rim makeover

[dashhho]

Any ideas on how to give these rims a second life. My first idea was to strip the clear and sand them up nice. then hit them with some black paint.

Any easy ways to strip the clear and deal with the corrosion?

 

[franklin2]

You can strip the clear off, sand and buff the corrosion out, and then re-clear. Or use a silver wheel paint. Painting them black would be the easiest, but black wheels are a fad I personally don't like. But apparently lots of people like them, the OEM's have black wheels on their vehicles from the factory now.

 

[Slug]

I might look into a sand or media blasting operation. There may be one close by, and I can't believe they'd charge a ton of money. Stripping and sanding corroded rims is a crummy job. Blasting them will clean all the stuff away, AND they'll be ready to prime and paint with just a soap and water cleanup

 

[Ranger850]

I would just tape up the Gray areas, then sand and polish the rest, maybe some "Clear coat for rims" in a rattle can and call it a day.

 

[rubydist]

I have used a product called Klean Strip stripper. It goes on like a jelly and you let it sit for a certain amount of time and then wash / scrape it off. That works pretty well if you are doing it in the shade, not in the sun, and its warm out. Then I used a 2k paint from Eastwood and cleared it. They look good now and the 2k paint holds up 100x better than the regular rattle can lacquer.

 

[RangerNumber3]

My vote is for new wheels.

 

[RobbieD]

I like stock wheels, cast and steelies, and I'd rather rehabilitate and preserve original, versus replace with new.

Steelies usually turn out really good. I've had so-so luck with refinishing OEM cast wheels (it has gone better with each set that I do, though).

Just sanding and clearcoating didn't do near as good as first using a stripper to remove the original clear (I used Aircraft Paint Remover Aerosol).

Deerprints like these that I refinished last have fine lines, like a machine turned surface, and I found that very course sandpaper rubbed with the lines did a lot to hide most of the corrosion stains. I then used wire wheels in a drill, and scothbrite pads, to help even out and polish the finish, before giving them a rattle-can clearcoat.

Not perfect by any means, but I think it's worth the effort if you're trying to keep an original old truck more presentable. It can take a lot of time and patience, learning as you go, and as always "your mileage may vary" . . .

Before and afters:

 

[snoranger]

My vote is for new wheels.

I’m not a fan of those wheels... I’d replace them.

 

[PetroleumJunkie412]

$30 option: Clean the hell out of them, and plastidip them.

Did it to my f350 in 2019, still looks good.

 

[CrabGuy]

Aircraft stripper, 2:1 water/wheel acid, sand corroded areas, polish or paint.

 

[ford4wd08]

Aircraft stripper, 2:1 water/wheel acid, sand corroded areas, polish or paint.

View attachment 72796
View attachment 72797

What acid are you using specifically? I've got a set of aluminum wheels I'll need to clean up soon.

 

[rubydist]

Aircraft stripper is better than Klean Strip, but its also more expensive and somewhat harder to find.

 

[CrabGuy]

What acid are you using specifically? I've got a set of aluminum wheels I'll need to clean up soon.

It's just generically called 'wheel acid' and used by detailers. Mine was made by Superior Products and labeled F-30 Acid. I use it first to open the pores on the clear coat which makes the Rustoleum Aircraft Remover work more efficiently. O'Reillys carries the acid and Walmart or Home Depot sells the Rustoleum Aircraft Remover. Never use the acid full strength, wear chem gloves, eye protection, and don't let the diluted acid get on any glass, it will etch it. If there's lots of brake dust full strength Purple Power with a stiff brush does a really good job as the 1st step in cleaning the wheels. I used the same 2:1 water/acid mix to remove 15 years of serious hard water spots all over the truck, worked great with no clearcoat damage at all.

 

[ford4wd08]

It's just generically called 'wheel acid' and used by detailers. Mine was made by Superior Products and labeled F-30 Acid. I use it first to open the pores on the clear coat which makes the Rustoleum Aircraft Remover work more efficiently. O'Reillys carries the acid and Walmart or Home Depot sells the Rustoleum Aircraft Remover. Never use the acid full strength, wear chem gloves, eye protection, and don't let the diluted acid get on any glass, it will etch it. If there's lots of brake dust full strength Purple Power with a stiff brush does a really good job as the 1st step in cleaning the wheels. I used the same 2:1 water/acid mix to remove 15 years of serious hard water spots all over the truck, worked great with no clearcoat damage at all.

View attachment 72814
View attachment 72815

Thank you for the info!