Gauge restoration..redline or autoinstruments??

[runningman]

Just got off the phone with Shannon from Redline gauge works.  I am pretty sure I am going to have them redo my gauge cluster, originally I was going to use autoinstruments but redline does a couple of things that ai doesn't do.  I want to have my amp gauge changed to a volt gauge and they also upgrade the volt reg to solid state.  Anyone use any of these two places?  thanks  matt

[autodynamics]

redline all the way...

[hulter]

I am in the middle of restoration of my cluster with Autoinstruments.  They have no ability to do bench test with voltage to the 12v power pin or the lamp pin (voltage varies with dimmer position) so there is no way to know if they fixed problem until you get it back and test it.

Does anyone know a co that can bench test with power to both pins and resistance on the gauge sender pins (real world)?

[smokinrt]

Hello, just got my guages back from autoinstruments, DO NOT USE THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, bunch of ideots.   9-10 week turn around, unprofessional, quality was a disaster.  I've read great comments re:Redline.  Good luck

smokinrt

[OttawaCharger]

SmokinRT - can you expand on that a bit?
What happened?  Where did they come up short in quality?

[Shakey]

I am also interested.  I have been planning on sending my cluster to AI also but have started leaning towards Redline in the past few months.

Tell us some more and post some pics.

This is the first negative I have heard about AI.

[hulter]

I can confirm unprofessional conduct at AI by the office personnel who answer phone- worried me a bit initially; maybe should have reacted more to that.  My cluster has made 2 round trips to AI and has persistent problems that I judge could have been fixed the first trip if AI had bench testing capablity with 12 volts to both power pins (lamp and cluster supply inputs) so that bulbs could have been observed to light up and guage stability could have been monitored under operating conditions.

I would not have sent it back to AI the second time if they had not stated that they would bench test with 12v.  They did not bench test it with 12v after they got it back and shipped it anyway, telling me about lack of bench test after it was en route.  They say their DC power supply does not have capacity to achieve needed amps- so there is some defensive behavior as well.  Act is if my cluster is the first one they thought about bench testing.  Told me that AI had never seen a voltage limiter blow so sent mine back first time with dead voltage limiter- did niot ck it.  Had me buy one at Napa and mail iit back to AI with cluster on trip 2 after I found 12 volts going to the gauges rather than 5.  AI told me that the only testing they do with applied voltage is to put 5 volts on each gauge separately while it has the 10 to 70 ohm resistor in the sender line-- for calibration.

Minor issues: they charged my credit card before starting the work- surprised me- no notice on their forms.  Delays in the work were not consistent with what they said prior to my sending unit.  Gave me no hint that a solid state voltage limiter is available (Redline).

Favorable:  The owner has spent time on the phone with me to assist my trouble shooting thinking, but this would have largely been circumvented I think if unit had been troubleshot at AI rather than on my car (by me) with car's 12v to power pin and lamp voltage from the dimmer rheostat.

This experiience has taught me a lot about my cluster, but more about human nature.

[smokinrt]

SmokinRT - can you expand on that a bit?
What happened?  Where did they come up short in quality?

I just can't expand.  Its's one of those, "where do I start stories"
But the final straw was after waiting 9 weeks for a 5 week turn around, the guages were delivered restored.  The crome looked ok, maybe better if they didn't have black paint streak across crome guage edges!!!!!  But that didn't bother me so much when I realized that they failed to enclose my wood grain cover in the first mail. Still couldn't get it to me for 3 weeks, after call, call,call. But that didn't bother me so much until they said that if I want the chrome/black redone correctly, I would need to get back in line but this time for only 7 weeks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And this doesn't enclude all the problems, WHAT A F...............IN JOKE, FROM DAY ONE. Save yourself the pain.  I spent $800 on these guages and the owner wouldn't even talk with me about anything, to busy for the customer.

[smokinrt]

I am also interested.  I have been planning on sending my cluster to AI also but have started leaning towards Redline in the past few months.

Tell us some more and post some pics.

This is the first negative I have heard about AI.

see my response in this message board, look up look down, I regret using AI, YOU'LL REGRET IT.  read some other negitive comments on this board.  Good luck at Redline, let me know how it goes, I have other stuff.

[OttawaCharger]

  Sounds like they've got to work real hard on their customer relations and quality control issues down at AI.  I'd be downright upset if someone took that much of my hard earned money, treated my like I was the problem then did a poor job too! 
Thanks for the warning guys.

[runningman]

Yeah good info, I am going with redline......I will take before and after pics, turnaround time right now is 2 1/2 months but I am not in a hurry.

[Charger1970]

I don't know anything about their instrument rebuiding services. BUT DO NOT SEND THEM YOUR INSTRUMENT PANEL.

http://1970chargerregistry.com/70messageboard/viewtopic.php?p=26251&highlight=#26251

[69chargerrt]

I don't know if you'd consider performance car graphics as another alternative.....   while I haven't had them rebuild a entire cluster, I've had them rebuild my speedometer and their turnaround time was faster than what was quoted me -and the speedo looked like they sent me a NOS piece instead       If I had the need and the $ to have an entire cluster rebuilt I won't hesitate sending it to them.....