alloy rim restoration?

Allyia · 07-14-2005, 09:40 PM

here is a few pics, of one of the rims/wheels i picked up today to get the tire fixed.
these are, well were nice rims. as you see time and lack of care has nearly ruined them.
they have a kind of clear coat plastic thats flaking off them all, and the ally is dark, corroded and in places even lightly pitted.
Is it possible to restore these rims? what do you use to strip the alloy back to its bare metal?
or I was thinking just go at them with a fine brass brush till they are more or less smooth again then shoot them with a nice color paint.
I'm not a real fan of chrome or mag rims anyway, but if there is some way to just "strip" this crud and stuff back to the nice clean metal, I might do it.

on the upside, between both trucks I have 8 of these rims, so maybe I can pick the 4 that are not to bad.

so whatcha think? :cry:

This ad is not displayed to registered members.
Register your free account today and become a member on Yotatech!

Rick F. · 07-15-2005, 09:07 AM

Wow! They're pretty nasty looking! I'd take the worst of the 8 and just start experimenting with various chemical, non-abrasive then abrasive cleaners. I doubt you could do more damage to them... I'd like to THINK that, if you do get them cleaned up, you can reapply some sort of clearcoat to them. I haven't checked, but I'm sure there's been some discussion around minor repiars to the clearcoat on the wheels. Try a search and let us know how you make out.

Intrepid · 07-15-2005, 09:10 AM

IF you unmounted the tire you could probably have them sand-blasted. Then clearcoat them before they get nasty again.

leebee · 07-15-2005, 06:25 PM

i thought i had saved a post i found regarding wheel maintenance, apparently not! try searching for 'alloy wheel maintenance' or similar. the post should show your alloy wheel in to top header and detail nicely how to restore them to their original condition. be forewarned, this is a labour intensive operation!

lee

Fast Frank · 07-15-2005, 07:18 PM

Powder coat those suckers!

There is a silver metalflake that's not too far from the original aluminum color, and powder coating is the most durable and corrosion resistant thing you could possibly do- at any price.

Fast Frank

Allyia · 07-15-2005, 07:23 PM

I did a long long search for such info.. I found a few ideas.
I could have them sand blasted as was said, then paint them or re coat them.

the more i think about it the more i like maybe a nice paint job on them once the surface has been stripped.

I have a good while before that stage comes around, so i will experiment on this one and use it for a spare or a door stop or something.

s_wall98 · 07-15-2005, 08:22 PM

I thought I had the post that Lee was talking about too but can't find it. Ask Corey about it, I'm pretty sure he'll have it. Looks like quite a bit of work, but the wheels looked great afterwards.

gohawks · 07-16-2005, 05:31 AM

There was an article in Popular Mechanics last year about refinishing wheels that the clear coat had come off of.

The author specifically said NOT to have them sandblasted as this would result in more stress cracks in the wheel.

Just my .02

shovelhead · 07-16-2005, 05:46 AM

If you can find an aircraft type paint stripper try that, I've had good results on other wheels I've had some issues with

Cebby · 07-16-2005, 06:23 AM

Here ya go...

http://home.off-road.com/~kemanuel/S...l/SR5Wheel.htm

Nic · 07-16-2005, 09:50 AM

I bought 4 off of eBay and the clearcoat was coming off of every one. Some had curb rash too. Just like the info in the link above, I used paint remover, steel wool, and automotive sandpaper to get them looking good. You can probably do this on yours depending on how badly pitted they may be. If the pitting is minor, you can sand it out. It was a lot of work for me though, and I probably won't do it again. Here's a pic of a wheel when I got done.

Allyia · 07-16-2005, 03:18 PM

thanks for that link!

ya know, a paint job is sounding better all the time...

Cebby · 07-16-2005, 04:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Allyia

thanks for that link!

ya know, a paint job is sounding better all the time...

I'll tell ya, I did one to see how it would look - I didn't even complete it. I'm painting mine. SEM Trim Black over some black self etching primer.

Check these out:

http://www.yotatech.com/showpost.php...8&postcount=35

The whole thread:

http://www.yotatech.com/showthread.p...729#post647729

Cebby · 07-16-2005, 04:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shovelhead

If you can find an aircraft type paint stripper try that, I've had good results on other wheels I've had some issues with

X2

FSRBIKER · 07-16-2005, 04:31 PM

Don't sandblast aluminum wheels, you would want to bead blast them...or another softer media. My aftermarket wheels look bad as well, I will eventually prep them and paint them.

leebee · 07-17-2005, 07:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cebby

Here ya go...

http://home.off-road.com/~kemanuel/S...l/SR5Wheel.htm

cebby to the rescue!

thanks man, now ive got it saved in my favourites for future reference!

lee

**waskillywabbit** · 07-17-2005, 08:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FSRBIKER

Don't sandblast aluminum wheels, you would want to bead blast them...or another softer media. My aftermarket wheels look bad as well, I will eventually prep them and paint them.

Yes, sandblasting pits metal, so you'll have to bead blast them for sure.

PirateFins · 07-18-2005, 01:13 PM

shhhhhhh! Don't tell my wife but this is what I use to clean my wheels up. Great assortment of abrasive attachments. If she finds out she is going to

.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...tchen&n=228013

I have heard of people using it but have never tried it myself, but what do you think Oven Cleaner would do?

paddlenbike · 07-18-2005, 04:11 PM

Quote:

http://home.off-road.com/~kemanuel/S...l/SR5Wheel.htm

That website sure has made its rounds. I think I wrote that in 1995.

Cebby · 07-18-2005, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by paddlenbike

That website sure has made its rounds. I think I wrote that in 1995.

Props to you! I didn't know it was written by a current YT member! Obviously prior to YT days...

Beartracker · 07-18-2005, 06:15 PM

Yep, Save yourself some headachs and all the money you would spend on chemicals and just take them to someone with a bead blaster. Mike

94x4 · 07-19-2005, 11:19 AM

I've used, believe it or not, Comet and Bar Keepers Friend with a scrubber type pad on the end of a drill, and a little water.

After the initial cleaning, I'd do touch up cleaning with a Brillo pad and a little elbow grease.

LabradorBoy · 07-21-2005, 09:24 AM

As somebody who has spent the *painful* time to strip/clean/polish a set of Tacoma alloys, I would highly recommend bead blasting them to get ALL of the nooks and crannys clean, especially those cast surfaces of the rim that have a rough texture.
Then you can have fun polishing them every week to keep them looking nice (if you don't re clear-coat them)....

The "shiny rim" novelty wore off pretty quick for me once I realized the level of upkeep they required , so I eventually located a great powder coater that was nice enough to do them on the cheaps for me (throw them in with another batch at the same time). I did them black and I haven't looked back since. All you have to do is clean them when you wash your truck and off you go, pretty good deal...

Allyia · 08-15-2005, 02:40 PM

A day with a few small wire brushes and a shade tree fixed the horrible rims.
the clear coat all flaked off like potato chips and the soft corrosion brushed away pretty smooth with brass brushes, a few places needed a hard steel brush...
I figured I would paint the front hubs too.
and the spare.

not bad for $5 a can rim paint. (graphite gray, advanced auto)

there is a few flecks and imperfections here and there but they are uniformly clean.

Cebby · 08-15-2005, 03:09 PM

WOW! Holy white walls!

I found when I stripped mine with aircraft stripper that the recessed areas had silver paint on them. I don't recall if the other one I had done previously had the silver paint or not. Maybe the painting was done to certain years?

The rims look good. That was one of the colors I was considering for mine.

07-15-2005, 09:07 AM	#2 (permalink)
Rick F. Registered User Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Far western Kentucky (transplanted from central PA) Posts: 1,063	Wow! They're pretty nasty looking! I'd take the worst of the 8 and just start experimenting with various chemical, non-abrasive then abrasive cleaners. I doubt you could do more damage to them... I'd like to THINK that, if you do get them cleaned up, you can reapply some sort of clearcoat to them. I haven't checked, but I'm sure there's been some discussion around minor repiars to the clearcoat on the wheels. Try a search and let us know how you make out. __________________ '00 SR5, Desert Dune: 4" Deckplate, Amsoil TS-115, Bilsteins, Brembo rotors w/Performance Friction pads, Fiam Highway Blasters, Sylvania Silverstars, Hella Micro DE Fog Lights w/Hella Yellow Star Lamps - SOLD 1/24/09 '08 Sport, Salsa Red: Hella Optilux fogs, Silverstar Ultra Hi beams. Pending: Borla dual catback, CAI, shocks

07-15-2005, 09:10 AM	#3 (permalink)
Intrepid Registered User Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Ashburnham, MA Posts: 2,711	IF you unmounted the tire you could probably have them sand-blasted. Then clearcoat them before they get nasty again. __________________ www.toyotacrawlers.com '85 4runner: 4.7's, FoxFab sliders, custom bumpers, 1" body lift, F-150 springs rear, lockright, welded third, IFS rear axle, 1.5" wheel spacers, high-steer, rears up front, Longs, 38" SX's on steelies, 12Voltguy dual battery, soft top, BMW seats. NO LONGER lacking an engine. :D :D

07-15-2005, 06:25 PM	#4 (permalink)
leebee Contributing Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: marlbank, canada Posts: 2,450	i thought i had saved a post i found regarding wheel maintenance, apparently not! try searching for 'alloy wheel maintenance' or similar. the post should show your alloy wheel in to top header and detail nicely how to restore them to their original condition. be forewarned, this is a labour intensive operation! lee __________________ 93 sr5 v6 auto, 4x4 Photos http://s866.photobucket.com/albums/a...albumview=grid there are quite some attractive ladies on here with Toys. (compliments of ironmike) ifsc 3(.0) http://tlca.org www.of4wd.com www.sontt.com

07-16-2005, 05:31 AM	#8 (permalink)
gohawks Contributing Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 1,274	There was an article in Popular Mechanics last year about refinishing wheels that the clear coat had come off of. The author specifically said NOT to have them sandblasted as this would result in more stress cracks in the wheel. Just my .02 __________________ SERENITY NOW!!

07-16-2005, 05:46 AM	#9 (permalink)
shovelhead Registered User Join Date: May 2003 Location: northern N.J. Posts: 88	If you can find an aircraft type paint stripper try that, I've had good results on other wheels I've had some issues with __________________ With enough time and enough money ya can fix anything

07-15-2005, 07:18 PM	#5 (permalink)
Fast Frank Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 10	Powder coat those suckers! There is a silver metalflake that's not too far from the original aluminum color, and powder coating is the most durable and corrosion resistant thing you could possibly do- at any price. Fast Frank

07-15-2005, 07:23 PM	#6 (permalink)
Allyia Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 80	I did a long long search for such info.. I found a few ideas. I could have them sand blasted as was said, then paint them or re coat them. the more i think about it the more i like maybe a nice paint job on them once the surface has been stripped. I have a good while before that stage comes around, so i will experiment on this one and use it for a spare or a door stop or something.

07-15-2005, 08:22 PM	#7 (permalink)
s_wall98 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Knoxville TN Posts: 443	I thought I had the post that Lee was talking about too but can't find it. Ask Corey about it, I'm pretty sure he'll have it. Looks like quite a bit of work, but the wheels looked great afterwards.

07-16-2005, 06:23 AM	#10 (permalink)
Cebby Contributing Member Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 11,246	Here ya go... http://home.off-road.com/~kemanuel/S...l/SR5Wheel.htm __________________ UZswap.com A site dedicated to sharing info for swapping the Toyota/ Lexus UZ (V8) engines into Toyota Trucks and 4Runners. My 4Runner 1993 4Runner, 1UZ (V8) auto dual ultimate crawler, double locked, 35's on beadlocked SR5 alloys, low lift, hacked fenders, tubbed firewall, custom armor TOOLandFAB.com A discussion forum dedicated to tools, fabrication & workshops. See my JD2 Bender Hydro Conversion BUY THIS 2008 CALENDAR

07-16-2005, 09:50 AM	#11 (permalink)
Nic Registered User Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Decatur, Alabama Posts: 1,038	I bought 4 off of eBay and the clearcoat was coming off of every one. Some had curb rash too. Just like the info in the link above, I used paint remover, steel wool, and automotive sandpaper to get them looking good. You can probably do this on yours depending on how badly pitted they may be. If the pitting is minor, you can sand it out. It was a lot of work for me though, and I probably won't do it again. Here's a pic of a wheel when I got done. __________________ Nic 1997 Tacoma 4X4 Xtra Cab 2.7L 5 speed

07-16-2005, 03:18 PM	#12 (permalink)
Allyia Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 80	thanks for that link! ya know, a paint job is sounding better all the time...

07-16-2005, 04:31 PM	#15 (permalink)
FSRBIKER Registered User Join Date: May 2004 Location: Lake Hopatcong, NJ Posts: 126	Don't sandblast aluminum wheels, you would want to bead blast them...or another softer media. My aftermarket wheels look bad as well, I will eventually prep them and paint them. __________________ 85 4Runner, 3" lift, 32's 69 Bronco, 5.5" lift, 35's, NP435 67 Shelby GT500, 428 Police Interceptor Poor

07-18-2005, 06:15 PM	#21 (permalink)
Beartracker Registered User Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 868	Yep, Save yourself some headachs and all the money you would spend on chemicals and just take them to someone with a bead blaster. Mike __________________ 2001 Tacoma SR5 4x4 , step side, 2.7 , extended cab, Auto. Mobile 1 syn 5w30 , Valvoline 75-90 syn in front and rear diffs and transfer case. Factory 16" wheels ,31" Wild Country TXR 265/75/R16, Aluminum Betterbuilt bed tool box, CB , 55W Halogen light mounted on tool box for back up, Elbow air box mod, 2 500 Hella running lights, Nissan Clinometers/Altimiter custom mounted on dash with red back lights.Red dome and mapp light.

07-19-2005, 11:19 AM	#22 (permalink)
94x4 Guest Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 1,429	I've used, believe it or not, Comet and Bar Keepers Friend with a scrubber type pad on the end of a drill, and a little water. After the initial cleaning, I'd do touch up cleaning with a Brillo pad and a little elbow grease.

07-21-2005, 09:24 AM	#23 (permalink)
LabradorBoy Registered User Join Date: May 2004 Location: Goose Bay, NL Canada Posts: 7	As somebody who has spent the painful time to strip/clean/polish a set of Tacoma alloys, I would highly recommend bead blasting them to get ALL of the nooks and crannys clean, especially those cast surfaces of the rim that have a rough texture. Then you can have fun polishing them every week to keep them looking nice (if you don't re clear-coat them).... The "shiny rim" novelty wore off pretty quick for me once I realized the level of upkeep they required , so I eventually located a great powder coater that was nice enough to do them on the cheaps for me (throw them in with another batch at the same time). I did them black and I haven't looked back since. All you have to do is clean them when you wash your truck and off you go, pretty good deal...

08-15-2005, 02:40 PM	#24 (permalink)
Allyia Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 80	A day with a few small wire brushes and a shade tree fixed the horrible rims. the clear coat all flaked off like potato chips and the soft corrosion brushed away pretty smooth with brass brushes, a few places needed a hard steel brush... I figured I would paint the front hubs too. and the spare. not bad for $5 a can rim paint. (graphite gray, advanced auto) there is a few flecks and imperfections here and there but they are uniformly clean.

08-15-2005, 03:09 PM	#25 (permalink)
Cebby Contributing Member Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 11,246	WOW! Holy white walls! I found when I stripped mine with aircraft stripper that the recessed areas had silver paint on them. I don't recall if the other one I had done previously had the silver paint or not. Maybe the painting was done to certain years? The rims look good. That was one of the colors I was considering for mine. __________________ UZswap.com A site dedicated to sharing info for swapping the Toyota/ Lexus UZ (V8) engines into Toyota Trucks and 4Runners. My 4Runner 1993 4Runner, 1UZ (V8) auto dual ultimate crawler, double locked, 35's on beadlocked SR5 alloys, low lift, hacked fenders, tubbed firewall, custom armor TOOLandFAB.com A discussion forum dedicated to tools, fabrication & workshops. See my JD2 Bender Hydro Conversion BUY THIS 2008 CALENDAR

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Frame Restoration.	drew303	86-95 Trucks & 4Runners	8	07-12-2007 11:44 PM
Interior Restoration. Where/How to start	RcBro	Pre 84 Trucks	26	12-06-2006 09:58 AM
More Colorado Restoration	mtnfreak	95.5-2004 Tacomas & 96-2002 4Runners	4	09-22-2003 08:33 PM
Colorado - Restoration Help Needed	mtnfreak	95.5-2004 Tacomas & 96-2002 4Runners	4	09-22-2003 04:38 PM