Turbine wheel factory color

[87 MJ Chief]

Restoring turbines has been discussed in the DIY section but to my knowledge, no one has determined an "exact match" color for the insert sections.

We are restoring G's turbines back to their original color. I have looked at several different brands of paint (preferably over the counter spray can) and it seems many would be close.

 

What products have you used to restore back to factory color?

 

Thanks!

[Eagle_SX4]

Found this picture on Google. But I have always thought they look great with black inserts

[87 MJ Chief]

Black does look good, and it would match all the black trim on the Chief, but wouldn't be original.

 

We wanted to buy a second set and paint them black, but that would have cut deep into a 14-year old's restoration budget. 

[eaglescout526]

I think they’re the same silver used on the Jeep 5 spoke wheels. 

[Eagle]

14 hours ago, eaglescout526 said:

I think they’re the same silver used on the Jeep 5 spoke wheels. 

 

Not silver. The pebble-finished recesses were painted a light/medium gray. Not "charcoal" -- more of a "battleship" gray, or just a touch darker than that.

[ghetdjc320]

Here is a NOS turbine. I think I have a few other pics as well I’ll try to dig up.

 

 

[PCO6]

22 hours ago, ghetdjc320 said:

Here is a NOS turbine. I think I have a few other pics as well I’ll try to dig up.

 

 

 

NICE.   I would have thought silver but I think that proves it.   I had my turbines (2 sets) restored by a by a high volume production shop that doesn't do custom work.   I had two paint choices - metallic silver or black satin - before they turned down the polished surfaces in a wheel lathe.   I was very happy with their work and silver was fine with me.   

 

Not to get too far off topic but a few other thing about these wheels.   I have them on my XJ & MJ.   Neither set came with the vehicle.   One set has "MADE IN THE U.S.A" cast in on the back side.   The other set has "MADE IN W. GERMANY" cast in.   At a glance they look the same but the spokes are actually different.    The spokes on the USA wheels are 1" wide and the German ones are 1-1/8" wide.   In all other respects they seem to be the same.

 

Also, minor thing but were these wheels ever designated as "Turbines" by the factory?   The name certainly fits but they were simply listed as "15"x 7", 5 bolt, 10-spoke aluminum" under the heading of wheels in the sales brochures.   I bought an XJ Laredo new in 1990 and still have the brochure.   I highlighted the options I wanted and Turbines were definitely on my list ... although that's not what they were called.   

[87 MJ Chief]

On 12/9/2023 at 5:04 PM, ghetdjc320 said:

Here is a NOS turbine. I think I have a few other pics as well I’ll try to dig up.

 

 

Oh yeah!

We would love to see any other pictures you have. 

 

I will print this one and get the opinion of 'my paint guy' also. They do a lot with local auto restoration shops and are a SEM dealer.  

[87 MJ Chief]

On 12/9/2023 at 2:03 AM, Eagle said:

 

Not silver. The pebble-finished recesses were painted a light/medium gray. Not "charcoal" -- more of a "battleship" gray, or just a touch darker than that.

 

I'll use your description along with the picture(s) when I visit the paint shop later this week, if someone doesn't chime in with an exact match paint.

[ghetdjc320]

5 hours ago, 87 MJ Chief said:

Oh yeah!

We would love to see any other pictures you have. 

 

I will print this one and get the opinion of 'my paint guy' also. They do a lot with local auto restoration shops and are a SEM dealer.  

Here is what I could find. Not much but hopefully the other angles will help. I live the turbine wheels but which there were also some good quality caps to go along. All the ones I could find were in rough shape. 

[87 MJ Chief]

Thanks!

This will help with the different angles.

[NC Tom]

This tread make me sad. My turbines are so jacked, beat-up and covered with brake dust that my fronts look black. Power washing does almost nothing to them.

 

Resto looks like such a big job, I don't know where to start. I have guy who can powder coat for me. I just need to blast them first. They won't look original, but they would look much nicer.

 

And @87 MJ Chief, if you even get a day off and can drive 45 mins to my place, I'd love your help getting mine running again. I've had to borrow my mother-in-law's Nissan Frontier to get around. It's a nice 2014 with, working A/C, comfy seats, SAT radio, rides quiet too. But, it's not my MJ. My wife has hinted for me to sell it without coming right out and saying it. I can't do it! It has so much potential!

 

I build custom wood tables and whatnot for a living. Maybe we can work out a trade for your time?

[ghetdjc320]

2 hours ago, NC Tom said:

This tread make me sad. My turbines are so jacked, beat-up and covered with brake dust that my fronts look black. Power washing does almost nothing to them.

 

Resto looks like such a big job, I don't know where to start. I have guy who can powder coat for me. I just need to blast them first. They won't look original, but they would look much nicer.

 

And @87 MJ Chief, if you even get a day off and can drive 45 mins to my place, I'd love your help getting mine running again. I've had to borrow my mother-in-law's Nissan Frontier to get around. It's a nice 2014 with, working A/C, comfy seats, SAT radio, rides quiet too. But, it's not my MJ. My wife has hinted for me to sell it without coming right out and saying it. I can't do it! It has so much potential!

 

I build custom wood tables and whatnot for a living. Maybe we can work out a trade for your time?

You can send them to a wheel shop in Dallas that can refinish them. Can’t remember cost but not too bad. 

[87 MJ Chief]

I'm a couple of days away from starting (and documenting) a turbine wheel restoration. I'll list supplies and process in steps so whether the wheel is in bad shape or just needs paint, it'll be covered. @NC Tom, that might be hard for me to pull off, lol. I'd advise going through cruiser's list. Even if you don't get it going, it will be low cost improvements.

[pizzaman09]

That color sure looks like "Dark Gull Grey" per Mil Std, a common color for military equipment.  

[NC Tom]

On 3/14/2024 at 3:18 PM, 87 MJ Chief said:

I'm a couple of days away from starting (and documenting) a turbine wheel restoration. I'll list supplies and process in steps so whether the wheel is in bad shape or just needs paint, it'll be covered. @NC Tom, that might be hard for me to pull off, lol. I'd advise going through cruiser's list. Even if you don't get it going, it will be low cost improvements.