Restoring stock alloys?

[Fireball5657]

Hey all, I’ve been wanting to get my stock alloys looking pretty again, but I’ve run into a bit of an issue. They’re 27 years old and haven’t been well maintained, so they aren’t in the best shape. What should I do about this damage?

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I have access to plenty of tools, I just don’t know which ones to use. I do have a sandblaster, but I’m afraid that it may be a bit too harsh and could ruin the finish.

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[618 Syndicate]

I think that's the clear coat coming off. Definitely a common issue. Not sure what to do besides sand and respray if that's what it is.

 

[98chevy2500SS]

Get some aircraft paint stripper to strip the clear coat. Once the clear coat is rippling, use a power washer to spray it off. You may have to apply more of it, in case some didn't come off the first time. You might get lucky and are able to polish that corrosion out. If not, you might have to sand it down to the bare aluminum, then hit it with the polish.

 

[kennythewelder]

I used air craft paint stripper to remove the clear coat. I bought this at Orlleys. IMO, just about any good spray on paint stripper should cut through the clear coat. There is no need to use a pressure washer. It will come off a garden hose. If you need to sand to remove deep gouges, you can, but it is best not to sand at all. The more scratches you put in, the harder it will be to take them out. I did not sand mine at all. I agree from your pics,it looks like the clear coat is braking down. Looks like where a wheel weight was. After the rim is clean and there is no more clear coat, then you buff. Some white jewelers polish with a cotton buff is what you want to use. A plug in electric drill, not a cardless drill, works good for this. The plug in drill spins faster, and has constant power. After buffing, then you need to use some white diamond metal polish. This is done by hand. I painted the inner small sections that are gray, black. Here are pics of what I used and how my rimes came out. The red rouge is for heaver scratches, but I didn't need it for this. Order the jewelers white metal polish on line. The cotton buffs, I picked up at harbor freight, but do not use there polish. The white diamond metal polish I get at walmart, or autozone.

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[kennythewelder]

Take a look at a few videos on youtube. I looked at a bunch before I polished mine. There are also videos on there about white diamond metal polish. First step though is to strip off all of the old clear coat. Here is a pic of the white diamond metal polish. Oh and you may want to were latex gloves, and use throw away rags. This stuff turns black when you use it. You have to shake the hell out of the bottle before you use it, and keep shaking it as you go.

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[kennythewelder]

I aslo did my tailgate banner, ( same process) and under my hood, the AC compressor, alternator, AC lines, and built the back light bowtie then polished the back one, and also use it on the custom electric fan bracket I built out of stainless. The blue polish is for stainless, but stainless is very hard to work with. Although the center caps on my rims are a stainless covered plastic, and polished out easy. I think you have the same center caps.

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[454cid]

I think I'd look for a shop nearby that does vapor-honing/vapor-blasting. The finish won't be polished, but more like a satin that's a little on the shiny side, from pictures I've seen online. Some shops clean with it, some just finish with it..... the finish varies by shop. it's most popular with the vintage motorcycle crowd and vintage import cars (older than out trucks). Popular in the UK. There is a shop near-ish me, and I'm considering taking them some parts..... valve covers, MAF sensor housing.

 

[SUBURBAN5]

I aslo did my tailgate banner, ( same process) and under my hood, the AC compressor, alternator, AC lines, and built the back light bowtie then polished the back one, and also use it on the custom electric fan bracket I built out of stainless. The blue polish is for stainless, but stainless is very hard to work with. Although the center caps on my rims are a stainless covered plastic, and polished out easy. I think you have the same center caps.

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Hey Kenny how did you polish the accessories brackets? I may try it when I do the motor swap...

 

[kennythewelder]

Hey Kenny how did you polish the accessories brackets? I may try it when I do the motor swap...

Iff you can pull them, it would be easy on a bench grinder with a cotton buff wheel. Just remove the gaurd, and install the wheel. Use some white jewlers polish, then some white diamond metal polish. I did mine on the truck. Makes a mess that way. I do have a buffer that I use some. I also use a die grinder from time to time. Here is a pic.

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[TechNova]

There is a GM TSB on refinishing rims. It is an industry standard that rims can be refinished but are never to be straightened or welded. I used both of the colors in the TSB and did a pair of rims for my box trailer. i have wrote down at work which one looked the best. I used paint stripper on the clear, it is powder clear and can be difficult to get off with the strippers now mandated by the EPA, they are weak. I then glass beaded them with 80 grit equivalent beads. epoxy primer followed by base and clear. If I did wheels for a truck I would use ceramic clear. While they are an improvement over corroded rims, they do not look as good as Kenny's, they can't they are painted. My trucks are dailys drove all winter so I won't put forth the effort to polish them. If I did I would try some Cerokote bare metal clear on them. Painting is expensive but alot more fun than polishing.