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I picked up a set of the "stock" alloy wheels last week but they look awful with blobs of paint over a poorly prepped surface. I would like to strip the paint off of them and either repaint or get them powder coated. What's a good product for taking the paint off without harming the alloy?

Jim

You can get aircraft paint stripper from auto parts stores that is safe for aluminum. After that a light acid solution (vinegar?) will dull the surface which will allow the paint or powder coating a good gripping surface. The stronger the acid the less time it should be left on.

For those wheels that are to be part aluminum and part painted any purposely exposed aluminum surface can then later be buffed to a shiney surface. As an aside if part of the alloy wheels are to be left to bare aluminum it is better to paint them as it is nearly impossible to tape them so powder coating doesn't get under the tape which is very difficult to remove.

TR7 Spider - 1978 Spifire - 1976 Spitfire - 1988 Tercel 4X4 - Kali on Integra - 1991 Integra

Thanks FI. I think I'm going to try painting them like in restoration article in the TWOA article in October 2009. That called for first painting them a dark green metallic followed by silver. This replicated the original finish pretty well.

Jim

I had a set that I painted with the "warm silver" from Eastwood. I had them sandblasted then prepped them with zinc oxide primer which is yellow and specifically made for aluminum. The process and painting was almost idiot proof....good thing. The sandblasting was a bit of a shortcut, but quick and if the wheels are to be painted, no problem.

According to the company that refurbished two sets of wheels (one steel, one alloy) it is better not to shot blast alloy wheels to remove the paint, as it can damage the soft alloy.
Better to use chemicals for that, after which the alloy is shot blasted with low pressure to prepare the surface for further coating.
Steel of course can be shot blasted.



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