Tires are only as effective as the wheels they are mounted on.
You can buy the stickiest tire on the market, but if the grip level exceeds that of the tire’s bead, you’ll end up with a tire that slips around the wheel. Under hard braking and acceleration, this slippage can cause unwanted wheel rotation within the tire. This rotation can upset the tire’s overall balance, as the wheel weights have shifted from their original position. For those who have to drive home from the track and commute to work the next day, a vibration or wobble through the steering wheel could potentially be felt due to this imbalance. In a situation such as this, the affected wheels and tires would require rebalancing to fix the issue.
At APEX, we are at the track and on the forums, placing ourselves at the center of discussion for topics such as these. While wheel knurling isn’t a new and groundbreaking concept, we saw an opportunity to improve upon it from our previous designs, in a way that best supports the constantly growing demand for more grip. Some wheel manufacturers add knurling simply to include it in their list of “features”. However, it is clear this “feature” can be lacking in performance when the knurled edges are smoothed over by a layer of slick glossy paint, effectively reducing the functionality of the knurling.
For our new ARC-8R and EC-7R wheels, we wanted to focus on reducing unwanted tire slippage as much as we could. The knurling pattern on these new forged wheels is specifically designed to maintain the highest amount of grip we could achieve with the bead of the tire. On top of that, we ensured that the knurled edge of the wheel is completely protected during the painting process. This leaves us with a sharp and deep toothed knurling, that isn’t compromised by the manufacturing process in any way whatsoever.
-Geirsen