Polished Svx Wheels

[Djsvxxl]

I got bored... very bored

[img=http://img384.imageshack.us/img384/2653/dscn1967yq7.th.jpg] (http://img384.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscn1967yq7.jpg)

[img=http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/7223/dscn1968yx5.th.jpg] (http://img245.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscn1968yx5.jpg)

[img=http://img391.imageshack.us/img391/8259/dscn1969uv6.th.jpg] (http://img391.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscn1969uv6.jpg)

much more work and hopefully bring em to Reading.
They could be yours!!:eek:

[It's Just Eric]

crazey, me and yb were just talking about polishing stuff.....

[94SubieSVX]

crazey, me and yb were just talking about polishing stuff.....


I told you not to say anything about that!!!!!:eek::eek::eek:

[It's Just Eric]

Oh, darn;)
(bow chicka wow wow)

[ensteele]

What did you use to polish them and how long did it take for one wheel? :confused: :) :)

[Djsvxxl]

I used my friend, told him I would buy him dinner:lol:

It's a lot easier with two people.
I used a 3 inch or so DA sander with grits from 80-600
Then some 1000 grit wet sandpaper
Last an electric buffer and two grades of polishing compound

As for how long... the one i started on is not done:lol:
Rough estimate about four hours a wheel:eek:

[lhopp77]

Now, I want to see you polish the center caps to the same high sheen. ;)

Lee

[Mike621]

:p Those darn center caps are always the problem!

[Djsvxxl]

thought about getting custom aluminum caps but that's a lot of money so figured I'd just paint them... any suggestion?

[ensteele]

Painting them would be the cheapest as well. :)

[b3lha]

Nice Work!!!

[It's Just Eric]

Alsa makes chrome paint...im sure thatd come as close to matching as possible

[Djsvxxl]

Anyone got an extra intake manifold?:D

[Johnybeas]

i wanna do this! that way i'll have nice looking wheels for my snow tires, when i buy my new rims and low pro's. What kind of sander are you using, how much did it cost you....

[ensteele]

I used my friend, told him I would buy him dinner:lol:

It's a lot easier with two people.
I used a 3 inch or so DA sander with grits from 80-600
Then some 1000 grit wet sandpaper
Last an electric buffer and two grades of polishing compound

As for how long... the one i started on is not done:lol:
Rough estimate about four hours a wheel:eek:

Post #6 gives you what you are asking. It helps to read the whole thread. :rolleyes:

[Hondasucks]

thought about getting custom aluminum caps but that's a lot of money so figured I'd just paint them... any suggestion?

You could try Real Metal Foil, it's kinda like gold leaf, available at most hobby shops, comes in chrome, as well as other metal colors, works great for restoring chromed plastic too. You could also mexichrome it. (Mexichrome = chrome spray paint)

[crazyhorse]

You might want to give these guys a shout. They do chrome plating for hobbyists. IE: scale models. They're pretty reasonable too.
http://www.chrometechusa.com/

You'd have to clearcoat thier chrome afterwards, but it's as good as it gets for plastic.

[svx_commuter]

Wow nice polish work on those wheel. How well will they standup to road dirt and salt and crap? Do they have to get clear coated to potect them? Aren't all the wheel today platsic clear coated? I have heard that the center cap can get plated by companies that do that coating on plastic. Toys get this done as wels as tops for bottles.

Oh I didn't see those others post ^^^ up there.

Take care of that SVX,

John

[crazyhorse]

Most polished wheels are clear powder coated, of course, even the painted wheels are clear powder coated.:D

[Djsvxxl]

I'll Have to try some of those ideas for the center caps.
Still looking for an intake manifold:;)
and time to work on the other three wheels.
Still think they can be polished better so back to work...

[TomsSVX]

I'll Have to try some of those ideas for the center caps.
Still looking for an intake manifold:;)
and time to work on the other three wheels.
Still think they can be polished better so back to work...

As long as you can give me urs back as a core... U can take one of the ones I have here

Tom

[Djsvxxl]

I'll keep that in mind.
If I don't go crazy doing these wheels I'll stop by
and pick that up.
Still debating on the idea as I'm not sure about
what to coat it with after it's polished?

[CigarJohnny]

That looks awesome! I always wanted to do that to mine but done have the time or effort needed to make it happen. If I did I would have them bead blasted to save time and keep them nice. Once cleaned I would have them powder coated clear.

[94SubieSVX]

Clear powdercoat.

I'm not sure but I think I read something about the temps it bakes at is too much for cast aluminum.

[crazyhorse]

I wouldn't think that 390deg f would kill wheels. Aluminum melts at 1220deg f
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powder_coating

[Djsvxxl]

powder coatings nice but not cheap.
Think I'm gonna use a nice clear coat of paint,
since i already have some and it's easier to fix.


That and the wheels will not fit in my oven:lol:

[crazyhorse]

powder coatings nice but not cheap.
Think I'm gonna use a nice clear coat of paint,
since i already have some and it's easier to fix.


That and the wheels will not fit in my oven:lol:

Wheels would fit in my oven, but I much prefer my bed to the doghouse! The little woman would have an anneuryism!

[94SubieSVX]

Just get it done professionally

[Crazy_pilot]

I wouldn't think that 390deg f would kill wheels. Aluminum melts at 1220deg f
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powder_coating

The arguement is that the temperature used to "bake" powdercoating will affect the tempering of the wheel, and cause it to lose strength, or become more brittle. I've never seen any hard information to back this claim though, and I know many people with powdercoated wheels who have never had a problem.

[94SubieSVX]

The arguement is that the temperature used to "bake" powdercoating will affect the tempering of the wheel, and cause it to lose strength, or become more brittle. I've never seen any hard information to back this claim though, and I know many people with powdercoated wheels who have never had a problem.


That's what I was trying to look for, thanks.

[crazyhorse]

I could definately see this on a forged wheel. Such as the JDM BBS wheels

I was thinking ours were cast though. I need to be careful about thinking though, it usually gets me in BIG trouble:lol:

[Crazy_pilot]

I could definately see this on a forged wheel. Such as the JDM BBS wheels

I was thinking ours were cast though. I need to be careful about thinking though, it usually gets me in BIG trouble:lol:

Ya, me too...:lol:

I actually looked up the temperatures and times needed to bake powdercoating, and then what's needed to temper forged alloys. I can't remember the numbers off hand, but the end result was that the powdercoat baking process is neither hot enough, nor long enough to significantly affect the molecular structure of an alloy wheel. Tempering is done several hundred degrees hotter (like 600 F for tempering vs 400 for coating), and takes longer than the baking does.

If I ever wanted to re-do my forged BBS rims and had the money, I wouldn't hesitate to powdercoat them.

[Djsvxxl]

Just get it done professionally

I'am a professional :lol:

or at least I'm working with one.
still like the painting over the powder coating

[RallyBob]

FWIW, I have seen firsthand the result of powdercoating a forged BBS (STI) wheel, and it wasn't pretty. Keeping in mind that different brands and colors of powdercoat have different curing temps, (350-500° F), there is sufficient heat to anneal aluminum. It basically makes the wheel very soft by removing the heat-treatment, and at that point the wheel is more succeptible to bending (but ironically resists breakage more readily). For comparison, I anneal copper gaskets by heating to 350° for 30 minutes, and it makes it dead-soft.

Even cast wheels will be affected at higher temps. It depends a lot on the alloy used however. Higher grade wheels are generally more easily affected from what I've seen, at least in terms of reduction percentage of strength compared to OEM, since they are normally heat treated to higher specification.

Another issue is that it is fairly common practice for powdercoaters to bake a wheel at extended high temps (550°) to aid in removal of factory paint and powdercoat prior to beadblasting. This particular process is usually the culprit, rather than the curing process. If the wheel is polished and is being prepared for clearcoat, this is often the only option, since bead blasting would damage the polished surface. The surface of the wheel must be 'clean-clean' to avoid outgassing during the curing process, since there will likely be residual paint, oils, brake dust, and polishing compounds imbedded in the aluminum's surface.

HTH,

[Djsvxxl]

OK... so I'm gonna paint them with clear