Polishing Wheels

[1jzjoey]

so i bought some aluminum xxr 526's and got them soda blasted, picking them up tomorrow, i stripped one of them before and noticed that there is lines running throughout the wheels so the wheels arnt a smooth. i guess they are machined? idk. anyways how do i polish these? the guy who sodablasted them said that i could sand the lines away to get it smooth, then polish. dont know if thats true or not. need help.

[20 til 3]

there are quite a few how too's if you google it... but just sand them starting with a lower grit(320), and work your way up to 2000,... the more time you take the better they will look in the end... expect 2hr's at least per wheel

[RandallSharp]

Most cheap rims are casted from aluminum and magnesium, so expect imperfections beyond the paint. The only exception would be a high end forged rim. Just sand until you hit a very high grit like previously mentioned. It takes time and you will be sore.

[JaredP]

dont. unless you have patience its just not worth it. as others have said, sand *but wetsand..wet the sandpaper and sand away* until you get up to 2000 grit, then apply a metal polish. you can get quite a shine out of wheels that way. pm me if you need more info..for what its worth i did just the lips on some 2 piece wheels (about as non-intricate as you can get after i took them all apart) and it was a 6hr/wheel ordeal to make them look good

[1jzjoey]

thanks guys, how do i know when you go up in grit though?

[24boosted]

http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l13/infinidesigns/5zr33.jpghttp://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l13/infinidesigns/FNs.jpg

Just some suggestions for next time. Some wheels are machined with lines that can be polished with just Mother's Mag Polish. No need for sanding or media blasting. FN01RCs have lines all over the wheel but with just a few wipes of Mother's polish they look like this.

You can also strip the paint with aircraft paint remover and start polishing it up by hand which is what I did to the FNs.

[!Zar!]

Damn you all really are trying to polish turds.

[chuki.s13.coupe.]

Damn you all really are trying to polish turds.

http://i734.photobucket.com/albums/ww350/xitsmecuhx/E2BA9050F0740C9F7D5049_Large.jpg

What happened to Bieber?

[JaredP]

thanks guys, how do i know when you go up in grit though?

go up in grit when the scratches from the previous grit are gone. i used a full 8.5x11 sheet on each wheel though if that makes sense, and i started at 1000. so i went full sheet of: 1000, 1200, 1500, 2000 on each wheel. went up in grit when the sheet was gone

[1jzjoey]

http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l13/infinidesigns/5zr33.jpghttp://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l13/infinidesigns/FNs.jpg

Just some suggestions for next time. Some wheels are machined with lines that can be polished with just Mother's Mag Polish. No need for sanding or media blasting. FN01RCs have lines all over the wheel but with just a few wipes of Mother's polish they look like this.

You can also strip the paint with aircraft paint remover and start polishing it up by hand which is what I did to the FNs.

so your saying once i sand off all this baking soda off my wheels i can just wipe that polish on them

[n1smo413]

http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/s720x720/408552_2586332176089_1188067659_32368706_151114178 2_n.jpg
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=2586332176089&set=a.1991647549345.2104196.1188067659&type=1
http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/s720x720/386144_2586333016110_1188067659_32368707_199962492 1_n.jpg
http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/310514_2168548051747_1188067659_32138455_667680231 _n.jpg
I do this at work.I start sanding is at 180grit depending on how bad the scratches are and work my way up to 1500.than use heavy duty buffing wheels is use to polish them.I use 3 different hard compounds.

[24boosted]

so your saying once i sand off all this baking soda off my wheels i can just wipe that polish on them

No, you had yours stripped differently. I chemically stripped mine which does not damage the surface of the metal. Yours has residue and possible surface abrasion from the blasting.