Polishing alloy wheels?
Discussion
I'm getting my old car re-commissioned and as part of the process I was thinking about refurbishing the alloy wheels - on a budget.
I'm thinking about stripping them myself (using thinners + powertools & wire brushes as I don't have access to a blast cabinet) and then repainting but I'm quite taken with the idea of polishing them instead.
I've previously polished various alloy car & bike parts with good results, but these were generally smaller items. Has anybody else done this & if so - with what materials & with what results?
I know I could just pay to get them refurbished for £40-60 each or a new set for £340 but I like to do as much as I can myself - it is a kit car after all!
I'm thinking about stripping them myself (using thinners + powertools & wire brushes as I don't have access to a blast cabinet) and then repainting but I'm quite taken with the idea of polishing them instead.
I've previously polished various alloy car & bike parts with good results, but these were generally smaller items. Has anybody else done this & if so - with what materials & with what results?
I know I could just pay to get them refurbished for £40-60 each or a new set for £340 but I like to do as much as I can myself - it is a kit car after all!
Have I missed the point here? Aluminium oxidises very quickly when exposed to air and other alloys tend to behave in a similar way. So if you just polish it and leave it the metal will soon change from "shiny" to "dull silver" - unless you apply a coat of laquer.
From the options you set out a couple of hundred quid for a refurb sounds best value in time and effort.
From the options you set out a couple of hundred quid for a refurb sounds best value in time and effort.
Dont do it!!!!!!
I tried it once on an old set of wheels - took absolutely hours and hours per wheel to begin to even shift the paint, and even then it never came 100% off - I simply don't believe you can get a good finish without proper dipping or blasting. Then I spent hours sanding, spent loads of £££££ on paint, and it chipped off as soon as you looked at it.
By the time I was finished I had a set of s
t wheels, which had cost me a fortune in thinners, brushes, sandpaper, paint, blood, sweat and tears and had to go get them properly done anyway.
I tried it once on an old set of wheels - took absolutely hours and hours per wheel to begin to even shift the paint, and even then it never came 100% off - I simply don't believe you can get a good finish without proper dipping or blasting. Then I spent hours sanding, spent loads of £££££ on paint, and it chipped off as soon as you looked at it.
By the time I was finished I had a set of s
t wheels, which had cost me a fortune in thinners, brushes, sandpaper, paint, blood, sweat and tears and had to go get them properly done anyway.GreigM said:
Dont do it!!!!!!
I tried it once on an old set of wheels - took absolutely hours and hours per wheel to begin to even shift the paint, and even then it never came 100% off - I simply don't believe you can get a good finish without proper dipping or blasting. Then I spent hours sanding, spent loads of £££££ on paint, and it chipped off as soon as you looked at it.
By the time I was finished I had a set of st wheels, which had cost me a fortune in thinners, brushes, sandpaper, paint, blood, sweat and tears and had to go get them properly done anyway.
I can actually feel your pain reading that! Sound advice IMO.I tried it once on an old set of wheels - took absolutely hours and hours per wheel to begin to even shift the paint, and even then it never came 100% off - I simply don't believe you can get a good finish without proper dipping or blasting. Then I spent hours sanding, spent loads of £££££ on paint, and it chipped off as soon as you looked at it.
By the time I was finished I had a set of s
t wheels, which had cost me a fortune in thinners, brushes, sandpaper, paint, blood, sweat and tears and had to go get them properly done anyway.Ozzie Osmond said:
Have I missed the point here? Aluminium oxidises very quickly when exposed to air and other alloys tend to behave in a similar way. So if you just polish it and leave it the metal will soon change from "shiny" to "dull silver" - unless you apply a coat of laquer.
From the options you set out a couple of hundred quid for a refurb sounds best value in time and effort.
Aluminium alloy can go dull over time yes but a quick polish & wax soon brings the shine back and for me, doing as much work as I can myself is part of the reward - which may sound wierd to some I suppose!From the options you set out a couple of hundred quid for a refurb sounds best value in time and effort.
Found this that might be of use to you. Luckily for me it's the same type of wheel that I intend to polish up.
http://www.myporsche911.co.uk/My%20Porsche%20911%2...
http://www.myporsche911.co.uk/My%20Porsche%20911%2...
I did this to the wheels of an old motorbike I had. I used Nitromors: http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servle...
Painted it on, left it for 10 mins or so, it bubbled up the paint and I then just craped it off with a spatuala and reapeated a couple of times. I then used a dremel for the hard to reach bits and stubborn bits of paint and then used polishing grade sandpaper and finished with a clear laquer to seal them. Quite a fair bit of work mind and I doubt I'd ever do it again, but if you want to get hands on then go for it.
P.S. Nitromors is nasty st, so make sure you wear some form of hand protection and do it in a well ventilated area.
Painted it on, left it for 10 mins or so, it bubbled up the paint and I then just craped it off with a spatuala and reapeated a couple of times. I then used a dremel for the hard to reach bits and stubborn bits of paint and then used polishing grade sandpaper and finished with a clear laquer to seal them. Quite a fair bit of work mind and I doubt I'd ever do it again, but if you want to get hands on then go for it.
P.S. Nitromors is nasty s
t, so make sure you wear some form of hand protection and do it in a well ventilated area.One of those jobs you wish you'd never started. Nitromors takes ages to work, your hands get hurt and scraped and it takes ages. I actually painted a set of wheels. After one, you're stuffed and wish you hadn't bothered and as noted, all the stripper and sandpapers make it expensive.
MadRob6 said:
Found this that might be of use to you. Luckily for me it's the same type of wheel that I intend to polish up.
http://www.myporsche911.co.uk/My%20Porsche%20911%2...
Crackin, they look great don't they - thanks! http://www.myporsche911.co.uk/My%20Porsche%20911%2...
I think I'll strip some paint off the spare first to check how smooth the finish of the casting is but I may have recruited some help in stripping them and laquering them and I suppose the polishing would give me something constructive to do whilst watching American Hotrod!
Dave_ST220 said:
btw, I had mine stripped & painted for £25 a wheel at a local alloy wheel manufacturer-Google KN Wheels, not sure if they are still going, sure they would just strip them for next to nothing.......
They are actually KN Minators as it happens! Looks like I may have sorted some blasting locally (I don't like working with paint stripper). I love it when a plan comes together..Gassing Station | General Gassing [Archive] | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff