This is a post I’ve wanted to write for the last three years since I learned about the tech I’m now using. I’m SUPER excited to finally be in this place with my business that I can unveil this.
Generation 3 revlimiter Gauges now exist!!!
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This is what I’ve been doing with myself for the past month or longer. My blogging and online posting has suffered. I’ve gone weeks without much instagram presence. I’ve not been around much at home either. But… it was for a good cause.
Gen3 gauges!!!
So what the heck does Gen3 mean?
My 3rd Generation revlimiter Gauges are made in a completely different way than the thousands of Gen2 and Gen2.5 gauges made between 2012 and 2017 (or the handful of Gen1 gauges made in 2011). The previous gauges were a composite material cut by a flat bed cutting robot. I changed materials a few times over the years, but the production was always pretty similar. The gauges were quite delicate and very vivid colors were never possible.
Gen3 gauges are laser cut from aerospace polymer and digitally screen printed to create a dial face that exceeds OEM quality. Using spot color printing, the gauges feature extremely vivid red zones and translucent black warning light areas. They’re also extremely tough and can be cleaned with water or chemicals. They should be pretty world-proof, but time will tell on that one.
Digital screen printing means small changes to the artwork can be done on a special-order basis instead of being locked into an existing physical silkscreen that can’t be easily changed. Sure, a true screen-printed gauge will have a slight edge in quality, but I’d rather be able to do special orders than lock myself into a huge archive of screen prints.
I’m confident when I say these are the best gauges being produced in the world today.
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Gen2 above
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These are the JNC gauges that Sharka has been wearing for over the past year. They’re quite good and are one of my favorite designs. They feel very harmonious behind the wheel. I’m not in a hurry to change them to a new design.
So since I liked the design so much, it seemed like a no-brainer to do a direct apples-to-apples comparison between the Gen2 and Gen3 gauges.
I tried my best to have the same lighting and same exposure between the swapping gauges in my cluster.
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Gen 3 above.
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It’s not immediately obvious what the differences are. I’ll try to sum up.
Gen 2 – true matte surface. No translucent blacks. No white inks. Blade cut on a machine after being printed. About 2mm radius possible error. Required hand finishing.
Gen 3 – OEM textured semi-gloss surface. Translucent spot colors. White ink. Laser cut prior to printing. About .3mm radius possible error. No hand finishing needed.
But a better comparison can be done by laying the gauges next to each other.
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You can see what’s going on here a lot more easily.
The Gen 2 gauges look rather dull in comparison. I’ve made thousands of them. I’m very proud of them and they were always the best gauges I could produce. But with my new machinery…
Gen 3 has much better colors, materials, and accuracy. They actually exceed OEM gauge quality.
I’m really proud, you guys.
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Gen2 lighting
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Gen3 lighting
The best and brightest lighting I was ever able to achieve was with my Gen2 gauges. The Gen2.5 used a tougher material that showed a bit better colors and was a little more resilient to moisture, but it didn’t allow quite as much light through.
The Gen3 material allows MORE light through than the Gen2!
As I said above, I’m SO happy to finally be able to use this tech and make these gauges. I’ve dreamed of this for at least three years.
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Let me try to think of a few questions and answer them…
Yes – NC gauges are coming. I needed these tools and the knowledge and experience in their use before I could produce NC gauges. I expect to have some in my store in less than a month.
Yes – NA and NB gauges are here. Anything ordered in the past week or so has been filled with a Gen3 gauge. I have to update ALL of the photos and pages in my store to reflect this. I’ve done a handful of NA gauge pages at the time of this writing.
No – Civic/Suburban/Supra gauges are not out. But they might be in the near future. I’m hoping to be able to expand and fill more clusters besides just Miatas soon.
…. and that’s all I can think of.
