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Because they look cool right! The performance benefits of custom wheels should be your answer. In the 1950s and 1960s race car drivers developed lighter magnesium wheels to reduce weight and enhance performance in all form of racing. They were called Mags by the racers, a term still widely used today. However, most magnesium wheels were far to fragile for daily street use. Plus magnesium oxidizes very quickly and require frequent polishing. Magnesium wheels used in modern race cars are often forged to make them stronger and reduce weight. As a result contemporary forged magnesium custom wheels are very expensive. The oxidization problem is the reason you don’t see contemporary custom wheels made of magnesium.

Fortunately for the custom wheel market today manufacturers developed light weight aluminum alloy wheels that provide the strength needed and come in numerous finish options while reducing wheel weight. Trendy wheel finishes include chrome and polished aluminum, plus painted aluminum alloy come in hyper-silver, silver, white, black, gray and Anthracite. While many of us choose aftermarket custom wheels for their good looks, there are many important performance benefits resulting from reducing a wheels weight compared to factory steel wheels.

The additional strength of a custom alloy wheels can notably reduce tire deflection and tire rollover while cornering. You also get increased brake cooling with custom alloy wheels because aluminum alloy is a great conductor of heat. The large mass of the aluminum wheels help dissipate heat from the brakes. The open design of 5 spoke and 6 spoke custom wheels allow more air flow over the brakes cooling them as you drive in city traffic.

One of the most significant factors affecting a car, truck or SUV road holding ability is the reduced weight of custom aluminum alloy wheels over factory steel wheels. By reducing weight, custom wheels provide improved acceleration and braking. You must also be careful not to exceed the design weight of the original wheels and have the reverse effect by adding larger wheels and tires or aluminum alloy wheels that are gravity cast. Gravity cast aluminum alloy custom wheels are cheaper but heavier and prone to bending. Look for aluminum wheels that are either low pressure cast or forged, they cost more but will reduced weight and adds strength.

Keep in mind that sizing up or adding larger wheels and tires will actually add weight. So plus sizing should be done the proper way. By using a larger diameter wheel with a lower profile tire it’s possible to properly maintain the overall original diameter of your wheel and tire. It’s important to keep your new custom wheels within 3 percent of the original equipment. Differences larger than 3 percent can cause problems with transmission shift points which can decrease fuel mileage. It can also confuse braking system computers, reduce ride comfort and cornering capability. Go for wider rather than taller wheel – tire diameters, the results is a larger contact patch and a sportier look.

There are so many different types of automotive leather seat repair, all with different situations and applications. There are holes, scratches, gouges, cuts, scrapes, worn or cracked, and just down right grungy looking leather seats. I think I got them all covered, well in this article we’re going to talk about how to repair a small hole in a leather seat lean back, for those of you who don’t know what a lean back is well it’s the upper part of the seat.

Now when I say small this can apply for a tear up to 1 1/2″ to 2″, probably might go a little bigger, but lets not push it, if it needs to go to the upholstery shop for an insert then that would be better then a crappy looking leather repair on something that probably wouldn’t hold anyways. When in doubt, insert it.

Prepping a seat is the key to success in any leather repair, and a lasting leather dye job. So, prep the whole lean back, and while your at it just clean the whole seat, why not, but you don’t have to, with your prepping solution removing all grease, dirt, and grime. You need a clean surface and a well prepped area to work with. When I prep, I use a solution of rubbing alcohol, acetone, ammonia, and a small amount of TSP substitute, with water in a spray bottle. Spray the seat with the solution and scrub with a scotch brite pad to scuff the leather seat for leather dye adhesion and remove any grime that’s on the seat, then wipe clean with a clean lint free towel. Once your clean, apply a grip base primer to the seat, I usually in most cases will dye the entire lean back when I do a repair or the entire seat, but sometimes it’s not necessary, so you may not need to prime the whole seat, but do clean the seat good this cuts down on the amount of leather dye used and the ending result will be a premium leather repair.

Now to the hole. Lets say it’s in a V shape, just for example. Like where you’ve gott’n out of the seat with something in your back pocket, ouch! I know the feeling, back in college I had a 1986 Mustang SVO, very rare and nice car (man I miss that car) and I got out to go to class with a pen in my back pocket and ripped about a 2″ V shape in the seat, I about puked right there, and of course at the time I didn’t know anything about leather repair. But now I do and here it is.

Sand the area around the tear with a 240 grit sandpaper, this gives a little more for the low heat compound to grip to. Take a piece of underpatch material and slide the under patch under the tear with a pair of tweezers, allowing about a 1/2″ on the inside all the way around. I usually cut my patches in a circular shape, it makes it a little easier to slide under. You can use different types of under patches, I like the kind that is coated on one side with a heat activated glue.

Now take a drop of leather glue and spread a thin coat on the patch on the underside of the leather repair area. If the leather will lay down smoothly and match up then great, but sometimes it just won’t. In this case we will use combo of the glue and your low cure leather repair compound and smooth a small amount over the patch then lay the leather down. Spread a small amount of low heat compound over the area and smooth it out with your pallet knife, remembering to keeping your area as small as possible, the smaller the better. Now heat the area with your heat gun, hold the heat gun out away from the leather repair and slowly move it into the repair area, this will give you just a little more control of the heat, you don’t want to burn and shrink the leather. The idea is to cure the compound and get it to adhere before you cook the leather, it’s a skill thing, practice makes perfect. Once the compound is cured immediately press the grain pad in your palm onto the repair, don’t press to hard, but firm.

At this time using a wet paper towel apply a small amount of grip base to the repair area and dye with your color matched water based leather dye. Dry thin coats of dye, not wet. Then reapply and smooth out another thin coat of compound. Heat again and grain then dye, get the idea, what you are doing is building the repair up. Thin coats of compound applied and cured then reapplied, are much better then one thick coat. Once you have it built up and looking nice, blend the repair into the rest of the seat if needed, by applying thin coats of leather dye to finish it off. Drying between coats of dye with a hairdryer, and one great tip is rubbing the leather dye with your hands to force the dye into the creases of the leather helps a ton, don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty. I say that but I’m allergic to rubber gloves, it bites, so I come home every day with dye all over my hands, it’s a pain, but I love the work and the job looks better with a little bit of love rubbed on those leather seat repairs. After the dye is cured, apply a top coat of satin or dull leather clear top coat mixed with a bit of slip additive added for the soft feel. Dry the seat thoroughly, then apply your leather conditioner to finish and give the seat the juice it needs and a great feel and look for you.

Now there are so many other variations to this fix, sometimes I will have to use an air dry leather repair compound over the top of the low heat compound to smooth out the leather repair. Sanding it with a 400 grit sandpaper until it looks right. You can also turn your air down on your paint gun until little droplets are coming out to give it a textured look, drying between coats. Texture coatings, can be used, but if you do it right the gun effect works great. When I do a leather repair I won’t give up until it looks perfect. Patience is a virtue, right. Don’t get in a hurry, this will only frustrate you more and then you really got issues.

Leather repair is a craft and profession. The dyes and compounds I use are top quality and are made to last. Giving you a lasting leather seat repair, and comfort knowing you have a leather repair that will last and look great for years to come.

I hope this was some help to you, in the coming months there will be more articles like this one but on different situations on leather repair, liked I talked about in the first. There are so many different ways that a leather seat can be damaged, we spend a lot of time in our cars and well “sh$$ happens”, right. So check back to see my next article on automotive leather seat repairs. If you have anything you would like to ask feel free to shoot me some comments on Leather Repair – How To Repair Torn Leather Seat.

When you want to buy a farm trail bike, you have to think about a few different things. You will need to budget accordingly, first and foremost. After you have determined how much you have to spend though, there is still more for you to think about. Take the time to figure out what types of motorbikes you are interested in and which dealerships or sellers have the best products for your needs, Yamaha is a well trusted brand with an excellent range of farm trail bikes for example. If you aren’t sure how to choose a farm trail bike dealer, here are some tips to keep in mind:

- Make sure that the retailer is reputable. They should have years of experience in the industry and specialise in the style of motorbike that you want to buy. If you choose a company without a good reputation or the experience on the job, you might not find the best products, service, or prices available in the market.

- If you are looking for a specific farm trail bike, find dealers who offer it. If there is more than one, compare the two, ask the sales representatives about the unique features of each motorbike. Make sure you discuss your level of riding skill too so that you are provided with a selection of farm trail bikes within your skill range. Sometimes, this will be easier said than done but for your own safety it is well recommended.

- Talk to dealers and sales people. It is important to ask questions about their services, products, and what they can do for you. Make sure that they are able to give you the answers that you are looking for. If you don’t feel comfortable, move on to another dealer.

- Find affordable prices without sacrificing the quality of service that you get. Bargain Bob’s Bikes might be cheap, for example, but if the service is bad you should find a higher quality dealership to work with. When it comes to purchasing a farm trail bike that can withstand the rough terrain of rural farm land, it is important to know you have a reliable motorbike that can handle this style of riding.

These are some tips to help you when you’re looking to buy a farm trail bike. There are many more little details to think about which will vary according to each model you look at, but the entire process can be much easier if you have sound advice from a reputable motorbike dealership. Don’t be afraid to ask questions of your dealer, because when you are investing this kind of money in a motorbike you deserve to get all the answers needed to make an informed decision.

Truckload (TL) freight shipping is the movement of large identical shipment which is needed to accommodate the space provided by a semi-trailer or intermodal container; while a truckload carrier is a trucking business that often offers a whole trailer load to a single customer.

On the other hand, less-than truckload (LTL) generally put different loads in a trailer from several customers.

TL freight carries more than 7000 kilograms of shipment and occupies the entire space of a single trailer which is less expensive and efficient than sharing space with a tiny LTL trailer. The amount of goods transported depends on the size of the trailer. While parcel, express and LTL freight are combined with sorts of shipment coming from various shipper and usually it is being reloaded along its way to delivery.

There are several ways to save in transporting items from one place to another. First, LTL shipper can consult a freight “broker”, online market place and intermediary to avail 50% to 80% discount unlike to 5% to 30% discount when directly going to a shipment carrier. Lastly, shipper must manage the pickups and deliveries of their goods at the unloading and loading terminals of the provider so that any surcharges are eliminated.

Fee to the TL carriers relies on the total mass of the cargo as well as to the expanse of delivery. Some other instances to be considered are as follows: geographic spot, type of freight, equipment used and period of travel.

Moreover, TL carriers deliver great sorts of items; that is why they only have a focal point of a particular class of freight to transport. Like for example, several carriers focus on food and consumable goods while others are into hazardous or poisonous waste and materials. They do this because different kinds of equipment and insurance are required to transport a certain load.

Shipments are not just placed in an ordinary container; hence, it is put into a sturdy shipping container to ensure safe keeping and proper delivery. This container includes crates and corrugated fiberboard boxes.

The creator of this special container is the Packaging Engineers. Before releasing the container to the public several tests are made to meet the demand and function it will serve. Also, tariffs are made to guide with correct packaging.

There are a lot of things to consider to deliver a certain freight be it TL or LTL. What you must put in mind is that pick the right carrier which has reliability attached to its brand.

It is difficult to find time searching for the auto part that is most reliable and efficient. In order to increase the value and performance of your car, you need to be alert and vigilant in understanding that the brands that can fully serve the purpose you want them to. Everybody loves his/her car, thus we should make sure that the auto part we are using for our car is the best that we can give it.

Murrays auto parts are available for all types of cars and their models. These spare parts are available in high quality and promise a perfect solution to your car problems and needs. The company provides many internet shopping outlets which offer easy purchase for the customers. Normally, auto shops are located at the outskirts of the city, so having them available easily on net and that too on surprisingly low rates, is surely a treat.

There are various auto parts available, which include headlights, baby locks, window switch and many other items. They are made of the highest quality material using the most advanced and modern technology to assure its long term use and full satisfaction of the customers.

The headlights are available to match many different cars and models. These headlights can be easily fixed and even taken off; therefore you would never need any assistance to have it done. All that is to do is to purchase your product and fix it yourself in few simple steps. Other than this, window switches are also available. They are designed in a way that it is extremely simple to have them installed and even taken them off whenever you want to. It saves time and energy because you do not require calling an expert to have it done for you.

Baby locks are highly essential to use in your cars and vehicles if you have children under the age of 5 or 6. These baby locks keep your children safe and sound even when you are not attending them while they play on the back seat of the car. The baby lock prevents opening the car door from inside.

Electric carriage is a road-going automobile powered by electricity. There are different types of electric car motors: “pure” electric vehicle with on-board battery, electric engine that is powered by other energy sources: car powered by sunlight or hybrid car with an electric engine but powered by gasoline or have supplementary electric motor combining with internal combustion engine. Now is developing other on-board energy storage methods like using ultra capacitors, or a spinning flywheel, which perform kinetic energy to electric energy.

Nowadays interest for electric car motor is increased because the negative impact of gasoline cars on environment is growing. You can notice the problems like global warming, pollution. Unrest in the Middle East leads to the rising of gas prices. So the electric vehicle is good alternative to overcome all these issues. Electric cars have popularity in different countries around the world.

The hybrid electric vehicle is common form of electric carriage, combining a gasoline engine with supplementary electric motors to run the car at idle and low speeds. Hybrid cars are now created by major manufacturers. The last models that were sold are Toyota Prius and the Chevrolet Volt, a hybrid which uses a fully electric vehicle with support of a gasoline-powered electric generator to extend its capability.

The world’s most popular battery electric vehicle in 2009 is the REVAi (model with lead-acid batteries).

REVAi is an Indian electric car motor intended for use in the city. The REVA is a small 3-door hatchback. It is manufactured by the REVA Electric Car Company (RECC) in Bangalore (India). There were concerns about safety of REVA. Car can’t pass important crash tests. As a result, the current REVA i and REVA L-ion models have several new safety features such as front disk brakes, a collapsible steering column. Now RECC is the world’s leading electric battery car manufacturing company and it is growing rapidly.

Muscle cars hearken back to a simpler time when automobiles were big and bad. They still attract a following of automobile aficionados and enthusiasts who love these sorts of cars. Unfortunately, the parts on these cars fall into disrepair. Even more unfortunately, the models of engines eventually fall from favor. But fortunately, these engines are reproduced by companies. These are known as known as a crate engine.

These engines are sold as standalone units sold without the car. They are commonly used to replace the engine in classic cars that are still being driven and kept up by car enthusiasts. Crate engines can also be used to make an older car more fuel efficient and drivable on a day-to-day basis. As many of the manufacturers of these cars have gone out of business or no longer make them regularly, oftentimes smaller boutique firms have stepped in and make the replacement engines.

Usually one built with different materials than the original. An engine made of aluminum rather than the original iron can be a lot less heavy and will cost less than what an authentic model would run. Still, replacements are not cheap. They start out at the $4500 range and go upwards from there. The fact that some classic cars can sell for upwards of 6 figures puts the price in some context. Needless to say, classic car rebuilding is not a hobby that is taken up on the cheap.

Crate engines are not something that a person will pick up at the local Wal-Mart or even GM Good wrench. This is something that is going to be specially ordered, oftentimes through a store that specializes in these motors. A quick search of the Internet will reveal a number of these stores online. Also automobile clubs can be another great source of information for those willing to sit back and listen to rebuilding tales. Of course, people who are into classic cars enough to invest in a crate engine are the same types that enjoy the building of the car in the first place.

These replacement engines can help to keep alive the memory of a simpler time in automobile history. Though not inexpensive by any means they can be ferreted out for a muscle car that has languished in auto purgatory and is waiting for the chance to roam the highways as it did so many years ago.

Choosing for an ideal car stereo system can be a difficult decision for us. There are so many options you can add choose from in deciding what would best fit your needs. Likewise, you have to consider the quality of the product so that it will suffice you and most of all will purposely meet your need for it.

Nowadays, entertainment has been a sought after especially by kids. And some car manufacturers provide it through embedding a car stereo system inside the car during a purchase. But, it is not a good idea if you settle to what you only have if the system you had is really not enough. Many car owners are also starting to have their car upgraded, likewise, upgrading the car system commonly starts inside. Car stereo system is one of the most in common that is being upgraded and customized.

There are so many ways you can do and have when deciding for some car stereo installation. Equipping with some special features are one of the newest crazes that is common when speaking of pimping cars. And when you are planning for some better audio, you have to look for car dealers regarding it.

Most common car lovers prefer to have bigger ones for a much louder and extensive audio. Likewise, regardless of the size of your system keep in mind of the quality of product should be considered. There are so many features you can decide to put inside your car. This includes mainly that Bluetooth wireless for hands free use of the cell phone, navigation system, satellite radio for a real time traffic, etc. This feature provides many convenient ways while inside your beloved car.

It is never a bad idea to have your car upgraded. But, it is recommended to start pimping your car with the car stereo. In addition, always keep in mind that it is not necessary to spend more for it, only choose those that would serve its purpose for your needs.