I bought some wheels local and they have some pitting. All the pages I find online are for if you want to polish the wheels. I'd rather have the pure aluminum look. Is there a way to do this or do you have to polish them?
CK5
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cleaning aluminum without polishing
- Thread starter sfos
- Start date
Think of polishing as sanding with very fine grit. Just as with paint, the finer you sand it, the shinier it gets thanks to a smoother surface. If you're going for a bare metal look, basically the only way to eliminate pitting is to sand down the imperfections. If there is a coating on it, that will have to be stripped first. There are a variety of sanding/buffing/polishing compounds to treat aluminum wheels. I think Eastwood and most of the autobody finishing companies offer kits. After you're done, you'll want a coating on it since aluminum is prone to corrosion.
You need to have them acid washed.
Silver white acid will make them look like virgin aluminum. Also leave them very vulnerable to staining.
If there is anybody in your area that does a lot of aluminum welding, they may have the facilities to acid wash.
Silver white acid will make them look like virgin aluminum. Also leave them very vulnerable to staining.
If there is anybody in your area that does a lot of aluminum welding, they may have the facilities to acid wash.
You need to determine if they are bare, polished or clear coated wheels.
WATCH out on acid wash on some aluminum . if its polished and you acid wash it will turn the aluminum white . then you will be polishing for hr's and hr's to get the white color off.
That's the virgin aluminum. That's why they call it silver white!
rampage
3/4 ton status
Lye (i.e. drain cleaner) will remove the oxidation. Mix 2 to 3 tablespoons of lye per gallon of cold water. Keep an eye on it so you don't remove more aluminum than necessary. Should take around 15 mins.
We used to glass bead quite a few mag wheels back in the day...not sure if that is the type of look your going for though...
I used some liquid from the heavy truck dealership I used to work at that is used to clean oxidized aluminum fuel tanks. My 80 K5 has factory non clearcoated wheels and this stuff makes them look real nice. The next step would be to polish them, but I'm too lazy for that. This was labled Trailmobile brand. If you have a trailer builder in your area you might be able to get some from them. Its called cleaner and brightener. Hope this helps.
