SSR wheel company is almost certainly the most well known Kyusha wheel manufacturer. Launching in 1971 with the MK-I, SSR was a few years behind Enkei, but came with a whole other style and Japan’s first 3 piece wheel despite what other manufacturers would have you believe.

The MK-I/II and III which were SSR’s first three wheels, have certainly been the companies most popular. Forty years later, they are still in production, and are easy to find in almost any wheel marketplace. The F lineup of SSR wheels however, debuted 8 years later in 1979 and today are a much more challenging find. By 1985 they were gone. That makes them a great option for those who really want something different.

Of the six wheels, the F5 is the most common of the bunch, but the F2, F3 and F4 are Ultra-rare, and the F6 is something that we’ve never seen in anything but catalogs and advertisements… the above, from a 1980 SSR Catalog. Like the MK-I/II/III, all wheels in the F line up use SSR’s 3-piece sandwich type construction.

	SSR F1 The F1 is a simple dish type wheel, but is the only wheel in this line up to feature more than just an alpha numeric name. Often it goes simply by “F1” but some documents list it as “F1 Star Dish.” It features larger and more numerous oval cut outs on 15″ wheels (twelve vs ten). Construction uses 6, 8 or 10 shell bolts depending on diameter and width/offset. Thirteen and fourteen inch diameters are available in 5.5J to 10J widths. Thirteen inch however is 4H only, while 14 inch in four or five hole PCD’s from 110-120mm. Remarkably, the F1 and the F5 are the only wheels in this series available in 15″ diameters: 6J-10J width.
	SSR F2 Often mistaken for the Work Equip Silhouette, the F2 has slightly wider/stubbier spokes and no outer ribbing between spokes. In this line up, the F2 and the F3 both share the same sizing options: 13 and 14″ diameters only. 5.5J to 10J widths in both diameters. PCD is four hole only from 110 to 120mm.
	SSR F3 The F3 is incredibly similar to the SSR MK-3, but the F3 is indeed a different wheel. Compared side be side, the center PCD area is a little smaller on the F3. Most obvious though is that on the F3, two of the wheel shell bolts are centred on smaller secondary spokes. On the MK3, two bolts are centred on the larger primary spokes. Also note, most catalogs and advertisements make reference to an SA22 specific size for this wheel: 13 6J +19, although it does share other sizing options with the SSR F2.
	SSR F4 The F4 is a for spoke design, very similar in to the Bridgestone Stage 1 / TR-3. The shell style and assembly however, is all SSR. Either 6 or 8 shell bolts can be observed, and unlike the F1, F2 and F3, an 11J width is available in fourteen inch sizing. Four hole PCD only of course – from 110-120mm.
	SSR F5 Whoa is us… the five spoke wheel is the most common wheel in this series. That is largely because it is identical to the Star 5 which got a head start on the F series lineup, launching in 1976. Being five hole only however, the F5 is not available in 13″ sizes, and due to design constraints, is only available in 5×114.3 PCD in fourteen icy diameter. Fifteen icy diameters are available in 110 to 130mm PCD. Fourteen inch widths are 5.5J to 8J. Fifteen is from 6J to 11J.
	SSR F6 The F6 is the rarest by far, and having never seen a real set, I have given it the ranking of unobtainable. Available in 13″ only, all wheels should have 6 bolt shell construction. 5.5J to 10J widths with 4X114.3 and 4X120mm PCD only.

I have always been a huge fan of SSR’s old school wheels. For months after I got my MK-3’s, I didn’t consider getting anything but SSR’s. At the time, I knew about some of the more rare classic Japanese wheels; Devil Japan Shadow Spokes, Hayashi Techno and Yayoi, TRD Tosco, Work Equips, etc, but I really didn’t have a desire to look deeper into the rare wheel market to find something truly unique and rare.

About 2 months ago, while browsing YAJ, I came across an SSR I had never seen before. A single 4 spoke, with the familiar oval “SpeedStar” logo on the end of one of the spokes and a decently large dent in the lip. Without hesitation I bid on the wheel, and watched the days count down to the end of the auction. With no other bids, I won the auction and waited for my package to show up on my doorstep.

When my wheel finally showed up I was amazed when I pulled it out of the box. It was far lighter than any other wheel I had ever held in my hands. I looked for clues as to what model this wheel was, but found nothing. I took pictures of it and posted it online in hopes of finding someone with information on the wheel. It took another month before I found out from @prkbkr on Instagram that the wheel is a Speed Star F.4. Without a doubt, this has supercharged my search for the rarest, raddest and oldest wheels out there.