[RudolphHart]

Hi Folks. Does anyone know if Pak Bikes are still in business?

I'm interested in Alpina wheels for my GT1000 & have tried sending both PM messages via this site & e-mails to the addresses on the Pak Bike web site.
No response after 4-5 days. Wondering if they are still in business or just on holiday (vacation). If they are still around, do they ship to the UK?

 

[Bly]

They shipped to Oz so I reckon they'd make it to you.
Maybe they're on the road..

 

[Blacked Out]

Perhaps they're not crazy about foreigners.

 

[Nimi]

Left Phil a message, I am sure he'll follow up.

 

[RudolphHart]

Thanks, much appreciated.

 

[Nick1000]

Rudy, these people in Colliers Wood nr Wimbledon, London are the importers into the UK here's their site;
http://www.corsaitaliana.com/
and here's the manufacturers site;
http://www.alpinaraggi.it/eng/index.php

Hope that helps
Regards
Nick

 

[SPORT_CLASSIC_SPECIALTIES]

Hi There
We do not send to Europe or the UK
The USA, Canada and the rest of the world is no problem.
JC

Hi Folks. Does anyone know if Pak Bikes are still in business?

I'm interested in Alpina wheels for my GT1000 & have tried sending both PM messages via this site & e-mails to the addresses on the Pak Bike web site.
No response after 4-5 days. Wondering if they are still in business or just on holiday (vacation). If they are still around, do they ship to the UK?

 

[Spezjag]

See? We told you they hate foreigners!



I am guessing the real reason is there are exclusive distributors for Alpinas for the UK, so they cannot compete with those sellers. I bet if you asked nice they would tell you who the distributor for the UK is.

 

[egrafx2006]

Hi There
We do not send to Europe or the UK
The USA, Canada and the rest of the world is no problem.
JC

Not sure if this is the right place to ask, but my bike is going in for 7500 service on October 6th at Proitalia. If I ordered Alpiana wheels would they make it there on time and what would be the ballpark price?

Thanks,
Craig

 

[SPORT_CLASSIC_SPECIALTIES]

Alpina has asked us in a nice way not to sell wheels to the EEC.
We like to have it sent to us here in the USA so we can make sure it is good.

The cost to send them to from here also increases the cost as well as get charged customs duty charges.

It is just far easier for UK and European customers to order them from UK or European dealers plus the support is easier too.

We still take orders for Australia and the rest of the world.

I have some very important news coming in from Alpina regarding the new Alloy they are using so stay tuned here for the info or email me at [email protected] for more info regarding this issue.

regards
JC

 

[RudolphHart]

Rudy, these people in Colliers Wood nr Wimbledon, London are the importers into the UK here's their site;
http://www.corsaitaliana.com/
and here's the manufacturers site;
http://www.alpinaraggi.it/eng/index.php

Hope that helps
Regards
Nick

Thanks Nick, I'll give them a call. Thanks also to the other posters for their input.

 

[SPORT_CLASSIC_SPECIALTIES]

Hi Craig and to everyone as well.
Price is approx $2500 to $2800 more or less delivered for a set of wheels for the sport classic.
Alpina is very very slow at filling and sending orders too.
What is normally supposed to be 3-4 weeks have turned sometimes in to 3 or 4 months.
So the answer to you Craig is probably not by Oct. 6th.
Sorry.

The recent news:
They have also recently told us that the rims are manufactured by Excel and they are using 7000 alloy aluminum. The following notice was sent to all Alpina dealers
-quote
"This alloy is very strong and hard and after the anodizing procedure it could be that on a aesthetical level may appear spots, matte areas and different tonalities...
No complaint or refund will be accepted by referring problems"

So, this means if you get a set that is not looking perfect they will not take it back or fix it.
Unfortunate situation for us if a less then perfect looking wheel is sent to us.
There is the chance you may get a excellent set too.

I have attached a picture of the worst case example up to now that Phil and I have seen.
There have been some slight discoloration and spottiness on some of the older 1st gen and 2nd Gen wheels but it was so slight that one really had to look hard to see it.
The said problem is around the weld where it is bead blasted and causes some texture difference in the wheel in which the anodizing did not do well.

A possible work around to getting the perfect looking anodized rim may be
buying rims here and having it anodized here so that it will be done properly and sending them to Alpina for the special machining needed and building the wheel with our rims using Alpina spokes and nipples to make them tubeless.
This is only if they accept this idea.
Down side is
This would increase the time to get a set of wheels.
It could increase cost due to shipping back and forth
Upside is just the spokes and nipple and the cost to send and the cost to assemble may be slightly cheaper as we are supplying the rims and anodizing
We have not put this into practice yet

We want to be absolutely upfront and let the news out for those interested in a set.

Call or Email me if you like regarding this issue
626 794 6439
[email protected]

JC

About the images:
All the aesthetic imperfection shown is the same spot. The rest of the wheel was fine. It was shot in a manner to show the imperfection so lighting and angle was enhanced to capture it because at some angles it was hard to see the fault.
I would like to say again; this is the worst we have ever seen it.

Not sure if this is the right place to ask, but my bike is going in for 7500 service on October 6th at Proitalia. If I ordered Alpiana wheels would they make it there on time and what would be the ballpark price?

Thanks,
Craig

 

[Guest]

Hi Folks. Does anyone know if Pak Bikes are still in business?

PAK BIKES LLC IS STILL IN BUSINESS.... PAKBIKES is the sponsor for the Sport Classic Forum in case no one has noticed.

I am primarily focused on The FLEDA System tail lights and license plate brackets + illuminated frames for Sport Classics as well as products from Aella-Casuno - Japan. Please visit my Ducati.ms sponsor link often to see what's happening.

I have asked JC Matsuura through JC/PAKBIKES to handle ALL the other PAK BIKES related products including Alpina wheels, Discacciati Brake Systems, CarbonDry Japan and a host of other products.

Thanks for all the support over the past years...
Phil

 

[egrafx2006]

Thanks for the info. I guess I'll hold off for the time being.

Hi Craig and to everyone as well.
Price is approx $2500 to $2800 more or less delivered for a set of wheels for the sport classic.
Alpina is very very slow at filling and sending orders too.
What is normally supposed to be 3-4 weeks have turned sometimes in to 3 or 4 months.
So the answer to you Craig is probably not by Oct. 6th.
Sorry.

The recent news:
They have also recently told us that the rims are manufactured by Excel and they are using 7000 alloy aluminum. The following notice was sent to all Alpina dealers
-quote
"This alloy is very strong and hard and after the anodizing procedure it could be that on a aesthetical level may appear spots, matte areas and different tonalities...
No complaint or refund will be accepted by referring problems"

So, this means if you get a set that is not looking perfect they will not take it back or fix it.
Unfortunate situation for us if a less then perfect looking wheel is sent to us.
There is the chance you may get a excellent set too.

I have attached a picture of the worst case example up to now that Phil and I have seen.
There have been some slight discoloration and spottiness on some of the older 1st gen and 2nd Gen wheels but it was so slight that one really had to look hard to see it.
The said problem is around the weld where it is bead blasted and causes some texture difference in the wheel in which the anodizing did not do well.

A possible work around to getting the perfect looking anodized rim may be
buying rims here and having it anodized here so that it will be done properly and sending them to Alpina for the special machining needed and building the wheel with our rims using Alpina spokes and nipples to make them tubeless.
This is only if they accept this idea.
Down side is
This would increase the time to get a set of wheels.
It could increase cost due to shipping back and forth
Upside is just the spokes and nipple and the cost to send and the cost to assemble may be slightly cheaper as we are supplying the rims and anodizing
We have not put this into practice yet

We want to be absolutely upfront and let the news out for those interested in a set.

Call or Email me if you like regarding this issue
626 794 6439
[email protected]

JC

About the images:
All the aesthetic imperfection shown is the same spot. The rest of the wheel was fine. It was shot in a manner to show the imperfection so lighting and angle was enhanced to capture it because at some angles it was hard to see the fault.
I would like to say again; this is the worst we have ever seen it.

 

[SPORT_CLASSIC_SPECIALTIES]

Alpina Pricing update

The pricing for the Alpina wheels for the sport classic has gone down.
The pricing restructuring made it better but the exchange to the USD still keeps it up there a bit more then I would like.
I can offer to D.M forum members SC Naked Alpina wheels at 1430 Euros
This price will remain constant for now.
The exchange rate fluctuates so please apply it accordingly.
At today's rate of 1.5 euro to 1 USD makes it about $2145
Shipping is approx $200USD +/- for USA buyers.

the aesthetic issue mentioned still applies.
This is what Alpina has placed on their website.

QUOTE:
"The Hand Made labour in our Alpina Factory is the base for all our products.
With each change in colour of tone of our rims, burrs or little defects of aesthetic aspect underlines our production realized with hand crafting and not industrial scale measures making the quality special for each single piece"

Which means from the letter they sent the Distributors "No complaints or refunds will not be accepted by Alpina"

JC

 

[dirkwrong]

Excel is a well known rim manufacturer based in Japan I believe. Why they can't do a good job of anodizing is strange. I think it has to do with the 7000 series aluminum. I seem to recall that it's hard to anodize perfectly. I may be wrong though, plus you'd think a big manufacturer like Excel would have the anodizing process down perfectly.

Are the Alpina rims and spokes available separately? Is it possible to put Alpina rims on the oem Ducati SC hubs? Sorry if this has been asked before. Is Alpina the only manufacturer of a tubeless rim for spoked wheels?

I have this wild ass idea of buying a used set of SC steel wheels and getting the rims replaced here in America by a Buchanan Spokes or someone like them. I want a 4.5" wide rear rim. The SC steel wheels are not very expensive on Ebay, and I know the Excel aluminum rims are not that expensive.

 

[SPORT_CLASSIC_SPECIALTIES]

the reverse may be a possibility.
You can send alpina a excel rim and have them make a Tubeless wheel using their patented process.

I have yet to ask but I was wondering if they could take a stock SC Aluminum Alloy rim and render it to the Tubeless A system process using their nipples spokes and Hub. :think:

The main issue is not the excel rim being a problem. It is the process Alpina puts the rim through that causes this issue. They bead blast it to get that satin finish and the blasting in the area of the weld
The extra effort is causing the harder 7000 alloy aluminum to be "work hardened" in spots which lead to the spotting and other problems from anodizing.

the worst case we have seen is the one pictured in this thread. Others have been OK or had minor issues.

JC

Excel is a well known rim manufacturer based in Japan I believe. Why they can't do a good job of anodizing is strange. I think it has to do with the 7000 series aluminum. I seem to recall that it's hard to anodize perfectly. I may be wrong though, plus you'd think a big manufacturer like Excel would have the anodizing process down perfectly.

Are the Alpina rims and spokes available separately? Is it possible to put Alpina rims on the oem Ducati SC hubs? Sorry if this has been asked before. Is Alpina the only manufacturer of a tubeless rim for spoked wheels?

I have this wild ass idea of buying a used set of SC steel wheels and getting the rims replaced here in America by a Buchanan Spokes or someone like them. I want a 4.5" wide rear rim. The SC steel wheels are not very expensive on Ebay, and I know the Excel aluminum rims are not that expensive.

 

[MajorSoftie]

the reverse may be a possibility.
You can send alpina a excel rim and have them make a Tubeless wheel using their patented process.
JC

That's very likely if it's an undrilled rim. If it's already drilled, I don't know if it would still be feasible, but it's still possible.

Course, after your explanation of what is causing the anodizing problem, It would only make a difference if they didn't blast it.

 

[dirkwrong]

Well, I went to the Excel website and could not find the exact rim I'd be looking for anyway. I do not know if anyone makes a light weight aluminum 4.5" rear rim in 36 hole pattern that could be used with the SC hubs. I found 4.25" Supermotard complete wheels on the site though. Unless I could find a suitable rim, then I'm not about to buy a used set of steel SC wheels for conversion. I guess Alpina has their own hubs that must go with there rim and spoke system?

There are various methods of sealing spoke rims to allow tubeless tires to be used. I'm sure there's a thread in this section somewhere about that. All it takes is some good tape I think.

 

[SPORT_CLASSIC_SPECIALTIES]

yes they use their own made from a solid billet block.
a thing of beauty

Visti our shocase gallery for more images

Now as for sealing the rim
That has been covered extensively.
I believe it adds more weight and takes it out of balance and I am not a supporter of this. If and when it fails it is a total loss of air and can be dangerous.
As I wanted to retain the classic spoked wheel look, I did quite a bit of research on making the stock Spoked wheel tubeless and found that the risk is too great with sealing the rim. hence when I found Alpina's, and they are TUV and DOT tested plus they are really nice looking, it was a no brainer.
A company here in the LA area that does this service would not say what the temperature and speed rating for this service was or if it was ever tested. They usually do it on Harleys and they rarely if ever hit over 120MPH where as the SC can easily do that. If you track the bike (or take it over 100MPH for a long period of time, thats over 5 minutes) I would be a bit concerned.
Besides if the track day people ever new I was running a sealed wheel they probably would ask me to get off the course.
I think someone on this forum did get a total loss when the wheel done by this company in LA's seal broke away and he nearly crashed.
This company does guarantee their work and will repair it for free if it ever fails That is if you are still alive to claim the warranty on their work.
Just my Dollar and twentysix Cents

JC

... I guess Alpina has their own hubs that must go with there rim and spoke system?

There are various methods of sealing spoke rims to allow tubeless tires to be used. I'm sure there's a thread in this section somewhere about that. All it takes is some good tape I think.