aluminum wheel cleaning

[fatboyreyn]

Hey boys, I got an estimate of $140 per wheel to restore my 86 OEM wheels. They are in great shape, they just have 20 years of use. Any suggestions on how to clean them? Buffing? (with what?) Acid? Any thoughts or experience would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[tonylong]

They're probably clearcoated. What's the condition of the clearcoat? If its peeling, discolored, scratched then the first step is to strip the clearcoat off.
There's kits available to do that. Mine cost $40. TAKE THE WHEELS OFF THE CAR BEFORE USING THE CLEARCOAT REMOVER IT'LL TAKE OFF THE PAINT TOO. You may have to do multiple treatments to get it all off. And also use nasty tools and words to help it along. I learned some interesting new strings of four letter words.

After stripping I just polished the wheels with Mothers polish. Others are good too. It's messy. I never re-coated the wheels. I just spritz Turtle Wax Ice spray detailer on them and wipe it off. Looks great. I had an estimate of $500 for all four wheels to be reconditioned. Another guy who had it done didn't think his wheels were $450 better than mine, and he had to take all four wheels off, put the car on jackstands for 6 weeks..


Good luck

 

[fatboyreyn]

I see no signs of peeling on any wheel. Like I said, they look good, just look dirty, although scrubing with soap does nothing.

 

[tonylong]

The dullness/dirty appearance is probably due to very tiny scratches. There are polishes made just for polishing the clearcoat but I didn't use them. Check around, it's worth a try if the clearcoat isn't too bad.

 

[onedef92]

On the inside of the wheel you can use brake parts cleaner to remove all the built-up brake pad dust, but be careful!

It'll eat the clearcoat on the outer surface of the wheel if you're intending to keep it on there.

 

[jrzvette]

I see no signs of peeling on any wheel. Like I said, they look good, just look dirty, although scrubing with soap does nothing.

If you could post a good close-up picture of the wheels it might help with some suggestions on how to clean them.

 

[kenmack]

MAKE EM SHINE

Try this, buy some 4x0 steel wool (super fine)buff the bead on one wheel maybe 6-10 " worth,buy some mothers aluminum polish or brasso and a rough nap cloth (face cloth)just lay into it as hard as you can, the more you buff the better it looks.If your clear coat is in good shape the steel wool should clean and prep the surface and the polish produces a real satiny super shiney look. It really worked for me on my 87. Post your results.P.S. don't panic if steel wool dulls surface, but don't grind right through your clearcoat. Maybe even some before and afters!!??
Try some Superclean (purple bottle)to remove buildup in fins first (read instructions).
GOOD LUCK

 

[grumpyvette]

http://www.corvetteactioncenter.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94372&highlight=publix