History of the 6 inch Wheel
All OPTI Kinetics 6 inch Effect Wheels were originally made from thin untoughened float glass. As our market in the 1970s was primarily mobile discos these easily became damaged protect the printing or, by simply sandwiching a full colour transparency film in between the two discs. Adding a rubber bead around the outside, which held the two discs together, then finished the wheel. OPTI Kinetics Plastic 6 inch Wheels were very successful as they overcame the problem of breakage. OPTI continued producing wheels this way until the advent of our more higher-powered projectors in the early 1990s. It then became necessary to utilise glass again for all wheels due to the high temperature of operation.

During this time OPTI Kinetics had tooling made for thin polycarbonate (unbreakable) clear plastic discs, one plain and one with a moulded boss incorporated into its centre. These discs were used for our panoramic 'picture and imagery' wheels and produced by either screen printing onto the surface of one of the discs and using the other to sandwich and OPTI Kinetics 6 inch Liquid Wheels have always been made with glass. Attempts to produce these from plastic too were unsuccessful, as the liquids did not flow as well. Certain other types of OPTI Kinetics 6 inch Effect Wheel such as Organic (and some Polarising Effect Wheels - now discontinued) also continue to be made from glass as heat is used in their production.