[Fusion]

Hello i am looking to refurbished some alloys i just bought what is the best way to do this ?

thanks

 

[AJ]

Lots of patience
Clean them 3-4 times
Sand them lightly
Use aluminium filler to repair
Leave a day or two to cure
Sand down and smooth out any imperfections
Clean again
Leave a day to dry
Apply primer and sand between coats
Leave a day to cure
Apply paint and leave a day or two to cure with sanding in between coats.
Aim to spend three days applying paint to each wheel
Then apply lacquer with sanding inbetween and lots of curing time again

Don't forget to remove any cap emblems before hand and reapply after very carefully

Use either masking tape to cover the tyres if fitter or poke playing cards between the tyre and wheel

A good job should take about a week to complete
A rushed job is 2-3 days and will look shite

Also, lots and lots of lacquer to make cleaning them easier

 

[Fusion]

what sand paper would you say wet and dry ?

 

[AJ]

Definitely Wet and dry - use a squirt of washing up liquid in the water too to help lubricate the paper.
Also get some very fine grades

 

[Fusion]

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_802181_langId_-1_categoryId_255242

or http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_802277_langId_-1_categoryId_255242

is that any good?

 

[AJ]

Here is what I think I used to refurb mine and paint them

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_154359_langId_-1_categoryId_255242

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_802623_langId_-1_categoryId_255242

 

[Fusion]

ok thanks for your help mate

 

[Fusion]

Hello what would be the best paint to use i was going to use

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_210167_langId_-1_categoryId_165495

and use that clear lacquer
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/...01&langId=-1&productId=203865&catalogId=10151

 

[AJ]

Those were the same paints that I used - but oyu may want to spend an extra £1 and get the 500ml can of gloss black paint.
Also, Halfords sell filler primer which is a bit thicker and has a familiar yellow colour and texture to it.
You may want to use that to fill in any scratches left behind from the sanding

 

[regfo]

if anything for tips i can give, the best would be... take your time! unless you have proper heated spray booth, they won't dry quickly.

-My routine for what i do is.
-take a look at the wheel and think about whats the lowest grade you'll need to get out curbing and marks, use ironfiling filler to fill in ultra deep ones (mainly on the outer lip as it won't crack when using a tyre machine)
-slowly go up the grades to get a finer finish once every mark is out.
-spray with degreaser or cleaner to get rid of dirt ( i use engines degreaser from ebay for about £2)
-mask up wheels, if you can, deflate wheels and pop bead off the rim to get a better/easier masking job.
-spray with primer, or use some high build primer if there's only minor scratches and skip the deep sanding part.
-then once dry, apply the paint, slowly, the first coat should be ever so light. like a mist..
-most people say for spray cans wait ten minutes, but as we all live in england here, i go for a hour per coat
-wait a couple of days for the paint to settle, then apply the laquer, some people rush the laquer coast and really mess it up, so take your time (why i decide to apply laquer after a couple of days)
-apply the laquer as light as your first coat, don't make the mistake of thinking you haven't put enough on just because you can't see it.

leave the wheel for atleast a week or two before you then start playing around with it again. i usually wait 2-3 weeks, i then flat and polish the wheel before putting back onto the car. that's my guide really.. not too indepth, but you get the idea.

1 of my finished results:

+ also if you do some heavy sanding, the best idea would be to get the wheel rebalanced.

 

[Fusion]

Look good man did you use halford paint to spray them ?

 

[regfo]

I actually used a paint brand called simoniz or something like that, I had a good experience with their cans before and decided to stick with them, and using two separate cans on wheels i get a good match.

ill be going to halfrauds soon with my trade card and will probably be testing out most of their other paints, i've only ever used their primer and vauxhall star silver 2 paint.

 

[Fusion]

I paint my front bumper with there gloss black it had a nice Finsh to it mate

 

[AJ]

Heres an extract from my project thread for reference

Ok so I refurbished my wheels and painted them white.

here's a quick write up/guide/diary.

So first, remove the wheels from the car.

Next, identify all the damage

Didnt get any picutres of the next step, but give them a VERY good clean.

Then, got some alluminium alloy wheel filler. This is like Isopon P38 but contains metal shavings. and is tougher.

Now put the filler on and sand down until completely smooth

Now, choose your poison. I decided to go with Halfords Appliance White Gloss.

Heat up the paint in a bucket of hot water - not boiling.

Whilst the paint is warming up, sand away any toughened crap stuck to the inside of the wheels.

Next, apply several thing layers of primer, giving 20-30 minutes between each coat.
Here, I done the inside of the wheel, as well as the outside.

When its dry, sand down with a very fine wet and dry paper.
Then, apply the paint which should have been warmed up in the water as well

Repeat the process by adding more coats when dry, and then fine sanding, then add the laquer.

You should end up with something resembling semi-decent alloys

I photoshopped the wheel to give it the red lip, but not decided on it yet

 

[Fusion]

Look good mate. can i ask why you heated paint up

 

[AJ]

It adds pressure to the can and allows it to come out more fine and its a lot easier to control and apply and helps avoid runs in the paint.
Always warm the can up for a bit - you will get a much nicer result

 

[Fusion]

Ok thanks for the help