homebrew alloy refurb

[Ilkorin]

And after a whole day of scrubbing, sanding, priming, painting, masking etc... I've turned this:



with some nasty kerbed edges...


Into this:



Now to see how long they last before the paint starts flaking

[ImysE30]

Nice job, look a lot better

[fuzzy]

good job. i did mine about 2 years ago and theyve still not flaked.

[Baz666]

lookin good fella

[leeparkes]

good job!

make sure you put some sort of wax on them as it will make them a lot easier to keep clean

[m4xos]

fairplay, they look sweet will be doing mine this week! how'd you get the edge soooo good?

[Ilkorin]

lots of elbow grease.....and 80 grit sandpaper the edges are by no means perfect and some have some visible dips where the serious kerbing was....

here's one mid-refurb



From there a blast with primer and audi aluminium silver paint, and it looks good as new (from a slight distance)

what sort of wax are we talking? just wax like you use on the bodywork.....

[E30Gheko]

Mate they look the dogs! Good work. I might have a go at mine!

[zaust]

Well done fella.

[Ilkorin]

Thanks all! I am surprised at how easy it was in the end... Long term durability wise, I'm not completely sure, but it shouldn't be too difficult to respray if it gets chipped...

and here's two pics with them on the car...





I should really get some proper pictures of the car up one day...

[Andy_E30]

hey man how did u gt thm so gd i wonna do mine maself but im scared lol tell me all the lil tips i need 2 no please

[Ilkorin]

haha time and patience are the only little tips I can give....

expect to take a VERY long time sanding the lip down to get rid of the kerbing, and on mine you can still see where it was before...also make sure the wheels are spotless or the paint will go horribly wrong - my hands are still blistered and aching from the scrubbing and sanding...

It helps if you've got the wheels off the car and aren't desperate to get them back on again...it took me all weekend to do the whole set, and I would have rushed it and done a terrible job if I needed them back on the car to use...

[Cotty]

Looking good and I bet a lot cheaper than a shop refurb

[Bob_S]

cotty this is true.. if you dont have anything else to do!
I pay about £40 a wheel for refurbs to me this is great as they are done properly for that and will last a long time and the lips are right too!

[fozzymandeus]

if you don't mind me asking, where do you get your refurbs, Bob_S?

I'm based not very far from you and have a need for some work!

[Bob_S]

I get them done at www.smartrepaircompany.co.uk Chris is a really good lad and won't be one to hide away if there is a problem. I didnt realise you were close?
He's done my Hartge 3pc wheels and I have a set of staggered alpina's with him at the moment

[fozzymandeus]

Thanks!

I'm only over North Wales way, I work in Ruthin.

I have 4 very large style 32s to refurb on my seven and 4 15" mazda alloys to do for my wife's MX5.

[edit] Just checked out the website, will give him a go on the mazda wheels when funds allow [/edit]

[Bob_S]

Sound, You need a 24v next, join the 24v club lol!

here's my hartge's -

[fozzymandeus]

Those hartge's look great!

My seven has 32 valves, if that helps...

[Bob_S]

it would help in an e30

[BigBavarian]

I must admit ihave looked at doing a home refurb on bbs and i dont have the patience to do all some little corners and spokes.
Good work mate they look great

[m4xos]

Sound, You need a 24v next, join the 24v club lol!

here's my hartge's -

sweet, they are smart, was that a refurbed 1 for £40?

[Bob_S]

Sound, You need a 24v next, join the 24v club lol!

here's my hartge's -

sweet, they are smart, was that a refurbed 1 for £40?

no that was £90 I think he split them, polished the lips, painted the centres, powder coated the rears and resealed them, they have new bolts too

[mattsbmw]

I refurbd my BBS last summer, have got another set that i intend on doing a much better job on this spring time.