Black Star Rims on Cat Mini Bike?

[FunWithStuff]

I have an HPE Muskin JCPenney's Duster MX mini bike that I have recently restored. It has black star rims on it, but I've seen photos of other Duster MX bikes (even though there are not many) and they have chrome star rims on them. I was wondering if these are aftermarket rims or genuine HPE Muskin rims. If they are genuine, are they rare or common on Cat mini bikes?
Thanks! Any information is appreciated!

 

[45t]

There’re original wheels. Looks nice too!

 

[Steve73]

I have an HPE Muskin JCPenney's Duster MX mini bike that I have recently restored. It has black star rims on it, but I've seen photos of other Duster MX bikes (even though there are not many) and they have chrome star rims on them. I was wondering if these are aftermarket rims or genuine HPE Muskin rims. If they are genuine, are they rare or common on Cat mini bikes?

I only cleaned my wheels on my cat400x. This is still original paint. I'm pretty sure this was standard. Chrome star on black rim with silver painted edge.

 

[FunWithStuff]

I only cleaned my wheels on my cat400x. This is still original paint. I'm pretty sure this was standard. Chrome star on black rim with silver painted edge.
View attachment 253336

So based on what you say my rims are probably not standard rims unless they have lost their black paint on the rim somehow (which I doubt they did I would still see small spots of black paint on the rim if they were originally black). I believe they are HPE Muskin rims but I wonder how rare they are because they seem to be black stars on chrome paint contrary to the standard of chrome stars on black paint.

 

[Steve73]

So based on what you say my rims are probably not standard rims unless they have lost their black paint on the rim somehow (which I doubt they did I would still see small spots of black paint on the rim if they were originally black). I believe they are HPE Muskin rims but I wonder how rare they are because they seem to be black stars on chrome paint contrary to the standard of chrome stars on black paint.

You have original wheels for sure. My paint is how it was in advertisements. Your paint might be how yours came. Either way you have original wheels with the stars in great shape.

 

[markus]

They were a standard style in the cat line, you see some deviations on the bikes like yours pop up from time to time. heres one with the same wheels but no fork plate on it and had the factory black handlebars.

If you look at the brochures, you see the black star/silver wheels on few models over the years, I had them on an All american and on a 350ss from the factory:

cat 350ss

• markus
• Dec 26, 2010

"that will buff out"

cat 350ss project

• markus
• Nov 30, 2011
• 1

 

[FunWithStuff]

They were a standard style in the cat line, you see some deviations on the bikes like yours pop up from time to time. heres one with the same wheels but no fork plate on it and had the factory black handlebars.

If you look at the brochures, you see the black star/silver wheels on few models over the years, I had them on an All american and on a 350ss from the factory:

cat 350ss

• markus
• Dec 26, 2010

"that will buff out"

cat 350ss project

• markus
• Nov 30, 2011
• 1

Wow! You made those rims look so shiny! Would you mind telling me what you did to clean them up? I'd like to do it to mine as well!

 

[markus]

Wow! You made those rims look so shiny! Would you mind telling me what you did to clean them up? I'd like to do it to mine as well!

stripped the paint, media blast, and repaint...... makes them look like new everytime

Yours are pretty trashed so you will have a lot of paint loss, but you can take like fine 000 steel wool and cleaner and scrub on the wheels and stars (dissasembled) lightly so your not eating too much of whats left of the paint off, that will get most of the rust discoloration off and also smooth it all out a bit. Then some buffing compound with a heavy scrub, followed by waxing to get some shine back to them if your Ok with the worn look