{"id":4367,"date":"2017-08-03T07:54:21","date_gmt":"2017-08-03T12:54:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rimbladesusa.com\/?p=4367"},"modified":"2023-06-29T09:16:21","modified_gmt":"2023-06-29T09:16:21","slug":"can-you-refinish-alloy-wheels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/can-you-refinish-alloy-wheels\/","title":{"rendered":"Can You Refinish Alloy Wheels?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"x-resp-embed x-is-video x-is-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Can You Refinish Alloy Wheels?\" width=\"846\" height=\"476\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/qO_TpogH72o?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>If you\u2019ve got a set of scratched up alloy wheels, we have good news for you: You can absolutely refinish your wheels.<\/p>\n<p>However, before you begin, you should know that a) it&#8217;s not easy and b) there are other options available besides refinishing. Here&#8217;s what you need to know.<\/p>\n<h2>Fixing Curbed Or Scratched Alloy Wheels &#8211; You Have Options<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rimbladesusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/curbed-damage.jpg\" alt=\"Curb damaged wheel\"><\/p>\n<p>If your wheels are scratched, you have a few options:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You can replace the wheel, which is <em>probably<\/em> the most expensive option but not necessarily. Sometimes, &#8220;take off&#8221; wheels can be found at the local junkyard or on Craigslist for a good price.<\/li>\n<li>You can hire a professional to repair or refinish your wheel, which will cost anywhere from $75 to $150, depending on your market. (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.rimbladesusa.com\/how-professionals-repair-curb-rash\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">More on that here<\/a>.)<\/li>\n<li>You can do a DIY refinish or repair (more info on that below) for about $50 in supplies and a few hours of your time<\/li>\n<li>You can hide the damage underneath a new set of RimBlades or RimSavers, with the added bonus of long-term protection from future damage<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While each of these options has it&#8217;s pros and cons, we think that RimBlades and\/or RimSavers should be on the list no matter what. Only RimBlades and RimSavers can protect your wheels from being damaged again in the future.<\/p>\n<p>Also, regarding take-offs: Take-off rims are much easier to find for low cost, mass-market vehicles than for premium vehicles. Corvette or Porsche take-offs are hard to find &#8211; take-offs for a Hyundai Sonata? Not as hard to find.<\/p>\n<h2>Hiding The Damage<\/h2>\n<p>It might seem like a &#8216;shortcut&#8217;, but there&#8217;s no shame in hiding wheel scratches under a set of RimBlades or RimSavers. A lot of people buy black RimBlades or RimSavers for this exact purpose, as the black blends in pretty nicely with the tire and hides a LOT of rim damage. Here&#8217;s an example:<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 1010px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rimbladesusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/morgan-damaged-wheel-before-after.jpg\" alt=\"Hiding wheel damage with RimBlades\" width=\"1000\" height=\"1000\"><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Black RimBlades were applied to this Morgan Aero 8, almost completely hiding substantial wheel damage.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>If you don&#8217;t want to put a lot of time or money into a wheel repair\/replacement (or at least don&#8217;t want to do it right now), consider just buying a set of RimBlades\/RimSavers and calling it good.<\/p>\n<h2>DIY Refinish Of Scratched Alloy Wheels<\/h2>\n<p>Depending on your budget, skill, and the type of damage, one of the following methods might work.<\/p>\n<h3>If You Have Light Scratches Or Pitting&#8230;<\/h3>\n<p>If the scratches on your wheels aren&#8217;t too deep, you can try refinishing the entire wheel. Here\u2019s a basic overview of the process:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Cover your tires and valve system (or, better yet, remove the tires)<\/li>\n<li>Clean and degrease the wheel<\/li>\n<li>Strip the polyurethane coating and\/or any paint off the entire wheel (aircraft stripper works great)<\/li>\n<li>Sand the entire wheel, including the areas between the spokes and inside the lug-nut holes. You want to do this to even out the surface as much as possible. Sanding only the damaged area will warp the wheel\u2019s surface.<\/li>\n<li>Polish the wheel with aluminum polish until shiny (or, alternatively, prime and paint the wheels)<\/li>\n<li>Coat the wheels with clear paint. You can forego the paint and just wax your wheels, but we recommend using paint to add an extra layer of protection.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Obviously, you&#8217;re going to want to do all four wheels when you do this.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s a lot of work and definitely not for the faint of heart. But, when it&#8217;s all over, you can really shine up an older set of alloys and give them a unique look.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rimbladesusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/refinished-wheels-via-rennlist.jpg\" alt=\"Refinished wheels\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\"><p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>There&#8217;s a great thread on <a href=\"https:\/\/rennlist.com\/forums\/993-forum\/744444-anyone-refinish-your-alloy-wheels-yourself.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Rennlist.com<\/a> about wheel refinishing that&#8217;s worth a look if you plan to refinish your own wheels. This image is from that thread.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<h3>If You Have Deep Scratches &#8230;<\/h3>\n<p>Deep scratches (and heavy pitting) are hard to fix with a simple refinish process. Deep scratches or gouges require some sort of filler, and in these situations, a wheel repair kit is probably your best option. Most wheel repair kits contain paint thinner, sandpaper, putty, primer, and paint. While it&#8217;s difficult for an inexperienced person to pull off a flawless repair with a wheel repair kit, someone with some paint and body experience won&#8217;t have too much trouble.<\/p>\n<p>Most kits outline a process similar to this one:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Remove and clean the wheel as thoroughly as possible<\/li>\n<li>Sand out the scratches and jagged edges in all the scratches with coarse sandpaper<\/li>\n<li>Apply filler (sometimes it&#8217;s bondo, sometimes it&#8217;s epoxy), let it dry, then sand some more<\/li>\n<li>Once the wheel surface is nice and smooth, clean it again, then mask off the tire and valve stem<\/li>\n<li>Spray three or four coats of primer on the sanded area, letting each coat dry<\/li>\n<li>Spray a couple of coats of paint on top of the primer, with drying time between each application*<\/li>\n<li>Finally, spray two light coats of clear coat over the paint, with drying time between each application<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>*Paint color matching is hard. Sometimes, you have to pick a color that doesn&#8217;t quite match and do your best to blend it in.<\/p>\n<p>If this works, the wheel will look something between &#8220;OK&#8221; and &#8220;great.&#8221; Most people find it&#8217;s closer to &#8220;OK,&#8221; as they&#8217;re usually able to spot the damaged wheel after the repair is completed. Still, it&#8217;s the least expensive option if you&#8217;ve got the time.<\/p>\n<h3>If Budget Isn&#8217;t A Big Concern&#8230;<\/h3>\n<p>If money isn&#8217;t a big concern, you can mediablast (sandblast) the wheel and then either have the wheel chromed or powder coated. Powder-coated wheels are available in just about any color you can imagine, and can look really cool with the right vehicle.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rimbladesusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/powder-coated-wheels.jpg\" alt=\"Powder coated colorful wheel rims\" width=\"640\" height=\"616\"><p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><\/p>\n<p><center><em>Check out these powder-coated rims! Image via<\/em> <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/96774554@N03\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Wheels On<\/a><\/em><\/center><\/p><\/div>\n<p>However, as we said, budget can&#8217;t be a concern here. Media blasting and then powder coating a wheel can cost several hundred dollars. Chrome plating is a bit more affordable but still costs upwards of $250. These are per wheel prices.<\/p>\n<h2>The Wisdom Of Experience<\/h2>\n<p>When refinishing a wheel, quite a few things can go wrong (or, at least, &#8220;sub-optimal&#8221;). This means beginners should take their time and plan to put in some extra work as they gain skills.<\/p>\n<p>If you don&#8217;t have the time to go methodically, and\/or you don&#8217;t envision being happy with a DIY wheel refinish, it&#8217;s best to hire a professional. For most people, this tends to be the best choice, and as a rules we <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rimbladesusa.com\/why-avoid-wheel-repair-kits\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">don&#8217;t really recommend most wheel repair kits as a go-to solution<\/a> for scratched or curbed wheels.<\/p>\n<p>Still, once you&#8217;ve fixed a few wheels, it&#8217;s definitely going to get easier and faster.<\/p>\n<h3>Don&#8217;t Forget Protection!<\/h3>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rimbladesusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/blue-rim-blades.jpg\" alt=\"Blue RimBlades\"><\/p>\n<p>Last but not least, don&#8217;t forget to protect your newly refinished wheels. RimSavers offer the most protection, but RimBlades are an option too if you have a wheel that doesn&#8217;t work with RimSavers.<\/p>\n<p>What&#8217;s your experience with alloy wheel damage? Tell us about it on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Rimbladesusa\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Facebook<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019ve got a set of scratched up alloy wheels, we have good news for you: You can absolutely refinish your wheels. However, before you begin, you should know that a) it&#8217;s not easy and b) there are other options available besides refinishing. Here&#8217;s what you need to know. Fixing Curbed Or Scratched Alloy Wheels &#8211; You Have Options If &#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/can-you-refinish-alloy-wheels\/\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":51932,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[56,59],"tags":[48,49,52],"class_list":["post-4367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-rim-damage","category-tips-and-tricks","tag-diy-wheel-repair","tag-rim-damage","tag-wheel-repair"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4367"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4367\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51932"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rimguardpros.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}