Polishing my aluminum wheels

[Stallion]

I saw a commercial the other day, a Dremel commercial for their rotary tool. And one of the applications was polishing metal with it. Is this a good way to polish metal (I do it with my hands now, but I would like to get a high speed tool for a really high shine finish) with a Dremel rotary tool?

And, would there be a special insert to polish aluminun?

And, would I need any "product" to go on while polishing? Or could the rotary just go on the aluminum dry? Know what I mean?

Thanks!!

Stallion

 

[Stallion]

I don't know where my head was when I posted this. Can a moderator please move this thread to the "Care and Detailing" board? Sorry for the inconvience.

Stallion

 

[74bigblock]

Dremel makes a polishing "kit" that has a few grinding and polishing adapters in it... you can find it at Home Depot ant the like. I think it was 20$ or so. It comes with a small jar of polish compound for fine detail. It worked fine on my Polished aluminium wheels. Not better than hand, just faster.

 

[Yoda]

Stallion

Here is a thread from the past that does a very good job addressing polishing wheels. Not much about a dramel tool, but very good insight and information

Polishing Aluminum Wheels

Bud

 

[Stallion]

The results with a rotary tool would not be better than when it's done by hand??

 

[Stallion]

Okay, I understand. And I will definitely try out that flour method. Thanks!

 

[tazdevl35]

Once you have them polished you can clearcoat them with clearcoat in a can.Just go slow follow the directions for prepping, and dont apply it too heavy or you will get sags and runs. If you do , just use acetone to remove the clear and start over. There is a clearcoat wheel kit available with hoops that go around the lip of the rims to keep the clear off of the tires. It also comes with the clearcoat. I tried it and I liked it. I am no pro at paint and body so if I can do it anyone can. BTW, Snap On makes a killer polishing kit for polishing just about anything...It comes with the polisher, adaptors clothes and the polish. All you need is the air compressor to run it. It rotates at the perfect speed for polishing...and like all things Snap On it does a wonderful job and saves 90% of your time VS. doing it by hand. You can have all 4 wheels cleaned,polished and clearcoated in a day..Not to shabby if I do say so myself.


Taz :eyerole

 

[wishuwerehere82]

Stallion:

Using a Dremel tool will take you a week to polish one wheel. They're good for fine details, but too small.
Use a hand drill, with a ball shaped polishing cloth. you can get them at detailing shops, or Sears has them in the tool dept. Sears also has a kit that has bars of polishing compound that ranges from Tripoli(course) to Red Jewelers rouge(fine). Then use Mothers, or Nevr dull, or my favorite, Wizards polish to finish them by hand. If you have not polished your wheels before, the clearcoat will need to be removed first. Acetone based nail polish remover works well. Everytime I go to Carlisle at least a couple people ask how I got my wheels so shiny. That's my secret!
They never look at the rest of the car, just the wheels.

 

[Stallion]

Do you have a picture of your wheels, Pete? That would be perfect. Thanks!

 

[corvettecrazy]

I agree a Dremel would be way too small to be a lot of good.

Also could someone PM or email me the proper way to use Jewelers rouge?

 

[DDLS3]

Stallion

Here's a link to Eastwoods site http://eastwood/ I bought a wadded cotton polishing ball which goes into a drill chuck. I used Mothers wheel polish this time and the results were awesome!! Several people made the comment this past summer that my wheels could not be the stock aluminum wheels. I have a friend that also had great results with Wenol and the same waddede cotton ball. All four wheels took me less than an hour and a half.

 

[Artsvette73]

Polishing wheels

The dremel tool is good, but your asking it to do a job that is way over its limits.
I have done some wheels with a four and a half inch angle grinder. I got the
four inch buffing pads at Sears hardware. It is a little tough to get the buff on
but it will. used the buff sticks also at sears. The angle grinder has plenty of speed and tourque that the dremel does not. Another final polish is corn starch. But I am going to try the flour next. Jack


73 Coupe L82 M21 383 Stroker

 

[Stallion]

Stallion

Here's a link to Eastwoods site http://eastwood/ I bought a wadded cotton polishing ball which goes into a drill chuck. I used Mothers wheel polish this time and the results were awesome!! Several people made the comment this past summer that my wheels could not be the stock aluminum wheels. I have a friend that also had great results with Wenol and the same waddede cotton ball. All four wheels took me less than an hour and a half.

That actually would be perfect. Just something to put in the chuck of an electri drill? That would be excellent. Can I just use any wheel polish? Because I already have Meguiar's wheel polish.

 

[Stallion]

Stallion

Here's a link to Eastwoods site http://eastwood/ I bought a wadded cotton polishing ball which goes into a drill chuck. I used Mothers wheel polish this time and the results were awesome!! Several people made the comment this past summer that my wheels could not be the stock aluminum wheels. I have a friend that also had great results with Wenol and the same waddede cotton ball. All four wheels took me less than an hour and a half.

I'm actually having trouble finding the insert on that site. What exactly is it called? Can you directly link me to the chuck insert? That would be perfect.

 

[97RedCorvette]

My best solution for polishing the wheels on my old `82 was with a cotton polishing ball attached to a variable speed drill. I used two different grades of polishing rouge - first one for deeper cutting to get rid of stains and minor scratches and the second for fine polishing. I removed the wheels from the car and took my time. It was well worth it. When finished, all four wheels were mirror-polished. As a final touch, I repainted the wheel slats. After polishing, I thoroughly washed and dried the wheels. Using 2 inch masking tape, I masked off each opening (on the polished side) making sure the tape was flat and smooth to avoid any overspray. Then, I turned the wheel face-down and applied 2-3 light coats of Krylon semi-gloss black spray paint to each opening. When dry, remove the masking tape and re-mount the wheels to the car.



The contrast of the mirror-polished aluminum with the crisp edged black slats looked immaculate.

 

[DDLS3]

Stallion,

By all means try what you have. If your un-happy with the results try Mothers or Wenol. Yes the wadded cotton polishing balls come attached to 1/4" arbor that goes in the chuck of an electric drill.

97redcorvette, I painted the backs of the wheels on my 81 2 years ago, what you said........awesome.

 

[Stallion]

My best solution for polishing the wheels on my old `82 was with a cotton polishing ball attached to a variable speed drill. I used two different grades of polishing rouge - first one for deeper cutting to get rid of stains and minor scratches and the second for fine polishing. I removed the wheels from the car and took my time. It was well worth it. When finished, all four wheels were mirror-polished. As a final touch, I repainted the wheel slats. After polishing, I thoroughly washed and dried the wheels. Using 2 inch masking tape, I masked off each opening (on the polished side) making sure the tape was flat and smooth to avoid any overspray. Then, I turned the wheel face-down and applied 2-3 light coats of Krylon semi-gloss black spray paint to each opening. When dry, remove the masking tape and re-mount the wheels to the car.



The contrast of the mirror-polished aluminum with the crisp edged black slats looked immaculate.

I'm not really crazy about the idea of painting the slots black. I've seen this one a '78 once and it didn't look good because he didn't take time to upkeep the paint. Also it's not stock.

 

[DDLS3]

Stallion,

I don't know how the factory wheels came on the 78, but the factory wheel of the same design on the 81 came with a satin black finish in the slots

 

[97RedCorvette]

Stallion,

I don't know how the factory wheels came on the 78, but the factory wheel of the same design on the 81 came with a satin black finish in the slots

Hi Dale,
Yep, the inner slots on the aluminum wheels were painted semi-gloss black and came stock from the factory that way. The look is totally original and the fresh paint really makes the polished wheels look that much sharper. The `82 owned by wishuwerehere82 is my old C3. She still looks fantastic and the wheels still draw attention.

 

[Stallion]

Stallion,

I don't know how the factory wheels came on the 78, but the factory wheel of the same design on the 81 came with a satin black finish in the slots

Well I'm pretty sure the '78 PC came with the black satin in the slots as well as the red pinline, but that wasn't true for Silver Anniversary editions and the rest of the '78s.