Snowwolfe

I have a set of non clear coated aluminum wheels on my truck They are about 10 years old and before they go on the truck in the spring they need a massive polishing to remove the blemishes.
Last year I tried the Mothers polishing ball and it didnt seem to be any better than polishing them by hand.
Any and all tips for methods and or polish recommendations would be appreciated.
Thank you

LNGBAL

I would recommend using Adam's Metal Polish 1&2 followed by Adam's Brilliant Spray Glaze. I did my buddy's aluminum wheels about 2 months ago and he said they never looked better.

00Nassau

I tried several products on my Boyd Coddington Smoothie II's, and Meguiars Hot Rims Mag and Aluminum Polish was the best. I hand polished them with a soft cotton rag, and they shined up great. There was a very noticable difference when I used the Mequiars compared to the other products. I was seriously considering getting the wheels chromed before I finally used the Meguiars.

b_pappy

I have to tread carefully here, but depending how bad they are corroded & pitted you may need to step up to something more like Wenol to get the shine back, then regular maintenance with easier products mentioned above might work. I believe Autogeek carries Wenol.
Bruce

SLO C5

If they're that bad, you may need to hit them first with a wheel restorer/tarnish remover, then use a good polish to bring them to shine.

DAV162

try this stuff amazing on any metals

http://www.innate.com/Supplies/Wizards/Wizards.htm

Snowwolfe

Thanks for all the tips. I'll try some of them when I get ready to put the summer wheels back on

0Killrwheels@Autogeek

I have uncoated wheels and after 3 years of use they still look quite new. Heres the regimine:

1. P21S Wheel Cleaner Only
2. Polish with Mothers Powerball Mini and English Custom Showmans Custom Blend
3. Seal with Poorboys or Dp Wheel Glaze

DWC4

The clearcoat is now patchy, would I need to somehow strip the rest then start over? The shop manual has info on this, I need to open it back up, they list specific products and method but nothing beats forum folks experience. 1992, they're nice at about 20 feet, no closer.

Snowwolfe

I pulled the wheels into the garage for there spring cleaning and on a hunch I grabbed some 0000 steel wool. I used the steel wheel to polish in the Meguiars then afterwards used a terry cloth with Meguiars to add some shine back.
The steel wool made removing the crud and most of the blemishes very easy to clean off compared to just using the terry cloth.

0Killrwheels@Autogeek

P21S also makes a polishing soap which removes old oxidation and tarnish quite easily. You do however need to polish afterwards and this is where the polishes, Powerball, and a little time bring nice rewards.

DWC4

Mine are the original 92 wheels and the clear coat has of course degraded a lot, peeling and patchy looking, etc. I would think the only solution is to strip it completely and start over, any alternatives?

dclafleur

I'm in the same boat as you, let me know if you learn any good tricks!

DWC4

hey Oklahoma

Well the shop manual has info, I need to go back and see what it says but I'm pretty sure it's about stripping it off completely and starting over. I took mine to a local wheel shop, was thinking having them done in black powder coat, they would smooth out the nicks, etc and the whole bit about $800.

I gotta believe we can find a way to make them better for less. I don't need perfect.. nice at about 10 feet would work for me!

I think we're talking about one by one, getting them off the car, and by hand using some stripper (!!!!) get the old clear off then spray on something to replace it.

Right now my bigger issue is the good old Optispark so as usual the wheels go on the back burner.

good luck!

0Killrwheels@Autogeek

look for a professional wheel shop as stripping clearcoat off wheels can be a pain. You could also send wheels out to be machined or chromed as wanted. Might be the perfect time to really amp them up !