Help me fix my True Forged wheels!

[bubbrubb]

I talked to Steve first about it, and he said there was nothing he nor my lifetime/1 year warranty would help with on this.

I got caught in the rain at a friend's house and had to drive ~10-15 miles back to mine through moderate rain to put the car away. Apparently 3 piece wheels can't do that. :shrug:

I'm not happy at all that it happened, but it happened, and I'm stuck with it... so help a brother out. What do you detailing experts suggest to help me bring these back to new and to remove all of the water etching left in them? The lips are polished aluminum, not chrome, and this is the first time outside of washing them that they've seen any water.

Since pics are worth 1000 words, here's what I'm working with

^that is wiped clean with a damp microfiber towel

This is after going to town on just one section of them with the mother's powerball that Steve gave me:

Can it be fixed??

The wheels are off the car now and I hit them again with Nevr Dull. Didn't fare too much better, but it was an improvement (don't have pics unfortunately).

Any help/insight/advice is greatly appreciated!!!! Thanks guys!!!

 

[COBRAGUY95]

Adams polish FTW!

 

[FLACO_G]

What he said..

 

[black92]

I have polished aluminum wheels that were not taking care of. Worst than yours. The only way I was able to get them to "shine" and not have the white pitting you have, was to wetsand them down. Started with 600, 800, 1500, then 2000. Not saying you need to do this or even start as agressive, but you might have to do something like this if all else fails. Whenever you get them cleaned up really good, look into some paste wax or sealant for aluminum wheels to help prevent that from happening again.

 

[mblgjr]

Now I know why I got chrome lips and didn't let Steve talk me into the polished ones...I'd drive myself nuts...

I've dealt with it before though. I'd suggest you wash them well before starting anything new. Then I would take some white vinegar and gently wash them down with it. You will only want to work on one wheel at a time. The vinegar will help dissolve the mineral deposits.

Follow with Mother's Billet via Powerball or cone with FIRM pressure. Then follow with Adam's Metal Polish applied via MF applicator "brick" to apply even and firm pressure to the surface. That will give you the best finish possible without micromarring. Adam's also should take away any final mineral spots.

If you have deep etching, the only thing you could really do is remove/disassemble them and have them professionally repolished off the car.

 

[svtsilversnake]

That sucks man. Why would you buy wheels that would do this if they got wet, and not dried in a quick fashion? Im just curious.

 

[bubbrubb]

Thank you very much for the advice so far guys, I'll give it some more time before I do anything to them but I'm very interested in the different ways to "save" my wheels. They're too big for paper weights!

That sucks man. Why would you buy wheels that would do this if they got wet, and not dried in a quick fashion? Im just curious.

Because he didn't tell me or even hint to me that they would do this, otherwise I wouldn't have. It DOES suck, and I'm not a happy camper!! :cuss:

 

[mblgjr]

Any raw polished aluminum surface will do this; its not specific to this brand of wheel.

 

[svtsilversnake]

Because he didn't tell me or even hint to me that they would do this, otherwise I wouldn't have. :cuss:

ohhh:nonono: sorry man. Well atleast post up a pic of what they look like clean. :-D

 

[bubbrubb]

Any raw polished aluminum surface will do this; its not specific to this brand of wheel.

I didn't know it would be raw aluminum, nor did he clarify that it would be raw. Just polished... and I figured that it would be like every other set of wheels out there and have a sealant on it. You could say I'm pretty bitter about it :dw:

 

[mblgjr]

Well...polished aluminum is just that. Raw, polished aluminum. It is open and venerable to contaminants/elements of nature...

You would have to have either gone chrome, or had them clear coated (like automotive paint) to have gotten any protection; both of which obviously cost more $$ than the raw polished metal.

Once you do get them fixed/better, put a nice sealant on them. I've heard good things about ZoopSeal; but something like WheelWax, Poorboy's Wheels Sealant, Rejex, or Chemical Guys Jetseal would all work well to prevent recurrence. Just apply it when you wash/wax the car and you should be better off.

 

[PistolWhip]

I'd start with some Adams Metal Polish #1 and see what that gets you. If that doesn't cut it all out, I'd go to some super fine grit wet/dry sand paper and than again follow it up with Adams #1.
You can also try jewelers rouge (on a cotton buffing wheel) which is kind of in between Adams #1 and sand paper in terms of abrasiveness.
No matter what it takes to get it cleaned up, the finishing step should be Adams #2. After your done with the Adams #2, you can seal it with either PoorBoys Wheel Sealant or Klasse AIO.

Either way, like stated above, this will happen to ANY polished aluminum finish. Steve probably didn't tell you it was raw aluminum because any polished aluminum finish is exactly that, raw aluminum. Its pretty much a given and he probably figured you knew what you were ordering.

 

[Seahorse]

When you do get them restored, look into "Zoop Seal". Great stuff for protecting raw polished aluminum.

 

[96lasersnake]

That sucks, I also had chrome lips on my TF's. Went through this with my CCW's

 

[Co-brat]

ive got some 20" Torque Thrust II's on my chevy truck that have polished lips like your wheels and ive had the same problem, a few times. If you really want to get that brand new show shine like when they were new then unfortunately, like some already said above, you will have to wet sand them and re-polish to get the deep pitting out. The acid or salt that is used on the roads where you live is your worst enemy as it litteraly eats aluminum. I have had some luck just taking a rotary buffer like a makita or dewalt (what I use) with a foam pad and some mothers billet polish. It will clean them up pretty nice and you wont be able to tell from 5 feet away, but its a tedious and dirty job that will take a couple hours and you will need to prep the wheels with tape on the centers since you have them powdercoated. The buffer will burn them just like paint on your car if left in one spot for too long and with enough pressure, be careful! After all is said and done you will need to seal them with a wheel wax. You should have been using a wheel wax all along anyway because brake dust is corrosive and will dull your finsh after a while. GL, let us know how it goes and post some pics.

 

[coolcobramatt]

argh...hope it gets better for ya man

 

[BreBar21]

That's the nature of raw aluminum. I love my wheels, but the polished lip wears me out. I can never get them looking how I want. Sucks you didn't know.

 

[STG]

I didn't know it would be raw aluminum, nor did he clarify that it would be raw. Just polished... and I figured that it would be like every other set of wheels out there and have a sealant on it. You could say I'm pretty bitter about it :dw:

You problem is not a warranty issue. The commonly accepted definition of polished aluminum does not include a clear coat. Bare aluminum must be maintained.

My wheels have polished rims ( I guess that means every other wheel out there is not clear coated) and I have never had any problems with water etching/staining etc.

I use Meguiar's Nxt Metal Polysh (which is supposed to leave a protective coating) followed by Meguiar's M21 synthetic sealant or Nxt Tech Wax.

My wheels have 15,000 miles on them and they have gotten wet.

 

[black92]

On one of my wheels that I mentioned I have cleaned up, took me 4 hrs. I have 3 finished and a total of 9.5 hrs in by hand. I will get them sealed up and properly maintain them so that I don't have to go through this again.

 

[Saleen281sc]

I agree with what everyone above said.

Your best bet is to get some cotton bobs (Plating Kits Electroplating Kits Aluminum Anodizing Kits Powder Coating Systems Metal Polishing And Buffing Supplies - Caswell Inc.) stick them on your handheld drill, and polish the bad spots out.

The pitting/stains WILL come out with some aluminum polish and the speed/heat of the cotton bobs.

You are taking on a lot of work to do it by hand, IMO.