Alloy Wheel Refurbishment
The Process
In 99.9% of cases we fully refurbish the wheel, with the tyre off . You can bring your wheels to us without the tyres, or we can strip and refit the tyres and re-balance the wheels for an additional charge (if we need to use weights when re-balancing, these are fitted to the inside of the rim so as not to spoil the appearance of the wheel).
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All wheels are shot-blasted by hand to remove previous layers of lacquer and paint to obtain a bare metal surface in preparation for coating. If the wheels are in a particularly poor condition they are chemically stripped before shot-blasting. The wheels are then dressed and filled to deal with any kerb damage to the rim edges. (We do not deal with buckled or badly dented wheels as these are safety related structural repairs and wheels should be written off and replaced). Next the wheels are heated to remove any air from the alloy and a powder coat finish is applied and then cured for for a set period of time. If the wheel is having a "special" or "bespoke" finish a wet paint layer is applied at this stage.Finally a clear lacquer coat is applied over the first coating in the same manner, thus enhancing and protecting the alloy wheel. Many different finishes and colours are available on request. |
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We can also do a cosmetic “touch-up” if that’s what you want.
The quality of the finish depends on the condition of the wheels before we start to refurbish them (see our Terms & Conditions), though we do guarantee to improve your wheels. All finishes are guaranteed for 12 months against flaking, corrosion and discolouration.
Before and After...
See the difference our alloy wheel refurbishment process makes:
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Another "Before" and "After" case:
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You can also ask us to clean your wheel nuts if they are corroded, and we can polish rims using our multi-functional rim polisher:
Centre caps may just need cleaning, or may require painting. Any printed lettering on caps (or wheels) would be painted over, as it is not practical to mask. You should tell us if you don’t want your caps to be painted. If they are to be painted they will be matched to the wheels – the painting process will depend on whether they are plastic or metal caps.
The Wheel Specialist do not recommend the use of jet washes using acidic cleaning solutions or any proprietary alloy wheel cleaners as these are specifically designed for polished and unlacquered wheels and contain acid based cleaners that will attack and in time break down lacquer coatings.
A mild detergent such as Fairy liquid and hot water used once a week will suffice!
Copyright © 2006 The Wheel Specialist. All Rights Reserved.
205 Tyburn Road, Erdington, Birmingham, B24 8NB