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  #1  
Old 06-30-2002, 09:24 PM
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Help Refinishing Aluminum Wheels

I have some aftermarket aluminum wheels on my '97 Ram 1500 and wondering if anyone had any ideas on refinishing them (I'm a do it yourself type of guy). The aluminum is starting to oxidize under the clearcoat and I want to get rid of the oxidation and recoat them. The guy a NAPA says that clearcoat in a can won't stick to the aluminum. Is this true. Also, is there any way to get rid of the oxidation without ruining the wheels. Any help is appreciated.
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Old 07-11-2002, 12:28 PM
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Default Try this!

Get some aluminium polish from your local hardware store and spend up to 2 hours polishing each rim, this of course depends on how the type of rims you have and the detail involved. You'll need a "dremel"-type tool to get in all the cracks, and then, I'd suggest putting a coat of high-temperature lacquer to keep this finish looking like new.

And I'm really serious about that two hours, since it's difficult to get the same level of "finish" all around your rim's surface. If you don't spend the time, some spots may appear shinier or duller than others.
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Old 07-14-2002, 04:29 PM
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Default Glass bead blast them

My buddy had some bead blasted and he recleared them and they look like new.
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Old 07-15-2002, 09:17 PM
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Thanks for the advice, I bought some 3M aluminum polish at my local NAPA and tried that but I had to get some stripper from Home Depot to take off the clearcoat before I polished. I polished a small area for several minutes and the corrosion came off but the finish was not shiny at all. I've heard from some buddies that clearcoat in a can won't stick to the aluminum rims. Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.
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Old 07-19-2002, 10:45 AM
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I've seen clear coat that was just for wheels. I believe it was at O'Rieleys. I think any good clear coat would stick with proper preparation.
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Old 07-19-2002, 03:43 PM
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I refinished the crab wheels I had on my 88 Daytona by stripping the clear off and lightly sanding with 600 wet/dry wet until the corroded spots looked simmilar to the rest of the rim. You may have to sand more than you think to get down to good clean aluminum. Then I sanded the entire rim with 1000 wet then 1500/2000 wet and then polished to a nice gloss. I left mine bare and just polished them one in a while but i had a different set of wheels for winter. You could always have them powercoated clear after polishing.
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Old 07-20-2002, 10:19 PM
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The problem with sanding my rims is that they have a grain and if you sand it it will ruin the pattern. I suppose I could just sand the whole rim, but I'd have to take a pretty good layer off all the way around. Do you know what I'm talking about?
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Old 07-21-2002, 12:47 AM
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Do they have a "as cast" finish. Sort of rough texture. If they do then blasting is the only way to clean them but I have found that aluminum tends to peen since it is so soft. Maybe someone knows the correct media to use to do the job.
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Old 07-24-2002, 12:07 AM
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Thanks! I'll see what I can find.
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