Alloy wheel Refurb and re paint

[Mrheisenburg]

Hi all… I have recently bought a white B8 A4 Avant with all the alloys kerbed …. They are I think 19” Le Mans Alloys….. I’m a bit torn between keeping them the original colour or going a gloss black to match the black grilles I have changed at the front of the car…. I’m gonna have a go at refurbing them myself. Has anyone on here done this themselves..?… I know it’s a painstaking job to do right but I’ve got the bank holiday weekend  this weekend so can spend 3 solid days on them….

cheers

[greysquirrel]

Hi, I did mine myself, went for a darker grey as I don't like black (it hides the wheel design imo). Don't think I did a bad job, took about 6 hours per wheel, and used about a can of lacquer per wheel. However, I'm still not entirely happy with them (perfectionist), but that said, they do look just as good 12 months later!

 

Edited August 26, 2021 by greysquirrel
too many/irrelevant photos

[Mrheisenburg]

They look proper mint…… what paint did you use on them..?….did you use rattle cans..?…. Mine are a darker shade at the moment but they are proper rough…… was a good bargaining tool at point of sale though….. was only thinking of black as would sort of tie in with the blacked out grille and fog light grilles…..

[Magnet]

Hello Phil,

Keith has indeed done a superb job with his wheels.

Black as opposed to the colour Kath has used? Personally choice of course, but to me gloss black just looks tarty and cheapens the car - opinions will vary! 
Re. replicating Keith’s standard of work? Skill will certainly be required, and although you can improve on your yours, only you will be able to judge whether you can meet that skill base necessary to overcome the risk of any work being seen as simply a DIY attempt.

You say you had a good discount due to the car’s wheels needing to be attended to, so it may now be worth investing that discount in getting them done once and wisely.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Mrheisenburg]

Cheers Gareth, I understand what you are saying about paying someone to get them done but I am a firm believer in doing it myself if possible…. I like the satisfaction of looking at a job and thinking “I did that..!..”…. I have been running a van hire company for over 20 years and have plenty of experience in repairs in all aspects of vehicles trying to keep the vans on the road and looking tidy ……. I’m still not sure about the black…. Might go for a more anthracite kind of colour on them…. Decisions decisions…….

[greysquirrel]

Hi Phil, yes, I used rattle cans, Hycote Wheel Silver was the colour, came out much darker than I expected, but it's grown on me. I took a lot of time prepping the wheels, loads of time rubbing down and filling the kerbing and scuffs. There are still a few areas where you can see minor imperfections, but you have to look very closely to see them. I used a proper alloy wheel filler, and deflated the tyres so I could do the edge of the rim. I used playing cards tucked inside the bead to mask the tyres off.

It was a lot of work and I sometimes wish I'd paid £300 to have them done properly, but when I kerbed one a month later, at least I could repair it myself!

 

[Mrheisenburg]

Yeah that’s my reasoning for doing it myself…. If some thing happens I will repair myself….. luckily I have a workshop with tyre machines and wheel balancers so will be stripping the tyres off and working with just the wheel which should make life a lot easier……. I’ve bought the paint today… a bit pricey but very good quality… I’ve gone for a metallic anthracite and 2k laquer which is a shade darker than what’s on the car now….. should look good when finished fingers crossed…

[Mrheisenburg]

Thinking about maybe painting the calipers black while the wheels are off too….

[Stevey Y]

Hi the only problem wth rattle cans is the cans contain about 60% air and 40% solvent the rest is paint, if you get the wheels refurbed professionally their paint/solvent mix is about 30% solvent and the rest is paint therefore you get about  a 30 micron sweep on the dust coat which accelerates to anything up to a millimetre with the wet coat and drys in record time, they also strip the wheels when prepping and use a fast drying Gell to fill in kerbing marks before priming, thats how they can produce a stunning guaranteed finish in eight hours and at around £50 a wheel it won't break the bank, if you find the right company [mobile ] they even come round your house and do it.

Steve.

[Mrheisenburg]

Thanks Stevey, I totally understand the points you raise in your message . I know for the money it’s easier to get someone else to do the wheel job but for me personally I like to do things myself. I accept that a professional job will probably be a perfect finish but I reckon I can get pretty damn close. It’s just a matter of time patience and elbow grease. I have had the paint cans specially made with the colour I want and I am looking forward to getting cracking….. Also as Greysquirrel said if you do it yourself then in the event of anything happening a repair should be easy to sort..

[Mrheisenburg]

Well so much for getting 3 days to do my wheels…… had to squeeze it into a day and a half…..for a first attempt at attempting to refurbish wheels I m very happy with how they are looking….3 layers of primer, 3 layers of paint, 3 layers of laquer ….. they are not 100% but they are 100% better than what they were before…. Here’s a a few pics…..

[Mrheisenburg]

Got the wheels back on and got my bucket and sponge out…..