along a rock trail but useful on the highway.

that would be un-sprung weight :D
 

timmy!!!!!!!

Explorer
Ben is just trying to teach from the mistakes he has made with his past few rovers. Chris I am sure if you really wanted steel wheels you would work and earn the money. Now on that note have you seen pnorvells wheels? The paint started to crack and then it looked like crap. I think I remember you telling me awhile back that you will need new tires soon so why not just buy the steel wheels and tires. It will probably turn out to be a lot cheaper initially also.
 

SeaRubi

Explorer
I think the steel wheel thing is BS. Land Rover alloys are some of the strongest alloy wheels ever made. The old rangie 3-spoke alloys are nearly indestructible, and no aftermarket steel wheel is going to hold a bead like a factory LR alloy holds a bead.

So many people make ditching their factory wheels a priority over, primarily, aesthetic reasons. I'm still waiting to see evidence of all of these cracked and bent alloy rims that everyone is so fearful of. It's a load of BS. There are more cracked series steel rims than you will ever see alloys.

I'm waiting to be educated myself by the peanut gallery on this nonsense. the only place some of you are going to be out there banging out a steel rim with a hammer while wheeling in the US is your stupid wet dream fantasies you have while making these dumb posts to justify your own material excesses.

cheers
-ike
 
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roverdoc

Observer
Agree...aluminum rover rims are strong, hold up quite well with low psi and weigh about the same as a steel rim of comparable size if not heavier than the AR/gulf coast wheels...the real benefits are being able to change out a half shaft without taking the wheel off, improved stance/offset, 15 inch availability to allow for cheaper tires/more options/cheaper....painting aluminum rims...alittle tacky but everyone has an opinion
 

Alaska Mike

ExPo Moderator/Eye Candy
To be honest, I've never owned an off-road vehicle with alloy wheels. Wait, I take that back- Scott Brady sold me a set for a couple months before buying them back. They didn't fit well anyway.

I'll be the first to admit that I like the look of steel wheels over alloy. As for strength? Well, I've seen a lot of really flimsy aftermarket steel wheels, and I can't recall the last alloy failure I've seen.

I have repaired a steel wheel out in the field with a hammer- at least well enough so that it would hold air to get back to civilization. The spare's sidewall had been shredded earlier, so we were short on options. The rim went in the dumpster as soon as we got home.

Given the choice, I'll usually opt for steel because they're cheaper to replace and have the look I prefer. It's not a question of which is stronger or easier to repair or whatever. It's just that I want everyone to think I'm all hardcore and stuff.
 

R_Lefebvre

Expedition Leader
Once you've done it, you're pretty much committed to the look since it can be a pain to get them looking stock again.

No, it's as easy as sand blasting them again, and painting them with silver paint.

So many people make ditching their factory wheels a priority over, primarily, aesthetic reasons. I'm still waiting to see evidence of all of these cracked and bent alloy rims that everyone is so fearful of. It's a load of BS. There are more cracked series steel rims than you will ever see alloys.

I'm waiting to be educated myself by the peanut gallery on this nonsense. the only place some of you are going to be out there banging out a steel rim with a hammer while wheeling in the US is your stupid wet dream fantasies you have while making these dumb posts to justify your own material excesses.

That's a little harsh. The problem with alloys isn't restricted to the potential for total destruction. I doubt I'd ever bend one of my alloys. But they are getting destroyed quickly. Death by a thousand cuts. They're just getting ground up on rocks. The "spokes" are all scarred, which I'm fine with because "it makes people think I'm all hardcore and stuff. " ;) The problem is the lip getting ground off. Nobody will put new tires on these rims because it would destroy their machine. I don't even know if I can get this rubber off.
 
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