Foose Wheels are made in different ways to meet the demands from different groups of customers.
The basic wheels are cast with a spun barrel. Casting is the most economical way to manufacture light alloy custom wheels. It is also the best way to achieve some intricate shapes. Molten metal is poured or sucked into a mold shaped to exactly mirror the shape of the finished wheel. The one weakness of cast wheels is that they tend to be heavier and more brittle than the much more expensive forged wheels. This is of little consequence for the wheel centers. Brittle and heavy barrels are a different thing. The barrel is the most sensitive part of a wheel, which has to take hits from potholes and curbs without breaking.
It is also important to the drivability of the car that the peripheral weight of the wheel is kept as low as possible. This reduces the gyroscope effect (created by the inertia of the peripheral weight that wants to keep the wheel going like a flywheel) and reduces braking distances and bump bouncing and improves cornering abilities. This is why forged barrels are desirable, as the stronger metal in forgings makes it possible to reduce the thickness and weight of the wheel barrel without compromising the strength.
This is also why the cast Foose wheels have spun barrels. The barrels of the cast wheels are heated and then spun to exacting measurements in a roll-forging machine. The heat and the pressure applied in this process changes the molecular structure of the metal and thus the structural strength of the material.
In the 2PC Foose wheels, the barrel and the center are manufactured separately and then joined by welding. The centers of the 2PC wheels are custom made to the specific backspacing ordered by the customer. Foose 2PC wheels come with both cast and forged centers. While forged centers can be given very exotic shapes, with thin spokes and profiles, they are also more expensive to make. Centers designed to fit the casting process are much more economical to produce than forged centers, although they are a little bit heavier than forged wheel centers that are designed with weight reduction in mind.
The Foose 2PC wheels all come with forged rims. They are made from aerospace quality aluminum and are spun in a roll-forging machine as described above.
Foose also makes 3PC forged wheels. These wheels are made in three pieces, center and two barrel halves. The three pieces are bolted together and the joint between the two barrel halves is given an airtight seal of silicone. The main advantage of 3PC wheels is that they can be easily customized. The pieces can be finished before assembly, which provides almost endless possibilities to combine different finishes. They can also easily be made to a wide range of fitments by combining different widths of inner and outer barrel halves. If the barrel is damaged, these wheels are easily repaired. The damaged barrel half can simply be unbolted and replaced with a new piece.The most lightweight and strong of the Foose wheels are the forged Monoblock wheels. These are forged from a solid piece of metal, doing away with the weight and the stress zones created by the assembly elements of multipiece wheels.