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I think I'll give this a try after talking with a tire place and being told that for them to strip and chrome my wheels would be a $1000.00 this DIY option seems rather appealing to me.
About how long can I expect to spend cleaning each wheel?
I think I'll give this a try after talking with a tire place and being told that for them to strip and chrome my wheels would be a $1000.00 this DIY option seems rather appealing to me.
About how long can I expect to spend cleaning each wheel?
A friend of mine paid about $1,800 to have four wheels plated with "Show Chrome". They came out spectacular!
As for cleaning, do you mean removing the paint on the barrels? As I recall, it took about 4-5 hours from start to finish. This included using paint stripper, Simple Green cleaner, then a coat of wax.
Looks like I'll be sending them out after all. Just got most of the paint off one wheel and noticed right away this copper looking commet
[IMG]https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.corvetteforum.com-vbulletin/598x1063
Nope it won't polish out either.
Looks nice. One thing you are going to notice is your rotors will drip rust onto the barrels after washing. Zinc rotors will eliminate that. PIA to clean but looks great.
What a beautiful job. It will set off the Corvette. I had no idea that
they were chrome underneath. I had chrome wheels with, like you, had gray barrels. What I did was paint the barrels the body color or my
car, atomic orange. I wish I had known this before I did it.
Nope, I'm pretty clean with everything I own. I get crap about it all the time from my friends. You know, didn't ask God to make me this way. Dust totally pisses me off, hate it. I'm also going to change to ceramic pads in a couple weeks. That'll also help with the possible corrosion.
Wheres thr step by step write up with photos on the ceramic break pads. Whats a rough cost for this and my DIY project and What would be a "better than OEM" ceramic pad to use?
Great job. I have chrome stockers, not gumbies, that I obtained on an exchange with LA Wheel and Tire. It was a great process and my barrels came chrome. They are not hard to maintain at all because they are slicker than painted and easy to wipe down.
Great Post, I hate that gray paint going to do it myself this winter. Any body have and neg input on this? Why was the gray paint applied in the first place? Why would the inside of the wheel rust any more than the rest of the wheel its all plated the same?
First off his wheels look great, i did the same project and removed the paint from the barrels of my Vette, i have an 05 so these were not the original wheels that came with the car as chrome wasn't offered in 2005 i'm told, so the original owner must have changed them, anyway the chrome under my wheels were not near as shiny as what the ops are, I ended up painting the barrels with automotive grade paint in black, i also am a little ocd and keep the barrels clean, the black looks good but i would have preferred the chrome..
Hi there,
I did my 2006 wheels but used a citrus based paint remover purchased from Ace Hardware. I used it because I thought a small mistake with paint remover could be a big problem. I let the stripper set for 20 minutes and most came off with a hose and water spray. I sadly found out mine were not chrome underneath the grey paint, but after cleaning them up, I repainted them with black wheel paint. They looked much better. Does anyone know if a 2010 GS with stock chrome wheels are fully plated like the ones in this post? I totally enjoyed your post...thanks!
Mike F
My GS chrome wheels have what I would describe as a rough chrome finish on the barrels but it’s hidden under the factory paint. That was revealed when I cleaned the tar and stuck on asphalt because the solvent I used stripped the factory paint off. However, the rattle can product I found did a pretty good job I think.
02-22-2017, 08:11 PM
Dust totally pisses me off, hate it. I'm also going to change to ceramic pads in a couple weeks. That'll also help with the possible corrosion. 
