Alloy Wheel Fix

[Trenchard]

I picked up a set of used17in x 8J Ronal alloys for my car to clear 4-pot Brembos on the front. Two of the wheels had damage, pobably from pothole encounters. So I decided to fix them and here, to prove it's possible at home. is how.



This was the worst of the two so the first thing was to hold up the bare wheel and give it a tap to see if it rang true. It did and even when the powder coating was taken off, there was no sign of any cracks or old welds.

So next, it was clear that some heat would be needed to make the alloy more malleable. I then discovered a thing called a 'Tempilstick.



This is a rock-hard crayon and when the metal is at the temperature the stick is marked to detect, it will leave a mark like this.



Now to apply the straightening force. To do this, I made two wooden formers.
Here's the one for the outer edge of the rim.



This is the one that did the lion's share of opposing the bending force...




And here's what I used to apply this force.




An LPG gas blowtorch served to apply as much heat as I needed and the above setup did most of the work. A little work with a big hammer was also needed but to do this, I used the wooden formers as templates and as a means of drifting out the rims.

Here's the wheel, after priming a repainting.




And here's the finished article...



When it came to the tyre fitting and balancing, the wheel was true and on the road, there is no noise or vibration at all.

Just a disclaimer to finish. if a wheel is buckled or cracked, you'll need a pro to sort it, if it is in fact fixable. If you try the above, you do so entirely at your own risk. It is also your responsibilty to ensure that you apply only the required amount of heat. Equally, remember what you are working on, cast alloy and cast iron are very different things.