Polished rims...how well will they cope with the UK climate?
Discussion
The BBS split rims on my car are in dire need of a restore...The factory finish on these wheels is known to be poor!
The laqcuuer(sp?) on the rims has started to peel away from the metal...and they look shocking..
On the centers, the powdercoat is all bubbly etc from corrosion...
I am going to split the wheels and get the centers bead-blasted and re-powdercoated....
But im not sure what to do with the rims..
I could just remove the remainder of the laqcuer and polish up the rim with a decent metal polish..
However...I am not sure that finish will be very durable given the salt and grit on the UK roads...
Is there another way of getting a nice shiny, durable finish on the rims?
The laqcuuer(sp?) on the rims has started to peel away from the metal...and they look shocking..
On the centers, the powdercoat is all bubbly etc from corrosion...
I am going to split the wheels and get the centers bead-blasted and re-powdercoated....
But im not sure what to do with the rims..
I could just remove the remainder of the laqcuer and polish up the rim with a decent metal polish..
However...I am not sure that finish will be very durable given the salt and grit on the UK roads...
Is there another way of getting a nice shiny, durable finish on the rims?
If you don't lacquer the rims, the look will tarnish through oxidation, even presuming you keep on top of cleaning them very regularly to prevent pitting and corrosion thanks to the brake dust.
Either lacquer them, and use a good wheel sealant and non-corrosive/acidic cleaner frequently, or chrome plate them - but it too will still need to be protected and cleaned regularly to avoid them turning back to drabness.
Either lacquer them, and use a good wheel sealant and non-corrosive/acidic cleaner frequently, or chrome plate them - but it too will still need to be protected and cleaned regularly to avoid them turning back to drabness.
You'd be best to speak with a few refurbers, and pick their brains for solutions or processes that will generate what you're looking for.
There is such a thing as clear powder coat, whether that's what BBS used originally, or multiple coats of lacquer to give it sufficient protection, I honestly don't know.
There is such a thing as clear powder coat, whether that's what BBS used originally, or multiple coats of lacquer to give it sufficient protection, I honestly don't know.
This is always an issue with polished rims.
Whenever you lacquer a piece of metal, you scuff it up with a fine grit scratch to massively increase the surface area so that the lacquer (or powdercoat) adheres well.
With a polished surface, you can't do this - the scuffing destroys the polished look.
As a result, any coating on a polished surface has poorer adhesion than on a properly prepared one. Simple physics.
Either have the lacquer stripped and the rims repolished, and hand clean them with a little polishing compound every week or fortnight, have a new look such as paint or powdercoat over a properly scuffed ('keyed') surface (the most durable option)... or find somewhere that will polish the rims and use an etching clearcoat.
These are clears from the customising industry, designed to go over extremely regular surfaces. Fiddy cent's chrome-effect painted Lambo being one example. They're not quite as durable as a regular clear, and they're very pricey, but they do work - I've done some test patches with them on polished chrome surfaces. Clear-4-Chrome and Clear-on-Chrome are two brand names.
HTH
Tol
Whenever you lacquer a piece of metal, you scuff it up with a fine grit scratch to massively increase the surface area so that the lacquer (or powdercoat) adheres well.
With a polished surface, you can't do this - the scuffing destroys the polished look.
As a result, any coating on a polished surface has poorer adhesion than on a properly prepared one. Simple physics.
Either have the lacquer stripped and the rims repolished, and hand clean them with a little polishing compound every week or fortnight, have a new look such as paint or powdercoat over a properly scuffed ('keyed') surface (the most durable option)... or find somewhere that will polish the rims and use an etching clearcoat.
These are clears from the customising industry, designed to go over extremely regular surfaces. Fiddy cent's chrome-effect painted Lambo being one example. They're not quite as durable as a regular clear, and they're very pricey, but they do work - I've done some test patches with them on polished chrome surfaces. Clear-4-Chrome and Clear-on-Chrome are two brand names.
HTH
Tol
Anatol said:
This is always an issue with polished rims.
Whenever you lacquer a piece of metal, you scuff it up with a fine grit scratch to massively increase the surface area so that the lacquer (or powdercoat) adheres well.
With a polished surface, you can't do this - the scuffing destroys the polished look.
As a result, any coating on a polished surface has poorer adhesion than on a properly prepared one. Simple physics.
Either have the lacquer stripped and the rims repolished, and hand clean them with a little polishing compound every week or fortnight, have a new look such as paint or powdercoat over a properly scuffed ('keyed') surface (the most durable option)... or find somewhere that will polish the rims and use an etching clearcoat.
These are clears from the customising industry, designed to go over extremely regular surfaces. Fiddy cent's chrome-effect painted Lambo being one example. They're not quite as durable as a regular clear, and they're very pricey, but they do work - I've done some test patches with them on polished chrome surfaces. Clear-4-Chrome and Clear-on-Chrome are two brand names.
HTH
Tol
Tol is spot on as usuallWhenever you lacquer a piece of metal, you scuff it up with a fine grit scratch to massively increase the surface area so that the lacquer (or powdercoat) adheres well.
With a polished surface, you can't do this - the scuffing destroys the polished look.
As a result, any coating on a polished surface has poorer adhesion than on a properly prepared one. Simple physics.
Either have the lacquer stripped and the rims repolished, and hand clean them with a little polishing compound every week or fortnight, have a new look such as paint or powdercoat over a properly scuffed ('keyed') surface (the most durable option)... or find somewhere that will polish the rims and use an etching clearcoat.
These are clears from the customising industry, designed to go over extremely regular surfaces. Fiddy cent's chrome-effect painted Lambo being one example. They're not quite as durable as a regular clear, and they're very pricey, but they do work - I've done some test patches with them on polished chrome surfaces. Clear-4-Chrome and Clear-on-Chrome are two brand names.
HTH
Tol
I had a set of 19" M3 wheels and had them refurbished twice because of the very same problem ended up going for the diamond cut bare alloy finish to keep them looking nice !!!
Was the nuts to look at but i gave up cleaning all the time and i would say would only suit a weekend dry use car!!
Alloy refurbish companys are getting closer and closer to having a paint for wheels that is like the diamond cut finish(but still looks chrome to me)!!
I change my wheels to CSL's just because they look right when painted and no more buffing and polishing wheels every week!!
Heres FIDDY'S CENT'S lambo
Sorry had to do it Tol
[quote]Any recommendations for polish to clean up the corrosion on bare alloy rims?
My oz 8 spokes (tvr) have had the first gritted road exposure this year sice a refurb and are starting to go already. I know the last set of bbs splits i had got them diamond cut which looked ok till winter then they deteriorated rapidly.
My oz 8 spokes (tvr) have had the first gritted road exposure this year sice a refurb and are starting to go already. I know the last set of bbs splits i had got them diamond cut which looked ok till winter then they deteriorated rapidly.
ive had some split-rims with polish/laqquered finish(original-looking)and theyve survived 4 years with little deterioration by washing them once a week and(winter-time) spraying the rim part with wd40 once a week.
this somewhat messy routine has let me keep these wheels on all year round with just a very small and limited amount of that"spidering"corrosion under the clearcoat.
this somewhat messy routine has let me keep these wheels on all year round with just a very small and limited amount of that"spidering"corrosion under the clearcoat.
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