Reviewed: HiPer Technology Wheels
About Hiper Wheels
HiPer Technology, based in Kansas, is a company that develops and manufactures wheels out of carbon fiber composite resin. Yes, the same material used in race cars is now being used to make your wheels! However, carbon fiber tends to shatter instead of bending (like aluminum), thus making it the least desirable product to make wheels out of. However, HiPer Technology and DuPont have worked together to make a proprietary molding process that solves this problem. The result? Light weight and strong!
Every ATV rider knows about HiPer wheels and lusts after them. They are seen as the best of the best. It was time to see what everyone was talking about, so we decided to give them a try. The first thing was to do research on what specific model to order (HiPer makes several models for different uses). To do this, we turned to www.TheATVChannel.com for some answers. We quickly found out that the most users were running the CF1 model for the front, and Tech3’s for the rear.
CF1 – Single Bead Lock
The CF1 wheel was the first all carbon fiber ATV wheel that is targeted specifically towards the sport rider. This wheel features a two piece modular design that includes a carbon fiber center section for reduced weight. The wheel also features o-ring seals and a carbon fiber locking bead ring that is held by eight fasteners.
CF1 with the bead lock ring removed
Rear of the CF1 with billet center that is replaceable should you need to.
Tech 3 – Dual Bead Lock
The original three piece wheel designed for extreme riders who don’t want to risk breaking a bead! The Tech 3 comes with two carbon fiber rim halves and an aluminum center section. One interesting thing about the center section is that it features a unique dual bolt pattern that can be used on more than one brand of ATV – very cool.
Tech 3 featuring dual bead lock
Tech 3 also features a removable center section should it be damaged.
After placing our order, the wheels quickly arrived. Each wheel is in perfect condition. They are works of art! Now came the fun part, installation.
Installation
Bead locks are meant to be easy to install a tire on. Although easier than a non-bead lock rim, they are by no means easy. It takes a lot of muscle to get them on, but once you do, you are set to go. Installing them is as easy as taking your old rims off and putting these new bad boys on. One thing to note is that if you are using aftermarket hubs with non-stock wheel nuts, they will not bolt up. You will need stock wheel nuts in order for them to bolt up good.
Weight Comparison
Weight is important to every ATV rider. One of the main reasons for switching to a carbon fiber wheel is for this very reason. To compare weights, we decided to weigh the following wheels and tires.
| Wheel | Weight |
| Douglas.190 Front | 4 lbs 2.1 oz |
| Burgard Bead lock Rear | 6 lbs 2.7oz |
| HiPer CF1 Front | 5 lbs 13.5 oz |
| HiPer Tech 3 Rear | 6 lbs 11.5 oz |
| OMF ScallopBead Lock Front | 7 lbs .4 oz |
| OMF Scallop Bead Lock Rear | 6 lbs 1.1 oz |
| Kenda Klaw Tire Front | 9 lbs 9.2 oz |
| Kenda Klaw Tire Rear | 12 lbs 9.8 oz |
The results are pretty interesting when you add up all the following setups of OMF Scallop Bead Locks, Burgard (rear bead lock and Douglas .190 front) and HiPer.
| OMF | | HiPer | | Burgard | |
| Tires | 22 lbs 3 oz | 22 lbs 3 oz | 22 lbs 3 oz | ||
| Wheels | 13 lbs 1.5 oz | 12 lbs 9 oz | 10 lbs 4.8 oz | ||
| Total | 35 lbs 4.5 oz | | 34 lbs 12 oz | | 33 lbs 7.8 oz |
When comparing the total weights, you can see that the Burgard setup is the lightest. However, this is only dealing with a single rear bead lock, so the comparison is not apples to apples. As you can see though, comparing bead lock to bead lock, the HiPer setup is lighter than the OMF setup.
Conclusion
We have ridden the bike in the dunes and at the local MX track to see if we would have any problems with the wheels. Luckily we didn’t. To this day, the wheels are still holding air (be sure to torque the bead lock to anywhere from 8 – 11 ft-lbs), so we can’t complain! We haven’t had any issues with the tires slipping or breaking bead, and we don’t think we would.
We highly recommend picking up a set of HiPer wheels for your ATV if you’re in the market for a set of bead locks - you won't be disappointed!
Website: www.HiPerRacingWheels.com
Price: Varies
Rating: A-
Carbon fiber bead lock rings
All mounted and ready to rock!
