What to do with THESE rims?

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

So heres the thing, i polished these damn things out a year ago, thought they looked good and then washed the truck the next week and BOOM...look like crap again.

Not positive of the metal here but i think cleared aluminum ...minus the clear, which is why im thinking im running into problems here lol.

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/879/Rim_Before.JPG


On the other ones the center caps are extremely shiny (like clear coat) in spots, but the rest looks like the pic above.

Im WONDERING, is it possible to re clear them? Would be kind of a fun project...a little 'how to' info would be nice.

I used Mothers Mag & Aluminum polish to start out with...was getting so so results. Then off of a whim i tried some D151 and they turned out decent

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/879/Outside_Rim_Done.JPG

But as you can see there are dull spots all along the edges of the 'spokes' so to speak and they were not coming any better. I tried rubbing out by hand and with powerball mini...no luck. And as i said earlier as soon as i washed the truck the next time and all the brake dust was washed away...so was any resemblance of a shine lol

[rwright]

Hey Wills, I'm with you on the restoration but the I've read the clear on them is harder than what's on your paint. Is it possible to buy this same paint? Wonder if you could clear coat them and then apply Opti-Coat over that clear?

[opie_7afe]

i do know from the past that gm wheel clear of that age does not like certain wheel cleaners, like for instance 50/50 purple power, some wheel cleaners will make the clear cloudy and soft. but to answer one of your questions yes they are clear coated wheels. treat the clear coated wheels just like paint, use paint safe cleaners and you should be good, usually the clear on wheels are chemical resistant but i noticed as they get older they loose the chemical resistance. but thats with a DD vehicle that it happens to ive noticed. what i would do is use your powerball mini or something like that then use some 105/205 or something along those lines. then after the polishing apply a sealant/wax of your choice on them and don't use heavy cleaners on them again. good luck with them. i hate the late model gm wheels..

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

Hey Wills, I'm with you on the restoration but the I've read the clear on them is harder than what's on your paint. Is it possible to buy this same paint? Wonder if you could clear coat them and then apply Opti-Coat over that clear?

I did just get some opti, if i can get them to clear up real well i should just put a little on them to keep them looking nice, The CAPS though are definitely shot, might have to replace them cause the paint is flaking off in areas.


i do know from the past that gm wheel clear of that age does not like certain wheel cleaners, like for instance 50/50 purple power, some wheel cleaners will make the clear cloudy and soft. but to answer one of your questions yes they are clear coated wheels. treat the clear coated wheels just like paint, use paint safe cleaners and you should be good, usually the clear on wheels are chemical resistant but i noticed as they get older they loose the chemical resistance. but thats with a DD vehicle that it happens to ive noticed. what i would do is use your powerball mini or something like that then use some 105/205 or something along those lines. then after the polishing apply a sealant/wax of your choice on them and don't use heavy cleaners on them again. good luck with them. i hate the late model gm wheels..

Well thats good to KNOW they are cleared, i thought so but wasn't positive. I do remember that i have some of the 3" and 5" wool balls, those might have enough cut to get the job done..i'll try them out with some 105 and maybe powerball with 205 and see how they come out.

Dont happen to know where i can find those center caps though do you?

[DLB]

It all depends on how involved you want to get.

In order to get them back to perfect, you would probably have to:

1. Strip them. Use Klean Strip Aircraft remover or Premium Stripper (Welcome to KleanStrip.com (http://www.kleanstrip.com/)) This will make sure all the old clear coat is gone for sure. You don't want to repaint clear on old clear.

2. Polish them. Use whatever aluminum polish you prefer.

3. Clear them. Use Dupli-Color Wheel Clear. I had a set of wheels painted with the Dupli-Color wheel paint and it worked wonderfully. Can't recommend anything else because that is all I have used. I have also used it on friends cars. However, I would guess that this stuff is just as good or better: Wurth High Gloss Clear Lacquer Spray (http://www.autogeek.net/wulasp.html)

Note: Stripping them is also going to strip the paint off of the smaller parts that are gray (it looks like in the picture anyhow). So you would have to mask those parts off really well or plan to repaint them with a wheel paint of your choice (again, Wurth or Dupli-Color). If you use the strippers mentioned above - wear thick rubber gloves!!! It will burn through nitrile gloves, etc., and you DON'T want it on your skin.

Honestly I don't think there are going to be many other options if you want to make them look great again. In order to re-clear, you have to remove the clear that is there.

DLB

[Kristopher1129]

Looks like machine polished coated aluminum to me. There's really nothing you are doing wrong. Outside of restoring them...there's not much that can be done.

[KyleGates]

I'm almost positive that those are clear coated. An easy way to tell is if your metal polish is turning black on the rag then they are bare aluminum. If it does not then they are clear coated and should be attacked with a paint cleaning compound of your liking. As for the caps I would guess eBay would be your best bet or possibly the local junk yard.

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

It all depends on how involved you want to get.

In order to get them back to perfect, you would probably have to:

1. Strip them. Use Klean Strip Aircraft remover or Premium Stripper (Welcome to KleanStrip.com (http://www.kleanstrip.com/)) This will make sure all the old clear coat is gone for sure. You don't want to repaint clear on old clear.

2. Polish them. Use whatever aluminum polish you prefer.

3. Clear them. Use Dupli-Color Wheel Clear. I had a set of wheels painted with the Dupli-Color wheel paint and it worked wonderfully. Can't recommend anything else because that is all I have used. I have also used it on friends cars. However, I would guess that this stuff is just as good or better: Wurth High Gloss Clear Lacquer Spray (http://www.autogeek.net/wulasp.html)

Note: Stripping them is also going to strip the paint off of the smaller parts that are gray (it looks like in the picture anyhow). So you would have to mask those parts off really well or plan to repaint them with a wheel paint of your choice (again, Wurth or Dupli-Color). If you use the strippers mentioned above - wear thick rubber gloves!!! It will burn through nitrile gloves, etc., and you DON'T want it on your skin.

Honestly I don't think there are going to be many other options if you want to make them look great again. In order to re-clear, you have to remove the clear that is there.

DLB

Sounds like a possible project. How long have you had the clear on there though? Problem that ive had with rattle can clear is it fails pretty fast (at least for regular paint).

[Kristopher1129]

Sounds like a possible project. How long have you had the clear on there though? Problem that ive had with rattle can clear is it fails pretty fast (at least for regular paint).

Oh trust me...you don't even wanna get into this. I've been there once before. I got one rim done, and decided against proceeding. It's a pain in the ass.

I have a thread up somewhere about it.

[fredcandetail]

I say rattle can matte black....

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

Oh trust me...you don't even wanna get into this. I've been there once before. I got one rim done, and decided against proceeding. It's a pain in the ass.

I have a thread up somewhere about it.

lol that bad huh? send me the link if you can find it

[Kristopher1129]

lol that bad huh? send me the link if you can find it

Here it is...

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/auto-detailing-101/33167-buying-polishing-reselling-aluminum-rims.html

It honestly wasn't THAT bad. But, I was trying to work it around my detailing schedule...which just wasn't going to happen.

But it does take patience, and quite a bit of time. Plus that aircraft stripper is heavy duty stuff. It was too cold for me to have my bays open at the time I did it...not a good idea without ventilation. By the time it was warm enough to actually open the bays...vehicles were piled up on me, ha.

[DLB]

Sounds like a possible project. How long have you had the clear on there though? Problem that ive had with rattle can clear is it fails pretty fast (at least for regular paint).I had the Dupli-Color paint/clear on my Camaro wheels for about 3 years before it was sold. When I sold it, they still looked just as good as when I originally painted them. Here's the only pic I have online: http://slickorange.com/camaro/P52512-2.jpg

The only difference is those were polished aluminum wheels that I scuffed and painted. However, I only scuffed them with a Scotch-Brite pad, which in hindsight would have made me think there was no way the paint would stick, but it held up quite well.


Oh trust me...you don't even wanna get into this. I've been there once before. I got one rim done, and decided against proceeding. It's a pain in the ass.

I have a thread up somewhere about it.


Here it is...

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/auto-detailing-101/33167-buying-polishing-reselling-aluminum-rims.html

It honestly wasn't THAT bad. But, I was trying to work it around my detailing schedule...which just wasn't going to happen.

But it does take patience, and quite a bit of time. Plus that aircraft stripper is heavy duty stuff. It was too cold for me to have my bays open at the time I did it...not a good idea without ventilation. By the time it was warm enough to actually open the bays...vehicles were piled up on me, ha.
Kristopher - Can you honestly recommend that he don't even try if your experience was based on you not having the time to do it properly?

I have done 2 full sets of wheels (1 set of HIGHLY polished aluminum wheels that I respayed clear directly on, and the set in the pic above) this way. Truthfully, neither one was THAT bad, but it was indeed a lot of work like Kris said. I have also done some wheel accents and they have lasted a long time (like the parts in between the spokes).

Also like he said - the Aircraft Remover is no joke (see my note about thick rubber gloves). I recently just used some of the Premium Stripper to eat the road paint off of some aluminum step bars. Ate it no problem (and road paint is tough).

Just allow yourself at least a full day or two to do it, and you can get it done. But it is indeed a project, and you should expect to finish quickly.

DLB

[Kristopher1129]

I had the Dupli-Color paint/clear on my Camaro wheels for about 3 years before it was sold. When I sold it, they still looked just as good as when I originally painted them. Here's the only pic I have online: http://slickorange.com/camaro/P52512-2.jpg

The only difference is those were polished aluminum wheels that I scuffed and painted. However, I only scuffed them with a Scotch-Brite pad, which in hindsight would have made me think there was no way the paint would stick, but it held up quite well.




Kristopher - Can you honestly recommend that he don't even try if your experience was based on you not having the time to do it properly?

I have done 2 full sets of wheels (1 set of HIGHLY polished aluminum wheels that I respayed clear directly on, and the set in the pic above) this way. Truthfully, neither one was THAT bad, but it was indeed a lot of work like Kris said. I have also done some wheel accents and they have lasted a long time (like the parts in between the spokes).

Also like he said - the Aircraft Remover is no joke (see my note about thick rubber gloves). I recently just used some of the Premium Stripper to eat the road paint off of some aluminum step bars. Ate it no problem (and road paint is tough).

Just allow yourself at least a full day or two to do it, and you can get it done. But it is indeed a project, and you should expect to finish quickly.

DLB

I was never trying to put down your suggestion, or anything like that. I agree that what you suggested is the best way to go about it.

I was just sort of throwing the warning out there. It's just one of those things that ends up being more work than it appears. Once you start...you can't turn back. That's why I just wanted to stress the time, and effort involved.

If it's what the rims need, and you have the time...then I say go for it. Worst that can happen is you'll learn something.

I'd say give yourself at least a couple days. Especially with this being your first stab at it. Ventilation, and like DLB said...THICK rubber gloves. The kind the crazy guy on "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" wore to dip toons with, ha. :dblthumb2:

[opie_7afe]

repainting/resurfacing wheels is a pain in the rear, however if you have the right tools it makes it much easier i dont have the right tools so it sucked!, but the center cap question try a junk yard,ebay, or google "used center cap" or google some used wheel sellers online only advice i can give you, THE WORST wheels i have ever resurfaced was the wheels on my 86 ford thunderbird base model, the wheels looked to be alloy, but no they were a type of soft foam or some soft material, and they just sucked to redo, i just cleaned those up resprayed em that's it. those were some very weird wheels never seen it before im guessing it was just steel spokes covered in that foam stuff. heres the wheels im talking about just a warning to people!http://www.andysautosport.com/images/small/capital_wheels/sm__cow-1421.jpg good luck with them dude, as i said in my first post give them a shot with m105/205 see how that works. if not use a scotchbrite and scour the wheels and put down another coat or 2 of duplicolor wheel clear coat, the rattle cans lay down pretty well if it has the correct nozzle (the blue nozzles with adjustable sprayer are the best for spray painting with a rattle can as they do a wide fan spray vs a spot spray with a normal nozzle. just a tip for ya) heres a image of the nozzle im talking about http://www.vac-u-boat.com/images/PaintTipsPix/PaintFusionFanNozzle.jpg