jim dorociak

I just posted this on the 964 Turbo forum and remember many 993 owners are also Speedline owners.

I am testing two different finishes for the outer hoops of Speedline wheels I restore. I need feedback and welcome your thoughts.

First picture is a clear anodizing like Porsche put on the famous Fuchs all the 911 guys have love some 19 years or so. Very durable, not too bright, will not allow moisture to gather under the bolt heads that the regular Speedline wheels are know to have and the resulting discoloration on the outer hoop.

Second picture is a clear that I am testing called TSC. It does not crack, chip, or peel off like more traditional clear powder coating, or automotive urethane clears. It requires 8 days to fully dry and once dry it can not be chemically removed, but must be polished/mechanically removed. It is much brighter.

Also in the picture is the nickel plated bolt heads that I have chose to use when I restore Speedline bolts/nuts. Again they are brighter, but also and most importantly more durable finish than the factory finish that is also prone to failure with rust on bolt heads.

I welcome all thoughts about these finishes. I am trying to restore not just the way the factory produced these wheels but to improve with a more durable finish.

Thanks all.

Jim

Full Boost

Jim,

The 2nd one in IMHO is much much nicer....

Do you have the "Speedline for Porsche" re - engraved? Or does this finish go over the top?

Simon.

jim dorociak

Simon, I have the ability to re etch an original wheel when I do a restoration prior to the finish being applied to the outer hoop. Jim

clib

what would be a typical charge for restoring a wheel like this?

Cactus

Do you have complete sets to sell or just restore them? What is a set going for these days?

midcont

Don't the 964 guys get much more excited if the i in SPEEDLiNE is lowercase?

Boston911fan

Jim is the guy who sold me my 993 RS wheels, and is using this process to refurbish them. So far, they are looking great.

jim dorociak

There was a period of time, when I believe a mistake was made at the Speedline factory and a lower case "i" was typed in "SPEEDLiNE". I can tell you it drove the 3.6 Turbo guys who live and die with Speedline 3.6 Turbo wheel as they are THE wheel for the Turbo 964 cars crazy. I believe the last sets sold new have now been corrected and all characters are now in caps.
If you own a set of Speedline wheels, it really does not matter which style they are be it 3.6 Turbo, 993 RS, or the more available Alesio they are all 3 piece wheels use the same parts (slightly different hoop sizes with the 993 RS) and require just as much work to properly restore. A typical charge is $1500 to fully restore a set of wheels and includes refinishing all bolts and nuts in nickel, painting the inner hoops, polishing the outer hoop and re etching if necessary, painting the centers verifiy straight and true, and clear coating the outer hoops. It does not include replacing any damaged hoops, the charge to true your original wheels or special sized wheels that might be requested. These are very labor intensive, and require a certain finesse to restore a set of Speedlines. I have at times taken on too many sets, and everybody suffers as I get behind and try to finish sets of wheels. I recently while restoring a set of 993 RS wheels changed to single stage paint same formula, but thought 2 coats of paint instead of 4/5 coats of two stage paint would speed the process. Paint was very impressive, good depth, high gloss, but - too dark, and while they would have looked great, I started over again with a different formula, wrong color again, and a third attempt with different formula still not able to get the right color - so after 3 attempts to paint the centers get the right color, good coverage, good results I had too much paint material on the centers and had to strip completely the front and back of all 4 centers and it took over a week to get back to ground zero, but not really as now I had to prime at least 3 heavy coats with all the wet sandings necessary to get the surface ready to accept my old standard 2 stage paint process. There is no fast way to properly restore these prized wheels. Never enough money, but more a labor of love and possibly the last guy standing still working on these special wheels. Jim
If anyone has more questions or thoughts please email me directly at jdorociak@gmail.com ----.

kdurg

Wow...what a labor of love. They look beautiful Jim.

I agree with Simon, the 2nd set (finish) really stands out. Being able to retain the Speedline script will go a LONG way with anyone wanting to clean up a set-----kudos on you.