Custom Center Caps for Porsche Wheel [from CAD, prototyping to finish]

[tommydorsey]

Fred - I originally ordered a set because they looked cool. After seeing how they are made - jeez, they are incredible!!!

Jim

[Nine8Six]

Originally Posted by tommydorsey

Fred - I originally ordered a set because they looked cool. After seeing how they are made - jeez, they are incredible!!!

Thanks Jim! Trying to have them fit for Porsche cars that's for sure. 100% of those caps are made for good friends so a lot of care goes into making those things. Exclusive stuff so might as well have them looking good as much as looking cool

Originally Posted by Terryg

I am in no hurry so don't feel pressured! On another issue does that mean the lettering can say anything or is there a lot of work involved in changing the wording?

Terry, certainly doable however, and don't take this wrongly, but I was hoping for you guys to use the template I've provided in an earlier post + a vector based software to do your own! Just so I don't have to go back & forth for draft approval, mods, etc, etc In any case, if you are not happy with the 'default' script, shoot me a PM and I'll see what I can do for you mate

Originally Posted by lowpue

Don't know if I missed the boat but if possible I would love two sets: a gunmetal set with silver cap and a red set. If you have some still let me know how to pay you.

Thanks for the kind words! Can;t say for sure if I'll have any left, to be honest it doesn;t look like it but you just never know... some may change their mind and I might end up with a spare or two I'll post here for sure if that happens. Fingers crossed


In the Media this week:



^ So the first milling Op on those center/centers is to face the back of them. Te lathe finishes the front surface, were the badge goes, but does leave a nasty finish on the backside. Ti fix this, we have to load them up by pair in the milling machine and take a light cut to get that mirror finish! Details... its all about details




^ So poor I can't even afford a decent workbench dedicated to the machines lolll This has to be the most ridiculous set-up of all time e.g. what happen if I bump in that skinny bar stool?! Time to get a nice table custom made I think...




^ Adapters and centers are done!!! All left to do now if the main cap




^ Kept a few center 'solid' so I can laser some of my mate's custom request/visuals. Can;t wait to get those Sepultura stars completed (see previous pages/renders, in black w/star).




^ Preparing for this weekend's job (the main cap). Here I'm prototyping a precision thread that will accommodate the adapter. The adapters are
"deep freeze @ =22 degree Celsius prior assembly so this thread has to be right. No "lock-thigh & no-glue" on that thread. A plain a simple locking mechanism using thermal expansion (trade secrets, again!)



^ Precision threading... had to made 5 diff size to find the correct one. So the aluminum cap has to be heated at 40 degree and the adapter deep-freeze for things to work. Once both parts are at room temp, its permanent... no way to get this unscrewed (got one chance at this loll)


Some Video:

[lowpue]

Originally Posted by Nine8Six

Thanks for the kind words! Can;t say for sure if I'll have any left, to be honest it doesn;t look like it but you just never know... some may change their mind and I might end up with a spare or two I'll post here for sure if that happens. Fingers crossed

Thanks, please PM me if that is the case. Thanks again.

[Terryg]

Hi Fred

I'll go with the default, haven;t really thought of anything better anyway!
Looking good!

Terry

[Vidyashankara]

Just joined the forum to comment here!

Man, this is amazing! The BEST center caps I have ever seen! Quality looks out of this world as well. Incredibly creative.

Do let us know if you plan to make another batch, or if you have a set left over.

[fridsten]

It's been some time since the latest update on this. I everything alright, Fred?

[Nine8Six]

Originally Posted by fridsten

It's been some time since the latest update on this. I everything alright, Fred?

No. Nothing is alright these days. Had my 'workstation' C drive (SSD) dying on me last Thursdayeve and spent like 4 full days just to get back on track. Also had a terrible cold/flu hitting me at the very same time. The End-of-The-World lolll

I'll push out the latest media news and answer PMs in a day or two. Let's hope my new camera lens has not melted while I was away.

Thanks for asking bud

[kjc2050]

Feel better soon, Fred!

[fridsten]

Sorry about your SSD and flu. I hope you were wise enough to have a proper backup solution in place, but judging by how you do things, it should be well taken care of.

So get well and get to work!

[Nine8Six]

Originally Posted by kjc2050

Feel better soon, Fred!

Thanks Kevin A cold virus... what's bloody worst than that (for a real man lol). Prefer road bike accidents over that nose pissing/sneezing thing anyday.

Originally Posted by fridsten

Sorry about your SSD and flu. I hope you were wise enough to have a proper backup solution in place, but judging by how you do things, it should be well taken care of. ,

So get well and get to work!

Yea got backup everywhere, mini-fireproof safe at home just for these sort of things and all. The M.2 SSD (oem) I got sent as replacement was the wrong size (day1). Restoring a 160G system image took 1.5 day because the external drive I have the system regularly backed up onto is encrypted and needed full decryption (using Truecrypt, not Microsoft). Then re-installing my latest system user defaults + software templates (+1 day). Add the sneezing and all that sleeping stuff; my work was blacked-out for nearly 4 full days.

Data backup or not, what a real pain. Never tough it would have happen (to ME anyway lolll)

[steved0x]

Must be global cold/flu season, my whole house it right now, but I think we are finally on the tail end of it. Hope you are feeling better!

[Dubaday]

Originally Posted by steved0x

Must be global cold/flu season, my whole house it right now, but I think we are finally on the tail end of it. Hope you are feeling better!

I think you're right, my whole house still has it...
(including myself, who hasn't been sick in years!)

Take care and get well soon fellas!

[Nine8Six]

Ouch, already feeling better at least to know that I'm not alone lolll Get well soon fellas, this virus is by far the worst of all (in the lightweight virus category anyway).

Quick Update:

Good news; we are nearly there lolll I think we've done all the fixtures (jigs) that we needed to get these parts done to the tolerance we need (i.e. less than 0.05mm). IN fact, we did so well that most of the parts are ranging between 0.01~0.03mm. So... anything vibrating in your wheel I promise you its not The Great Porsche Center Caps - its the wheels themselves - or the road

Some of you might think I am 'really' picky. The thing is I know for sure that some of my mates will drive their P car on the Int'l Circuit here in Shanghai and its a fast one (+320km/hr). As I know them well they just won't bother removing those caps so "they-have-to-work". Besides... I just don't want to end up being "the talk" at the track, not even for an afternoon!

So that precision/fit challenge is completed - finally lolll All we need to do now is 1,600+ holes and off they go to anodizing (this coming week).

In the Media this week:



^ Looks weird, I know. Those are the precision threads I was talking about a week+ ago. The first turning operation for the main cap.




^ Again! Needed a fixture done for turning the other side of the cap, the side facing the world. Parallelism, always... those two spacers made out of Acetal are also precision machined... and so is the fixture :/ Took me almost 1 day to make this item lolll




^ More of the same, shows the rough piece of stock that precisely screw/thread on the fixture. Those same you saw on the green floor (pic 1)




^ More of the same, again (not creative this week huh). That's what comes out of it. I'm attaching a Youtube vid below to show how this works.
Notice how violent the first operation removes the metal... that screw the cap thigh to the fixture and this is where those Acetal spacers comes handy! The only way to unlock this part after machining really.




^ And finally, on the workbench. If all my parts would end up with quality surface finishes like this I'd do this everyday lolll Look sooo nice in person.


All the above, real-life!

[Nine8Six]

Next:

Off to the final operation! 16 slots per cap, we have something like 115 to make. That should keep me busy for my entire Sunday night I'll make a video of how this is machined using high speed toolpath. We have a high speed machine here so might as well use it to its real potential!




^ Last (last!) fixture here. All geared up for Sunday... all what's left to do is pressing the "Cycle Go" button.




^ Final product. DON'T PANIC; the product won't look silly shinny like this, no worries. The anodizing dulls the metal a little + color dyes makes them look & feel just perfect. Wait and See!




^ And finally. Quite exited to see this on the workbench. Once the final operation (16slots) is completed, all we have left to do is anodizing and laser!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Beware - Sharp! Random pic. Because we can....





I'll update in a few days - enjoy!

[lowpue]

Even though I know I am not likely to get parts...I always look forward to your latest update. I learn so much by watching each step....Thanks so much for sharing. Its great to see and artist at work :-)

[Nine8Six]

Originally Posted by lowpue

Even though I know I am not likely to get parts...I always look forward to your latest update. I learn so much by watching each step....Thanks so much for sharing. Its great to see and artist at work :-)

Winning comment of all time ( ) - u r welcome. In that case, you can have mine bud. I'll be in touch

ps: one guy wants 4 sets here (Shanghai) and me have an idea of what he'$ up to. So bad news for him, he'll get 3 only loll Fair enough I think

[Vidyashankara]

hey, where you buy the crest from? I want to buy one of those for the car interior.
-Vidhu

[Nine8Six]

Custom/made-to-order. The minimum order was brutal on those (so was the initial mold cost). Glad I'll get them all in use at the end

Bet you can find tons off eBay in similar size? E.g. shirt & cap pins. You might just need to dremel the back pin on one of those and you are all set. Just guessing out loud here

[P_Carfahrer]

Beautiful work!! The results of high end machining is jewelry to me. What CAD platform do you use?

If you ever make another run I am definitely in.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Terryg]

Looking good Fred, quite like the shiny, not for me though!