Wheel Refurb???

[Guest]

Any Recommendations for a decent cheap service?

I would really like to re-anodize in RSR pattern but the cost is too high for me right now. I have 4 wheels virtually unmarked that I would be happy have painted or powder coated in plain silver. Probably the most simple finish imaginable. Can I get this done at a reasonable price?

Also a recommendation. I have two wheels that were completely refurbed before I bought them with the anodised outer section turned/lathed off and then lacquer clear coated. Bad idea. Less than a year on the lacquer is lifting around either tiny holes or tiny amounts of moisture. It looks like big scabs are forming on the wheel. Either powder coat or paint over proper primer in future (or anodize if pockets are deep).

Richard

 

[Melv]

"decent cheap service"

No such thing!! You gets wot yer pays for......

Try Chris at Diamond Styling in NW10 - 020.8969.9690

Rgds
Mel

 

[Guest]

Hi Richard,
I had my Fuchs wheels refubished at the "Wheel Hospital" 7 or 8 years ago. At the time they still had the original laquer on, well about half of it, and what was left had blistered where corrosion was eating into the alloy under the laquer.

The wheels didn't look very nice, as you can imagine, but when I got them back they were transformed. I'd had the centres repainted in black as per the originals and the tatty looking rims skimmed of a few microns.

With the fuchs wheels there is a fair bit of "meat" so there is scope to skim off a little more quite safely if the corrosion has been left to attack the alloy for too long.

In actual fact I've had to have my nearside wheels refurbished again after a bl**dy fox ran out in front of me a couple of years ago and the evasive action I had to take meant me kerbing it at about 60 mph on a dual carriageway.

The sound of tortured alloy against concrete kerbstone will stay with me for a long time!

So two of my Fuchs wheels have been skimmed twice but you'd never know it to look at them.

I have never had a protective coating on my wheels since the refurb, instead preferring to give them a spray with wd40 which is easy to wipe off with a cloth when cleaning, then just as easy to re-apply. Best not spray any onto the brake discs or pads though!

At the moment I cant find any contact info for the Wheel Hospital but I'll post it hre when I do.

Cheers Glenn

 

[Jamie Summers]

Richard,
If you can be @rsed to do the prep work and just want a plain silver finish over the whole wheel, why not just DIY with a decent Wurth rattle can. Sure, not going to be the best finish, but v. cheap and will do you until you've saved enough pennies for the proper re-anodised RSR finish. My wheels are powcer coated (by previous owner), and from the look of it I think it might be quite difficult to get the coating off come proper re-furb time.

J

 

[Paul911]

I had mine polished and centres sprayed black last December by Pro-clean, Prescot Merseyside. http://www.procleanalloys.co.uk/

My wheels were pitted with brake dust and scratches. I was pretty hesitant at leaving the wheels a fairly small and scruffy industrial unit (first impressions and all that). But they did an absolutely cracking job, Im well chuffed. The mirror finish goes well with my black car, although this finish would not suit all colours. Cost me £50 (cash) per corner, definite recommendation.

Paul

 

[Andy Tims]

ORIGINAL: Melv

"decent cheap service"

No such thing!! You gets wot yer pays for......

True enough - I tried Spit & Polish - Poor quality work, one wheel had to go back 3 times.

 

[Guest]

I am not shying away from a little hard work - by my calculations I have repainted 17 Fuchs wheels in the course of my Porsche ownership including doing 4 in polished RSR pattern - but it is hard work doing it by hand (OK, I am shying away from hard work!!). It just seems that, for the wheels that having nothing but paint on them anyway, then it would be piece of piss easy for some pro to chemically strip and repaint. My paint conditions are never that clean so I invariably get some dust on the paint and I have had bad results with Halfords rattle cans that didn't provide a lasting finish.

Of the 4 I am interested in refinishing, 2 have the factory "silver" anodising round the rim. Can I just paint over that with an etching primer or does it have to be chemically/mechanically removed?

I know, I should post some pictures, but I am at work right now.

Richard

 

[Guest]

Here is the scabrous disease effecting my wheels.

 

[Greg Park]

Just spoke to Diamond Styling in NW10, they want £275+vat pr wheel to refurbish 9x16's.

That's as much as the wheels cost!

 

[Chris_911]

Try Biagio Chrzanowski. Not used him but spoken highly of by others. Have been speaking to him about some Fuchs re-furb lately. Quoting approx. £150 per wheel, though these were not 9x16s. He has an ebay entry with lots of pics - work looks impressive.

a.chrzanowski@ntlworld.com

 

[jamescharnley]

I've used Biaggio for Porsche Cups I had refurbed. Superb job []

 

[dixhuit]

Richard
Dont know how far you are prepared to go but if you contact Gary Steele my R15 organiser there is a man in Barnstaple N Devon whose refurb work is trully amazing. (Ive seen his work) not only that his pricing is incredibly low. You will be able to e-mail gary via the R15 section on the forum and he will be delighted to give you all the gen and an approx cost for what he had done
Cheers
Simon Ryder

 

[Melv]

ORIGINAL: Greg Park

Just spoke to Diamond Styling in NW10, they want £275+vat pr wheel to refurbish 9x16's.

That's as much as the wheels cost!

I know it seems a lot, but remember, you get what you pay for. Chris is acknowledged to be the best.

Thank Christ I haven't got Fuchs alloys!!

 

[bruceb]

I agree with Melv, I had mine done at Diamond Styling three years ago, big cost (£832) but a superb job on my 6" and 8" fuchs.

The cost is in the reanodising which most other refurbers either machine off and cover with lacquer or just mirror polish. The lacquer is temporary as water gets underneath and the surface goes cloudy, the mirror finish requires regular polishing, really boring!.

I tried the cheap route and spent £200 getting polished 8" fuchs. They looked terrible on my guards red car, I gave in and paid the price for "nice original Fuchs" from Diamond Styling

Bruce

 

[jerry911sc]

There's a thread on the SC forum with some info on wheel refurbs (end of page one)

http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=138628

The range of prices makes for an interesting dilemna!

 

[twinny]

I've used Biagio to refurb my wheels. Did a good job at a good price - Repainted centres in a nice industrial grade silk paint. Very thin coating just like the originals.

He can take them to whatever level you require, but the more you want the more you pay obviously.

Met up with him again at the Auto Jumble on Saturday. At the end of this season he is having mine back to take the laquer off the rims and polish them. I'm prepared to accept that I will need to Autosol them, but that's my choice. Biagio is not keen on laquer he says that it leads to more problems than it cures.

I have seen some concours ones he did for a guy (anodised and then painted), they were spot on.

Turn round is normally about 10 days he reckons, depending on what you have done. I would recommend him based on what I have seen.

If your looking for powder coating try this company. http://www.lap-tab.co.uk/ I've had it done on classic car steel wheels and it worked very well. Old coating is sand blasted off to begin with. Sometimes you can have coating done whilst you wait, which is great service.

Steve