Well it was time to get into the finishing stages of the Porsche dual monitor stand project. Up until this point all the fab work had been completed and it was time to disassemble, clean, and put the finishing touches on. I admit I enjoy the fabrication work more than the finishing however there is much to be said for the satisfaction one gains from seeing the project come together in the end and reach completion.
I had a specific finish in mind for each component of the stand at time of inception and the game plan never wavered. All the components received the finishing touches that were original brainstormed. Basically it came down to three processes. Powder coating, brushing, and polishing.
All the components that were to be powder coated needed a good cleaning and glass bead blasting as a preliminary step prior to fogging of the powder. The stand was completely disassembled, and few welds touched up and then all the mild steel components were tossed into the blast cabinet for an exfoliation session. Once they were rid of all external toxins it was time to shower then with some denatured alcohol and prepare them for the sprinkling of powder. My powder color choice was really not a choice at all. I felt as though I had no options except to go with the flat black powder (the same stuff I used for the CB160 engine). When I look at the marketing material, and finishes, Porsche uses in the vehicle showrooms and service reception areas the presence of brushed stainless and flat black are fairly evident. As much as it would be nice to through on a splash of color I opted to stay conservative, and with the original plan.

Opted to go with the matte black powder. Ordered up 4 more pounds since this is the same color I am using on the CB160 cafe racer build.

I bolted the stand to the oven rack so that I could just slide the complete assembly into the oven. I covered up the rack while spraying to try and prevent me from powder coating it.
Just about all of the stainless steel and aluminum were finished with a brushed look. I have always struggled to try and develop a good technique for brushing stainless. It is important to achieve a constant, and even, brushed look. The crucial piece that required this treatment was the 3 inch stainless flat bar that was backdrop to the “Porsche” logo. I was starting off with a rough finished piece of stainless. I opted to install a brand new 180 grit sanding belt onto the 6 x 48 sander and proceeded to work down as much surface area as I could fit onto the sanding belt. It hard work and it takes its toll on the horsepower but in order to reach the level of finish I wanted it was important to work the stainless down as whole. The 180 grit paper was working however I decided I would see how a 120 grit approach would work. I swapped over the belt and continued to work the metal down. I think the brushed look of the 120 grit gave me the look I was searching for so I decided to go for it. In the end I was very pleased with the end result.
When it came to giving all the aluminum components the brushed look they all got mounted up on the lathe and all received hand sanding to achieve the look. Since the aluminum is much softer then the stainless I found a 320 grit finish was better suited to tie the 2 different metals in together.

Performed a single stage polishing of all the rotor to hub pins. The slight gleam will help them pop against the matte black.

The pins were a bit tight sliding back into the rotor hub because of the thickness the powder coating added. A bit of persuasion was all that was required.
As far as the polishing goes there was not much to do. I always try to work in odd numbers if possible. In the case of the finishes I had black powder coating and brushed surfaces. Adding in a polished dimension would bring my even to odd and help create e a more pleasing look. I also opted to polish because of the purchased Porsche emblem. It was only available in a chrome/polished look and therefore I did not want to leave its finish all unto itself. I chose to polish all the locating pins of the ceramic brake rotor. I did not polish them to a chrome finish but opted to just “gleam” up a bit. The only other part of the project that was left with a polished look was the rim of the base aluminum disc that sits on top of the rotor. It is only about 3/32” that is polished however it is enough to add a subtle highlight.

Here is the bottom of the base where it will bolt to the rotor hub. It’s not pretty but it is functional. You can see the BMW logo stamped on the bottom right corner of the plate.

This is the stainless steel backing plate for the name plate. The top plate is the finished brushed product, the bottom plate is the finish I started with. Lots of grunt work standing in front of the belt sander.
So with all the components in a finished state all that was left was reassembly. As usual the reassembly takes the shortest amount of time but is also, usually, a highly satisfying part of the project. Too bad it is short lived. With it completely assembled I was able to stand back and determine if the end result beared any resemblance to the originating idea. I would say it came out better then expected. I had my doubts during the fabricating process whether or not I had possibly taken a wrong turn with the design. I was not sure the “Porsche” nameplate was going to blend. In the end I think it all came out fine. The combination of straight lines, flat black, and brushed highlights brings it all together. I can only hope that the dual monitor stand will meet my friend’s approval. As for me it is time to clean up the shop and regroup. I think it is time to get back onto the 65 Revive project. Not sure what will be next, perhaps I will be in the mood for some exhaust fabrication. For now I will leave you some pictures of the finished project.