Refinishing rims on Ruf wheels
 

My 964 has Ruf wheels. The silver-painted 'spokes' of these are in perfect condition. However, the rims are aluminium with a clear lacquer over which is broken in places causing corrosion.

I want to remove the remains of the lacquer and rub down the rims. I figure I can then either re-lacquer them, in which case what's the best stuff to use and is it a practical proposition?

Alternatively, I could leave the rims bare aluminium (as Fuchs) and protect them with Vaseline.

Any thoughts please?

Cheers

Phil

Hey Phil, sorry i can't answer your quistion but thought I'd say a quick Hi to you. I follow your articles in the 911 and Porsche World magazine and I'd like to say that I enjoy reading about your Porsche alot. I always look forward to reading, what I consider to be, the best Porsche Mag :)

Good Luck with the wheels and keep the article coming :)

Thanks for the kind words. Glad to hear the magazine is enjoyed so far from home!


Cheers

Phil

Phil,

That's a tough one that I asked about once before for some BBS wheels I have. You can use a paint remover, but then it's difficult to keep it off the good parts and it also might penetrate into the pores of the metal, melting out and ruining your new laquer paint job when used on the road and the wheels get hot.

You sand them down with sand paper to remove the original finish, using progressivly finer paper to remove it all, followed by rubbing compound and polishing compound to make it a mirror finish.
Oh, by the way, this takes lots of elbow grease.

If you don't apply a finish coat, you'll need to polish them occasionaly. Otherwise, you might want to try Wurths clear coat to protect the outer rims when done, as they have a good product. Don't try high temp clear, as the hot brake dust will eat into it, especially if you track it. Don't ask how I know. :) You can get Wurths through: <a href="http://carcareonline.com/" target="_blank">http://carcareonline.com/</a> here in the US, but you can probably find a source closer to home.

Hope this helps.

Regards,
Jim

Thanks Jim, that's a great help.

I'd figured that paper-stripper would not be a good idea, so I guess I'm in for some hard work! <img src="graemlins/crying.gif" border="0" alt="[crying]" />

My main concern with lacquer was that it would not bond to the aluminium, which is notoriously hard to paint. I'll check out the stuff you used and look for a source in the UK.

Thanks again

Phil

My 18" BBS race wheels do not have a clear coat on them. I just polish every so often and it looks like I need to now. :)
http://boards.rennlist.com/upload/93...gleresized.jpg