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Chrome Wheels
Noticed in another thread that people were complaining about polishing aluminum wheels. I had the same problem, hated it, a royal PITA. My first thought was to chrome but after discussing the clock stopping price for that endeavor, I tried something new. First I polished the wheels, a painstaking job as we all know. Then I carefully cleaned them to remove any and all remnants of the rouge. Next I dug out the prep-sol and cleaned again (silicone is the arch enemy of paint) and finally polished with a terry towel. After all of that I used a high solids clear coat with a titch extra hardener and a slow reducer and squirted all wheels, four coats allowing 5 minutes between coats to flash off. I was very careful and used a touch up gun to spray as I did not want to be forced into color sanding any runs. That was a bit longer than three years ago and they still shine as new, even survived a blow out, unscathed. Just an idea that seems to work very well…………….a cost effective method to keep Alcoa wheels looking like new. Should this project seem a bit sporting, a body shop would probably charge about $50/wheel for the task….if the wheels were already polished!
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4 Replies
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Thanks for that info. I’ve heard conflicting stories about clear coat
adhesion to aluminum. If it sticks to an aluminum wheel with all the
temp changes, sun load and weather conditions a wheel is exposed to it
should hold up for most applications.Ken
Earl William “Madman” Muntz
Very interesting story.
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Aluminum is very difficult to add a finish to. It is difficult to plate and equally difficult to paint or powder coat.
Successful coating such as John described requires a lot of prep work, and it typically goes far beyind what John described. The problem is aluminum is so reactive that any surface defects such as oxidation (rust) travels beneath the surface coating rapidly and lifts the surface.
As long as the surface finish is applied over a properly prepared aluminum substrate, and the surface finish is intact preventing sub surface corrosion the aluminum will retain the protective coating.
I wouldn’t worry a lot about adhesion on a properly pre-treated surface nor would i worry about expansion and contraction because surface coatings such as John used are flexible.
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I have painted aluminum many times and adhesion has never been a problem. Should one have concerns about this, 3M 111 Adhesion Promotor can always be sprayed on prior to painting or clearing. (that’s provided you can get it as many states will not allow its sale)
Jon is correct in his discussion of prep work but that really holds true for any kind of painting. To re-state, the wheel must be absolutely clean and free from anything that could contaminate the surface, salt, tar, oil, dirt, silicone. With this project I used the best of materials. Clear coat can be purchased anywhere from 40/gallon to 90/quart….Earl Scheib vs. Exotic by Design. I used a Sikkens High Solids non photochemically reactive clear, the later meaning that it will offer UV protection and will not yellow. The high solids allows for a thick build (all relative) which can be sanded and buffed if necessary. I reduced the clear per manufacturer instructions and as mentioned used just a skosh more hardener. I used my small Iwata gun with a 1.3 nozzle and 30 psi at the gun. (like I always do).
Again, I realize this may be a bit of a bold project but one can always have it done, either at a body shop or a wheel refurb place. And Jon, as you say, I would rather eat bees than to paint stainless steel, that’s the one that is a true nightmare in my book…………….
1999 XLV X-6872, liberty #440 -
I’m approaching the topic of pre-treatment as one who had large powder coaching facilities and products that had very stringent standards. In the overall scheme of things, in order or least problems with surface pretreatment was steel, stainless steel, galvanized steel, and aluminum with steel being almost idiot proof to pre-treat, and aluminum requiring considerable care.
But in the end if done properly we had no issues with the finished products.
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