Fuch restoration advice???

[LDunville]

I'm doing a major restoration of my 68 Targa. I'm debating weather to send them out to Weidman or do it myself. I don't mind the hard work, but I don't want to invest about a weekend per wheel, only to it look like an amateur job. Can a DIY job look professional with only hand tools and sweat? Obviously, it would sure help the budget.

Thanks
Larry

[72targa]

You might want to invest in a Fuchs wheel that is not original to your car to experiment with first. I applaud you for trying to do it on your own. Others have on this board and have shown your results. That being said, since you're doing a major restoration on your car, you may really want to send them to Harvey in this instance. Keep us posted either way.

[CidTito]

I've seen some amazing results using a scotchbrite pads and lots of patience.

[John Z Goriup]

This is not intended as free advertising for Harvey, nor do I benefit financially from recommending his services, but as long as you're asking whether it's a good idea for you to make your wheels look pretty utilizing household items & chemicals, as opposed to sending them to Harvey, please bear in mind that he not only makes them look as good as they can ever be made to look (the aesthetic restoration part - to your personal specs ), but the wheels you send him are subjected to a thorough, multi-step checklist, and are inspected for soundness, cracks, out-of-roundness, wobble, curb damage, proper valves, etc......in short every safety / structural aspect is checked and repaired as necessary by him before he even starts the "appearance" regimen.

Considering these are 30-45+ year old, highly stressed components, with totally unknown histories in many cases, I would think that knowing precisely that your wheels have been inspected, repaired, restored and pronounced fit for future use on an expensively restored car should be at least as important as having them look good. I respectfully submit that the average hobbyist / aficionado simply does not possess the training and the experience a professional like Harvey has accumulated after going through the above process with thousands of Fuchs wheels.

Your car, your wheels, your budget.........my advice.

JZG

[CidTito]

This is not intended as free advertising to Harvey, nor do I benefit financially from recommending his services, but as long as you're asking whether it's a good idea for you to make your wheels look pretty utilizing household items, as opposed to sending them to Harvey, please bear in mind that he not only makes them look as good as they can be, but the wheels you send him are subjected to a thorough, multi-step checklist, and are inspected for soundness, cracks, out-of-roundness, wobble, curb damage, proper valves, etc......in short every safety and aesthetic aspect is checked and repaired as necessary by him before he even starts the "appearance" regimen.

Considering these are 30-45+ year old, highly stressed components, I would think that knowing precisely that your wheels have been inspected, repaired and pronounced fit for future use on an expensively restored car should be at least as important as having them look good. I respectfully submit that the average hobbyist / aficionado simply does not possess the training and the experience a professional like Harvey has accumulated after going through the above process with thousands of Fuchs wheels.

Your car, your wheels, your budget.........my advice.

JZG

With that said, I might contend, that Harvey did my wheels for my SWT. I am happy that he did too, because, there was an instance, where I needed to make an rather exciting maneuver, and I can just say I am GLAD the wheels performed! Harvey has to be one of the nicer persons that I've have met in this early 911 adventure. There are a handful you guys, equally helpful.

In lieu of my own hobbyist / aficionado status, I have been approached on numerous occasions to replace all my 16" 930 wheels to the 15" 911 wheels, simply for looks and potential value to my car. HOWEVER - It has also been brought to my attention, by "professionals" that the (same tire tread) in 15" has longer stopping distance than one in a comparative 16". Furthermore as the 15" is slowly being phased out by tire companies, the choices of advanced tire compounds are becoming increasingly limited. I guess I could drive slower, but that still doesn't change the stopping factor, it still a longer distance.

Should I inevitably decide to go 15" Fuchs size, I too am in the same boat in purchasing wheels that will likely need restoration or...buy them from Harvey.

[Haasman]

You'll never regret sending them out to Harvey.


JZG makes some really good points. One hidden flaw on one wheel, when you were "just taking a good corner", makes the cost of having them inspected and restored, pale in comparison.

If in doubt, do it right.

Haasman

[Fishcop]

The big problem with restoring fuchs 'at home' is obtaining the correct anodized finish. It requires a considerable investment in equipment to be able to anodize a whole wheel correctly.

If you're seeking to achieve a true factory finish, then you have to anodize. Having said that, I'm really pleased with my home workshop effort on my fuchs. http://www.early911sregistry.org/for...hs+restoration Plenty of other threads with other techniques to get a nice finish including the "scotchbrite" method or polishing. All will be an improvement on ratty old wheels.

[mrgreenjeans]

I totally agree with all above assessments.
And have this to say :
One previous west coast owner of one 944 I own, did the scotchbrite refinish on a second set of Fuchs I got with said car. The finish is raw, but polished looking and requires constant polishing and waxing to remain as a finished look , which is quite different in appearance to an anodized wheel.
It turns the cotton cloth black when cleaning and is a bit of a chore compared to a correctly finished anodized set. The inner spaces around the lugs take on a darker cast requiring more intensive cleaning and polishing.

The properly anodized wheels do not require this and look far more right to the eye than a bling look in the raw aluminum polished brightly. Since these readily transfer and fit from my 944 to my 911, I have switched them over and will say the 911 to my eye does not look correct wearing these, even much less than on the 44

To my eye, there is nothing like oe factory original look to that period of time, to that particular car.

Harvey gets my vote.......

[Jay Laifman]

About 25 years ago, I had Robert Wood redo my '73 911 Fuchs - that were not in pretty shape and much less than 25 years old at the time. But, my Robert Wood wheels on the car still look pretty much as good as the day I got them. I'm sure Harvey's hold up just as well.

I will say though that I got a set for my 912 and painted them myself. I doubt they will last 25 years. They look great for now. However, it took a long time to tape them off to give the same look as stock from the factory: where the black line is horizontal with the surface of the wheel, not with the petals. After doing that, I came across the posts by guys who instead taped up the back side of the holes, laid the wheels down over a large pan, and poured in paint, filling the face of the wheel until the factory line, then punctured the paint to drain it out. If I were to do it myself again, I'd definitely do it that way.

[Harvey Weidman]

I'm doing a major restoration of my 68 Targa. I'm debating weather to send them out to Weidman or do it myself. I don't mind the hard work, but I don't want to invest about a weekend per wheel, only to it look like an amateur job. Can a DIY job look professional with only hand tools and sweat? Obviously, it would sure help the budget.

Thanks
Larry

Larry, I think the key to your statement is the "major restoration" part. One of the reasons that I got into the wheel restoration business is that wheels are right out there when you first look at a car. You can spend all the time and money you can on a restoration and if the wheels don't look right...the whole job looks off. I have seen it many times; put a good set of wheels on an average car and it all of a sudden it looks great. And vice versa. The Fuchs do require quite a bit of techinical effort to look right. It's not that it can't be done; I have seen individuals do a good job..but they always say they won't do it again. It can be very time consuming...the first dozen sets or so.
H