I've got this crap on my rims. I bought these off of MikeyMax with this already on the finish. They sat for a year or so in Chicago weather. It appears to only be surface but i've tried polishing and using a dremel with a polishing pad to lightly buff them, nothing yet. Thanks for your help.

 

What kind fo wheel polish did you use on the rims?

 

Looks like the clearcoat/topcoat is coming off.

 

I dont have the can of polish I used anymore. But it was a cotton whip type polish. You tear off a piece of this cotton stuff, rub down the rim, it will turn a black color, and then you buff it off. Works really well to shine the rim up, but doenst remove this stuff.

Clear coat coming off eh? That doesn't sound good...any idea what would cause these? Forget to mention, they're Velox Novas.

 

Yep, definately the clearcoat coming off. The only way to fix it is to strip it all off. You could get them refinished, or just leave them uncleared and polish up the aluminum. They'd be shinier without the clear anyway. Oh, and that polish you are using is only for non-claercoated rims. Clearcoated ones you should treat the same as the paint on your car.

 

Since you said Chicago Winter, the cause is the LIBERAL amounts of salt that IDOT and many municipalities like to put down for snow removal.

I have personally seen both of my Maxes look like bovine salt licks after being exposed.

But back to the subject at hand. You used Eagle One Nevr Dull. Nevr Dull is a decent product but not strong enough to correct many issues.

 

looks like something CHEW through it.

maybe an acid or something?

 

so how can i go about stripping the rest of the clearcoat and polishing these?

 

You'd have to let a shop that specializes in wheel refinishing do that for you.

 

It's inevitable that sooner or later the clearcoat on a rim is going to start flaking. I noticed that between the spokes it looks to be painted silver, and it's not peeling there. They would have used an etch primer under the silver to adhere to the metal, but just clearcoat does not adhere to well. You could strip them yourself if your comfortable doing things that. There are two ways to do it, paint stripper or sanding. Paint stripper won't harm the finish of the metal itself but will take the silver paint with it as well. Tal-Sol Aircraft coating remover is a good choice and works well. Sanding the clear off gives you the option of saving the silver part and just stripping the exposed metal areas, but you will have to polish them after to get rid of the sanding scratches. Of course, polishing by hand most likely won't give you the finish you desire so it would have to be done with a buffing wheel. I've done it both ways many times ( I used to run a metal polishing business ) and it is quite a chore either way. You might make a complete mess out of them. If your the least bit uncomfortable about doing something like this let a professional handle it, but if you want to do it yourself I'll help you out as much as I can. I still do big trucks, and there's nothing sweeter than a clean Peterbilt with fuel tanks that look like mirrors!

 

yeah, i figured it can get to be a real ordeal...i dont really like painting/sanding...most things i dont mind. Dont really want to take a risk with them, and you can't really tell from a couple feet away. Maybe Ill get em done for my birthday or something. Any idea what it would cost to get 4 of em done? Recommend shops in Mid Missouri? Thanks a lot for your help and for offering to guide me through this.