Quote:
Originally Posted by The HACK
LOL. "I can't win this argument because I can't provide tangible facts, so I'm taking my ball and going home." 
Speculation? Yes. Unless you and I or anyone replying here represents APEX, everything we say is speculation. Is my speculation a lot more accurate than yours, because I have first hand knowledge of the industry? Heck yeah. In fact, I would probably say that my speculation is DEAD ON balls accurate, because I have dealt with the exact topic we're "discussing here."
And the more original designs? Did I mention the ARC-8 is an exact copy of BBS's RC wheels sans the center cap? EC-7 is an exact design of BBS's Motorsports wheels? Neither one of Apex's "original" designs are any more original than the PS-7. Don't get offended. I'm not saying that the EC-7 is a terrible wheel, nor am I saying the ARC-8 is crappy because it's an existing design. I am merely pointing out to those in this thread upset that the PS-7 "looks like" another wheel...the fact is...They ALL do.
And simple logic would dictate, since all the other Apex wheels look like other BBS designs, including the PS-7, it would/could only mean that their foundry has either purchased BBS's original mold, or have purchased BBS's designs due to the bankruptcy liquidation. So it's the best of all worlds. They're not treading on the grey areas of international copyright laws, and we get high quality pressure cast wheels that are light weight and strong for track use. So why are you getting all your panties in a wad over this?
I'd be happy to continue this discussion until someone from Apex want to step in and tell us otherwise. And I still contend that those of you arguing that this wheel is a copy of another wheel is completely missing the point.
THEY ALL ARE. 
p.s.: Y'all want to know how much we paid HRE for the original design on the wheels we contracted and produced? Pretty darn close to 7 figures if I recall. I would guess, had APEX hired on staff a full time engineer with all the 3-D software and hardware to design unique wheel designs for them, we'd be looking at another $300-500 per wheel more easily to justify their relative low volume. So, you want ORIGINAL designs? Pay more. |
Not sure if I want to jump into this fray, but I have to disagree on EC-7 being an exact copy of the BBS Motorsport if you are referring to the CH. I've had both wheels, and the EC-7 is definitely different. There are lots of slight differences my architect's eye pick up. The EC-7 has deeper profile spokes, and has a lighter visual mass, smaller center. CH has a larger diameter center and generally flatter and more massive looking. Slightly different curvatures. They are generally a very similar type of wheel, but slightly different in almost every way, and very different personalities to my eye. The most obvious difference is if you look at the space between the lug hole and the inner curve of the web area - EC-7 has a very tight space there. CH has a large enough space for the "MOTORSPORT" lettering.