"Al Reed" polishing

[trade14u]

I have seen some of the work Al has turned out on Your Fuchs and am amazed at how great they look.

If I want to get something like that done locally, what exactly do I look for in the Yellow Pages? I'm sure there's no 'rim polishing' section in there and am afraid to look up "Rim Job" . Any ideas on where to search?


Also: What's a ballpark price?


Brad

[Moses]

Originally posted by trade14u

If I want to get something like that done locally...Brad

Where is local, Brad? You have a super-stealth profile. Let us know where you live. Someone may know a place near you.

[Zeke]

Contact some car dealers (maybe the service or body depts) and some tire shops. If there is anyone nearby, they will know. Is there a speed shop in your area? Car shows/cruises? I have a tire shop 2 bocks from me that polishes just the lips of any wheel for $70/set of 4. They don't do as nice of job as Reed. OK for my race rims. Make sure you check out your local guy first.

[MarkP]

I shipped from Seattle to Al in Orange county, that added about a $100, but worth it for his expertise. Total for my vintage correct refinish was about $500 plus shipping.

[ttweed]

Originally posted by trade14u
If I want to get something like that done locally, what exactly do I look for in the Yellow Pages?

They are listed under "Wheel" in my Yellow Pages.

TT

[trade14u]

I live in Kansas City (Lee's Summit), Missouri

Updated the profile at bit.


Brad

[Rot 911]

Brad, I doubt you are going to find anything locally. Shipping Fuchs is not that expensive. Al Reed's work is worth it.

[scottb]

I shipped some wheels to Al from a seller in Virginia, and I also shipped a set to Kurt V. My recollection is that it was about $50 each way, or $100 for the round-trip. Al's expertise is worth the few extra bucks. His work is outstanding, and he and Diane are great to work with.

Don't mess around with someone locally. Put the car on jackstands, pull the wheels, have a local tire shop dismount the tires. Pack the wheels carefully, two to a box, and insure each box. ($750 per box should be sufficient.) Al and Diane can walk you through the process of packing and shipping.

Send 'em to Al...you won't be sorry.

[Hugh R]

Al's worth the extra $100 in shipping.

[901/05]

Al's work is worth the shipping from up here!

Shawn.

[sammyg2]

I took my wheels to Al, it was worth the 15 cents worth of gas to drive there from my house

Sorry, I'm just in one of them moods. no wonder everyone hates me today.

[surflvr911sc]

One of those moods? Like time of the month? That’s what happens when you give her, you know.

Ship 'em!

[JeremyD]

Worth it to ship from Florida

[911euroguy]

Is Al still in business, I tried calling the # I found on this site and it said it was out of service. Any help would be appreciated.Thanks

[bkreigsr]

do a pelican search on Al Reed
When last updated, he and Diane were going through major health issues.
Bill K

[rbuswell]

Originally Posted by 911euroguy

Is Al still in business, I tried calling the # I found on this site and it said it was out of service. Any help would be appreciated.Thanks

Originally Posted by bkreigsr

do a pelican search on Al Reed
When last updated, he and Diane were going through major health issues.
Bill K

Al seems to go through a crisis like this every couple years. I had a similar problem reaching their shop about five years ago and they don't seem to take the steps needed to maintain a business presence until health has returned. Is it really that difficult to hire a high school intern to answer the phones?

It appears that they expect customers to wait until they are back and many probably will. He provides excellent results. Al has usually been less expensive than his major competition like Weidman or Wheel Enhancements. It comes down to how patient you are. And whether you are willing to risk having your wheels in process should he get sick in the middle of the job.

[Arne2]

That's a pretty cold point of view. Al's business is just him and his wife, as I understand it. I can't imagine that he has any non-family employees, and I'll pretty much guarantee that he isn't getting rich from this work. Nor is there any income when work is suspended due to health issues. Hard to imagine how he's going to pay someone to answer the phone when there's no money coming in.

And no, I do not know the Reeds personally, nor have I personally been a customer of him or his competitors.

[Pete000]

Al Reed does awesome work, but don't be in a hurry !

[rbuswell]

Originally Posted by Arne2

That's a pretty cold point of view. Al's business is just him and his wife, as I understand it. I can't imagine that he has any non-family employees, and I'll pretty much guarantee that he isn't getting rich from this work. Nor is there any income when work is suspended due to health issues. Hard to imagine how he's going to pay someone to answer the phone when there's no money coming in.

And no, I do not know the Reeds personally, nor have I personally been a customer of him or his competitors.

... I'm just saying that it isn't that expensive to pay some high school kid minimum wage to keep the lights on. This happens to them often enough that they should have developed a Plan B by now.

Porsche owners can be pretty demanding so if you don't want to play Russian Roulette with your wheel refinishing, you may want to try someone else.

[bike2ride95]

..."good things come..to those who wait."