body and interior Convert US turns into Euro turns?

[kine8282]

On ‎12‎/‎18‎/‎2016 at 7:51 AM, Tsingtao_1903 said:

I've been having server problems in trying to reach the faq.  I will start a separate blog for those who want to follow this diy project.

 

 

hey Tsingtao were you planning to sell any of the finished lenses or was this just for fun? 

[Tsingtao_1903]

I made a set for myself and put on my car.  I stopped working on it worrying about potential product liability.

 

For real professional looking re-pro,  you may want to get hold of Ryan.

 

 

[jhenard]

Tsingtao brings up a good point (yes thread hijack) about product liability.

 

What is the common wisdom/guidance on hobbyist produced parts?

 

I had specialized brake o-rings made for a Triumph but am reluctant to sell extras because of this. I know we are all enthusiasts and want to reproduce NLA/$$$ parts but one A-hole and a lawyer can ruin it for everyone. I bought the FAQ group buy reproduced Tii injector lines years ago - how did they handle the liability question - anyone know?

[Driv3r]

There is no liability if you're not causing direct financial loss. BMW doesn't produce these anymore. Doesn't IE fabricate, design and sell remanufactured spare parts?

[Tsingtao_1903]

Kudos to IE and other companies providing aftermarket and remanufactured parts.  However, companies can be structured such that legal liabilities ends with the companies and not the individuals.  My concern (I am not a lawyer) is personal liability with the individual hobbyist/hack working out of his garage.

[BigLiquid530]

Looked like a great project

[jsw]

these are the best ever made they are just like the originals (frame and lens is one unit) made of higher quality impact resistant plastic then the originals 

Edited July 25, 2017 by jsw

[Driv3r]

20 hours ago, jsw said:

these are the best ever made they are just like the originals (frame and lens is one unit) made of higher quality impact resistant plastic then the originals 

 

No doubts. They're perfect alternatives to the original Italian style lights at lower cost of the original.

 

However, considering the costs of Italian signals, they're not a good alternative for someone who is looking to replace their broken oem signals for a daily car. A better practical option to consider for oem style would be to supply the replaceable screw mounted lens at reasonable price. This way, buyers can have their signal housing polished or anodized, then just buy the lens kit which should supposedly include stainless steel or chrome screws/washers for mounting the lens to the housing & body and a small clear silicon tube or relevant rubber/gasket glue to seal the lens. I've successfully removed the oem lens without any damage. I'm now trying to use 3D scanner and printer to make a prototype (for myself). It will be a slow project but will share my experience and DIY write up once I can make it practical in terms of cost vs quality, durability & design. 

Edited July 26, 2017 by Driv3r

[jsw]

best of luck to you I think we all know many people have tried and failed at this I think you might be barking up the wrong tree with a 3d printed lens, Anyway danco is wiring them for the us bulbs and soon coming out with gaskets to include aswell at $250 a side for a perfect lens made just like bmw made them but with new stronger materiel I think that is a great deal seeing how much crappy Italians go for these days it would be close too $1000 for an original set of  similar quality if you can even find them and you will still have to mod them for US bulbs at that point, danco even offers and frame exchange program. 

Edited July 26, 2017 by jsw

[Tsingtao_1903]

16 minutes ago, jsw said:

a perfect lens made just like bmw made them

BMW made lenses have DOT markings to indicate the whole assemblies were tested and met DOT's requirements and regulations at the time.  Try googling DOT requirements for turn signals.  

[kbmb02]

4 minutes ago, jsw said:

best of luck to you I think we all know many people have tried and failed at this I think you might be barking up the wrong tree with a 3d printed lens considering danco is wiring them for the us bulbs and soon coming out with gaskets to include aswell at $250 a side for a perfect lens made just like bmw made them but with new stronger materiel I think that is a great deal seeing how much crappy Italians go for these days it would be close too $1000 for an original set of  similar quality if you can even find them for sale he even offers and frame exchange program. 

 

 

(note: I have not seen a pair of the new lights, but the direction of JSW's comments have me wanting to offer an opinion...)

 

It seems the Italian front turn signal repros look good and are a good value, both desireable qualities. 

 

However: The 'hard sell' on the Italian-style repros ignores an important factor: Time. Meaning, perhaps it would be prudent to temper a claim that the repros are 'perfect' and 'stronger' until you can provide real data of longevity over time, as in years, or - more fairly - decades, like the OE lenses have experienced. Basically, responsible enthusiasm might be in order.

 

On a side note, I have some sweet samples from Tsingtao's experiments on the lenses which I install on race cars; they look cool, and they will likely be bashed before sunlight takes their toll on them. "Off-road use only" - so no litigious concerns. And with a couple dozen core frames to play with, I'm working on quality chroming for future projects.

-KB

 

[BigLiquid530]

5 hours ago, Driv3r said:

 

No doubts. They're perfect alternatives to the original Italian style lights at lower cost of the original.

 

However, considering the costs of Italian signals, they're not a good alternative for someone who is looking to replace their broken oem signals for a daily car. A better practical option to consider for oem style would be to supply the replaceable screw mounted lens at reasonable price. This way, buyers can have their signal housing polished or anodized, then just buy the lens kit which should supposedly include stainless steel or chrome screws/washers for mounting the lens to the housing & body and a small clear silicon tube or relevant rubber/gasket glue to seal the lens. I've successfully removed the oem lens without any damage. I'm now trying to use 3D scanner and printer to make a prototype (for myself). It will be a slow project but will share my experience and DIY write up once I can make it practical in terms of cost vs quality, durability & design. 

Well I really hope you are successful, $250 a turn signal is a bit pricey at least for me. I think you will be successful, but I know it all take time. Let me know if you ever need a beta tester ?. I also have a set of U.S. turn signals lying around somewhere if you ever need a set just let me know, just have to dig around for them. Also message me when you post your diy blog really interested in how everything turns out. 

[Driv3r]

9 hours ago, jsw said:

best of luck to you I think we all know many people have tried and failed at this I think you might be barking up the wrong tree with a 3d printed lens

 

 

Barking at who's tree? As stated in my comment, the 3D printer is only used for prototype and once the initial fitment are confirmed, I'll seek to have it manufactured by an Australian car lens manufacturer for my own personal use. I will however share every steps with this forum. 

 

 

 

 

[Stevenc22]

Could silicon mould the lenses

 

 

 

[BigLiquid530]

1 hour ago, Stevenc22 said:

Could silicon mould the lenses

 

 

 

Interesting video