aluminum rim corrosion problem

[mike harris]

I am experiencing this problem on my clear coat- less factory alloys.I tried turtle wax but within a week they have corrosion.I tried eagle one mag polish,blue star polish and eagle one (never-dull)wadding polish and I still get corrosion.I'm sick and tired of polishing my rims every week!!!!!I really don't want to clear coat them but I will if I have to....I guess.Any recommendations?Has anyone used Flitz?Does it work? Thanks.

[MudslinginXJ]

Sorry for hijacking but i'd like to know too since i have factory rims and they clearcoat is peeling and is corroding. It looks like :smsoap:

[copperhead]

I've used flitz on my older British motorcycles, and it works pretty well. However, they were designed w/o clearcoat in mind. I have the same peeling of the clear on my 87 Laredo mags. I am probably just going to paint mine, but if I were to polish them up, I might try flitx or Mothers mag wheel polish. I have had some good results with those. I think the main problem with the factory mags, is that their are rough castings. Too many small holes to fill. To properly polish them you need to flatten out the rough spots with varying degrees of sandpaper (much like finishing paintwork), until you get them nice and smooth. Then use the polish like a cutting compound for protection. Too much work for wheels that are going to get banged up IMO. If it is a street Jeep, and you have the time, then it might work.

Copperhead

[sjx40250]

Same problem with peeling. Which clear coat would you use?

[jneary]

im pretty syre the factory wheels are clreacoated, but if not you might want to try "semichrome " polish, you can get it from eastwoods along with other polishing supplies. that worked well in my old corvete wheels.

[Eagle]

I remember Simichrome from my motorcycle days. Like many of the other products mentioned, it'll put a nice shine on alloy wheels, but it won't last unless you live someplace like Tucson.

Once you get 'em polished up, you either have to clear coat them or polish weekly.

[deisenba]

I was using the search function and this is the only thread that came up with the word flitz used, so I am bringing it back to life. Like the previous posters stated, I have some corrosion on my factory 10 spoke aluminum wheels and was wondering if people have tried the flitz polishing ball and had any luck with it. I'd like to polish them and then clear coat them.

[92DripCherokee]

http://www.zoops.com/product-detail.asp?prodID=9551

this ZoopSeal stuff is used on showcars, supposedly stops galvanic corrosion in aluminum alloys

[92DripCherokee]

http://www.zoops.com/zoopseal.asp

this was the link I meant to send. I havent tried this stuff myself though, my wheels have hazy clearcoat protecting them.

[8Mud]

I stripped my old lace style alloy wheels and brush (half flat) silver powder coated them, looks good. Only time will tell how they hold up. The old lace style rims, IMO look a lot better without the gold accent (the dish looks a lot deeper).

[XJFREK]

I'm glad I'm not the only one hating life with polished alloy wheels. I bought a set of the ProComp Extreme Alloys a year ago, and have regretted it ever since. They use road salt up here, and that stuff just eats the finish up. I've settled on a monthly polishing routine using the Mothers regular polish, however that only happens during the summer. I've noticed if it stays dry they look pretty good for about a month, if they get wet and I wipe them off before the water dries that helps too. But now there are spots that will not come out by hand polishing. Plus the chrome is wrinkling and flaking off all 4 center caps. I bought a cloth polishing ball for a drill last week, but haven't tried it yet. Mothers sells a sponge ball for drills that costs about $20, and they make a premium polish that sells for about $13.99 per 7oz tub. Haven't tried that either. I'm pretty much ready to re-paint my old rims and sell these to sombody who lives in the desert. Should've saved my money and bought the black steelies like everybody else...

[uvaldetxj]

just get a few wire wheel brushes and a drill and strip off the clearcoat.
i think my aluminum wheels look nice without the clear coat.

http://photos.yahoo.com/jeepinuvalde