Alpina Wheel question

Markos

Markos

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Hi Folks,

I picked up a used set of 18" staggered Alpinas. Don't worry, they won't be going on any E9. They are missing the center caps though. Given that the caps are between $400 - $800 for a set, I'm going to paint the lug section black. I've seen done on quite a few modern Alpina sets.

Question: Should I use gloss black paint or flat? Thanks in advance!

Unrelated: These wheels are quite spectacular. They have titanium bolts, center mounted valve stems, and stainless rings. Not my pic, but same set:

IMG_1255_zpsa1b4d614.jpg
 
I used gloss black.I never seen a valve stem in the center like that,very cool!
 
tmason said:
I used gloss black.I never seen a valve stem in the center like that,very cool!
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Neither have I. I'm into Jeeps and this feature would be great for off-road wheels. They are made by BBS. The air travels down a hollow spoke. The hole is about 2-3mm wide.

I was going to go with Gloss black. I've been having a hard time finding satin in a rattle can.
 
Alpina advertised that as a security feature. Nobody could mess with your tire pressures. I tried to get a set of those for my e39 before I found the HREs.
 
Ohmess said:
Alpina advertised that as a security feature. Nobody could mess with your tire pressures. I tried to get a set of those for my e39 before I found the HREs.
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Did they hear about their Alpine neighbors the Swiss and the many uses of their army knife?
What is the statute of limitations on slashing tires before I continue?
 
next question. Can someone tell me how far the vintage wheel caps extend from the wheel face? I mean the face of the wheel where lug holes are.
 
Markos said:
next question. Can someone tell me how far the vintage wheel caps extend from the wheel face? I mean the face of the wheel where lug holes are.
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I can check tonight when I get home. Not exactly sure what I'm measuring though. Can you describe it a different way, or MS paint a picture?
 
Thank you for checking. Sorry for the ambiguous post. I am fabricating center caps. I need to know how for they stick out from the aluminum. If you took a tape measure to the cap, you would butt the end of the tape measure against the aluminum, and measure where the black plastic cap stopped. I'm guessing like 1.5 - 2".
 
The Alpina caps have a slight crown to them. Measurement from base of cap (where cap meets wheel surface) to the very outer exact center is 11/8" (29mm) and from base to cap's top perimeter edge is 1" (25.4mm).
 
Rain stopped so I'm finally going to paint the centers on these wheels. Until then, playing with Photoshop. The tires are more rubber-band like than they would be in real life, but I didn't feel like fiddling.

I don't expect much 18" love on here, but hey, they are $4,000 Alpinas, and a bit of a homage to the originals. How silly does this look? Apologies in advance to the individual selling this car on Hemmings. :)

16667816527_77ed37c235_o.jpg
 
It looks gorgeous but with 18" wheels I would fear for the structural integrity of the car. Especially in New England where the roads take a beating each winter
 
m5bb said:
+1

Dupli-color usually has a satin black.
Pep Boys and others carry this line of pretty good paint.
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Thanks. I'm going to use Duplicolor truck bed spray on the center caps for a textured look. I'll try to pick up some satin also. I can never have too many rattle cans. :)
 
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