How should I clean up these 2g Talon rims?

[kenamond]

I've seen a thread in the past for jacking the car up, starting it, throwing it in gear, and using sandpaper and polishing compound to clean up the edge of the rims (corroded from electrolysis of the lead weights and aluminum). But I have an AWD. Below is a picture of the corrosion.

Anyway, if there is a good thread for how to clean these up, let 'em rip. I may not have the tools, but I'm planning on sitting in the living room on a tarp with the wheels (tires still mounted), a Dremel tool, various bits, several grits of sandpaper (hand sanding), polishing compound, etc. while the wife and kids are away in two weeks for a week to get the rims shining better than new. What Dremel bits do you guys recommend? Flap wheels? Buffing wheels? What polishing compound? What grit sandpaper? What other tricks/techniques?

I need to know pretty soon so I can order the bits and gather other supplies so that I can start on this in a week or so (wife+kids leave April 1).

Time to bust a move on the details while I'm free.

Thanks!

 

[erald01]

well calling some one an idiot i would take it personal if you told me that to my face, but its okay for now. anyways i am saying from experience because when my buddy spray painted his wheels with the tires of and let them dry, after a few months right by the lip where the tire and the rim touch the paint started to peel off and all the wheels started to leak air, so he had to take them off and sand the paint off from the edges.

 

[bmoha2]

When my stocks swirlies started doing that I went hell bent for leather and wet sanded them down. I did the whole wheel inside and out. I skipped the Dremel tool as much as I love using it. It's too big a job and will take too long. I wish I would have taken pictures when I did it. Later on I duplicoated them with wheel paint that turned out to be surprisingly very durable. The wheel centers I took down like you would do body work. Not all the paint is needed to be removed. Just the scuffs and blemishes. Your wheels look to be in a lot better shape than mine were. I think you mean to only do the lip? If so you can also wet sand them the same way. I didn't feel the need for super blinging chrome lips so I stopped at a 600 grit wet sanding. Just tape off the rest of the rim you don't want to work with. Like the previous posting says, that part of the rim is just polished and clear coated. If you don't clear coat them and just leave them poilshed they will look like that again in short order unless you spend a lot of time on a weekly basis cleaning and polishing them. Amazing things can be done with aluminum. Aluminum can be polished to a like chrome shine. If you're willing to invest the elbow grease and time.

 

[Black95awd]

well calling some one an idiot i would take it personal if you told me that to my face, but its okay for now. anyways i am saying from experience because when my buddy spray painted his wheels with the tires of and let them dry, after a few months right by the lip where the tire and the rim touch the paint started to peel off and all the wheels started to leak air, so he had to take them off and sand the paint off from the edges.

I have painted many-a-wheel with a rattle can and never had such a problem.

 

[bmoha2]

wastgate passage. So you should have no problem working with the aluminum of your wheels. The perfectionist in your did shine when I saw the picture. The aluminum is going to be very much easier to work with than that cast iron.

 

[kenamond]

Thanks for the quick replies guys. The lips are the only problem areas. The centers of the rims are plenty pretty for my taste (which says something). I'm just wondering if I should just sit down with hand-sanding the lips or if I could save some time with a dremel.

dI also read in the same "jack up the front, put it in gear, hold sandpaper to the lip" thread that if I switch to steel wheel weights that the electrolysis will go down or go away. Any info there? Where can I get steel wheel weights or do I have to make them (I have no idea how to make wheel weights)?

I'll probably mask off the center of the rims to keep them as-is, and I'll have a case of beer or some other bulky supply of alcohol sitting next to my pile of wheels and have absolutely no problem with spending hours making something look good (perfectionist).

When I did the turbine housing, I hand-sanded at 220, 400, 600, 600+wet to get it where it ended up, but I spent too much time with the coarser grits when I should've just done it with a finer-grit flap-wheel and Dremel (found out waaaay later that you can get finer grit flap wheels online for dirt-cheap...duh).

So I'm willing to put in many hours with hand-sanding, but I'd like to save time if it's possible and wise to do so.

Should I clear the lips when I'm done (keeping in mind that the tires will be mounted...this is my DD. I have a backup vehicle (OLD pickup truck), but I don't want to pay to have the tires pulled if I don't have to). I have a life outside of my car, so I don't see me polishing the lips weekly...or even monthly, so I'd like to do this right if possible so that it just stays BLING. Steel weights, clear-coated steel weights, whatever.

Thanks again guys!

 

[bmoha2]

You have a week right? Plenty of time to finish the wheels and fix that driver's side door trim and figure out those exhaust tips. Judging the turbo they will come out gorgeous. can't wait to see the finished pictures. Do it in the driveway or somewhere else suitable where being wet wont hurt things, set the water flow to fairly slow, low pressure and keep it wet all the time while wetsanding it. It'll actually go pretty fast, might make your forearms and hands sore but is good stress relieving therapy. Skip the turn the car, on put it in gear method or you might wind up like Ferris Bueller's friend.

 

[turbosax2]

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/art...99148-how-restore-your-polished-rim-lips.html

There is the article you were talking about. It also describes how to make your own weights for the wheels.

Can you just jack the entire car up and follow the same procedure as in the article? I'm interested in this because I need to clean the lip of my stock rims too.

 

[BoostedinSoFla]

if you spray paint it, the tire will start leaking air.

. Are you serious dude?? WTFWTF This shit is too funny. I've painted quite a few wheels in my lifetime and have never had any of them leak. Those leaks are most likely from the tires not being installed properly or something..

 

[kenamond]

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/art...99148-how-restore-your-polished-rim-lips.html

There is the article you were talking about. It also describes how to make your own weights for the wheels.

Can you just jack the entire car up and follow the same procedure as in the article? I'm interested in this because I need to clean the lip of my stock rims too.

I could get all 4 wheels off the ground, but the Ferris Beuller scene comes to mind right away. I'll probably pull one wheel off, go at it without knowing what I'm doing, and learn. The fourth wheel should look the best.

I have no hose at the front of the house. The pipe popped this spring (between the valve and the facade of the house), so the living room and basement have water damage at the moment (the drama is still unfolding...leak happened two days ago). Fans cranking, carpet ripped up, etc. I'm not happy about it. 4-year-old house, and I finished the basement myself and don't want to do drywall ever again (recall my perfectionism and then imagine me sanding seams for a week to get them PERFECT and then having some of it destroyed because of a fuxing leak). But that week off should be a drug-(alcohol)-addled-Zen-DSM-stuporfest. I usually go to Canada for a week of fishing, but funds were and issue this year. So I'll put in a thousand dollars of elbow-grease into my car instead.

So...back on topic. I'll start out with 400-ish grit paper and see how it tackles the corrosion. Then I'll work up to 600 wet. I still wonder if a buffing wheel on my dremel and some polishing compound would be worth it in the end. Then I need to figure out how to keep it looking that way.

Thanks again guys!

 

[wret]

It would be difficult to get an evenly polished lip without spinning the wheel. I would mount it on a spare hub and spin and polish at the same time with a buffing wheel.

 

[kenamond]

Quit flicking flies into the ointment! I don't have a spare hub or a buffing wheel. Long strokes p) with polishing compound won't give me an even polish?

Quit harshin' my buzz.

 

[bmoha2]

work longer areas at a time. You aren't looking for a show car quality just a very nice perfectionist finish.

 

[dsmzoom]

work longer areas at a time. You aren't looking for a show car quality just a very nice perfectionist finish.

This is kenamond..there is no difference.

 

[kenamond]

 

[TrboANTsi]

so your telling me you dont have any friends or family that have a 2wd car. that would be ideal to let the wheel just spin then you can have a beer and polish at once.

 

[meliketoball]

Buy a new set of rims; you'll be satisfied for sure.

 

[kenamond]

Buy a new set of rims; you'll be satisfied for sure.

Give me $1000, and you've got a deal (unless you can show me how my 17" tires will fit an 18" wheel). Walbro 255, AFPR, EPROM ECU, DSMlink, injectors, water pump, pulleys, tensioners, belts, balancer, front bumper cover, rear quarter bodywork, and paint all come before rims. DIY rim polishing is dirt-cheap.

 

[king_of_HTX]

if you spray paint it, the tire will start leaking air.

R0FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 

[kenamond]

so your telling me you dont have any friends or family that have a 2wd car. that would be ideal to let the wheel just spin then you can have a beer and polish at once.

Wife takes the other car with the kids. Don't know if the wheels on my '74 Ford pickup are the same bolt pattern as the talon. Probably burn $50 in gas in the process...truck has some...issues. I might throw some Krylon on the For rims while I'm at it.

 

[bmoha2]

No kids no wife just me communing with metal. Cleanses the soul. Ah well I don't mind the kids being around maybe I should just send the wife off on a vaca by herself. You're going to post pics right?

 

[kenamond]

Will do.

 

[kenamond]

Okay. I'm finally done with one lip and mostly done with the other three.

Started with 100 grit, then 220, both aluminum oxide, then 600 (black stuff) then 600 wet (same black stuff). That gets them looking about the same "color" as the centers. Then I used a dremel with a small, cylindrical buffing bit and some polishing compound. Then I used turtle wax to buff to an almost mirror-like polish.

The sandpaper KILLED my fingertips and the pressure from doing it for hours separated my index fingernails on both hands a bit from the finger (just enough to sting for a day). I did that twice with a few days of recovery in between.

Getting the clear off under the center part of the rim was a bi***. 600 dry and wet were getting painful at the end, because my fingerprints were gone .

The dremel worked great. Took it to a near polish in no time. Then I just waxed like a car and buffed the crap out of it and repeated with wax/buff/wax/buff a couple times. Each time I added wet wax, the paper towel got black pretty quick, so I know it was taking off aluminum. Then I'd just finish with a long buff session which made it shinier and shinier until no black came off on the paper towel.

I'll get more pictures, but this one sort of gives you the idea. It looks shinier in person .

I ended up spending most of the week fabricating the muffler/tips for the exhaust. That was frustrating, fun, educational, and VERY gratifying in the end. Took a helluva lot longer than I'd planned, but that's fine; it was my first metal fabrication session in 15 years.

 

[bmoha2]

A perfectionist no doubt!

 

[Defiant]

Holy yowtch. Great result, though. But a Dremel? Kinda like mopping-up Lake Superior with a Kleenex.