Aluminum rims - clearcoat vs seal?

[nrramse]

I bought some aluminum rims on Craigslist. I *think* they're American Racing Outlaw I rims, but no clearcoat. I've been cleaning and polishing, and they're looking really good, but its taking me about 2 hours per rim. I've read about clearcoats, but there's the occasional horror story about the clearcoat yellowing and/or flaking. Some also say this it won't stick if the metal is too polished. Anyone with a good or bad experience that can help me make a decision? If I should do a sealant, what's a good brand?

Thanks, Newell

 

[mjramacher]

to get a quality job you must clean very well it's better if there off the truck to get the clear to stick use some red 3m scotch brite and scuff the entire rim and use a wax and grease remover and allow to dry tape anything you don't want clear on and use a quality automotive clear something with a higher temp rating I have done it a few times with painting the rims and then clearing the rims they came out very nice they also make a adhesion promoter from DuPont I will see if I can find the number

 

[TX SS]

I run Weld Racing billet aluminum rims on my daily driver and I polished and sealed them with Adam's products. The sealant is in an aerosol can and you spray on and them wipe with a foam applicator. Both the polish and sealant work very well. Below are some pictures of the rims, before and after.

When I got them:

After polishing:

After sealant:

 

[74fiberglass]

WOW, those look great.. Can I send you my slots to do (LOL)

 

[bronconut73]

Check out Sharkhide.
My boss uses it on his duece coupé engine. Applies it every couple years. Applies it to his wheels once a year but he says even the wheels (in their harsh enviroment) do not even need it once a year.
Amazing stuff.

 

[TX SS]

WOW, those look great.. Can I send you my slots to do (LOL)

Thanks. I put a ton of work into those rims to bring them back to life. I have a set of slots and a set alcoas waiting on me to polish. If I had more time and was more efficient I would gladly do them for you.

 

[TX SS]

Check out Sharkhide.
My boss uses it on his duece coupé engine. Applies it every couple years. Applies it to his wheels once a year but he says even the wheels (in their harsh enviroment) do not even need it once a year.
Amazing stuff.

When researching sealants Sharkhide and Shineseal were two of the products I found with good reviews. I ultimately went with Adam's because of price and ease of application.

 

[67RT]

I run Weld Racing billet aluminum rims on my daily driver and I polished and sealed them with Adam's products. The sealant is in an aerosol can and you spray on and them wipe with a foam applicator. Both the polish and sealant work very well. Below are some pictures of the rims, before and after.

When I got them:

After polishing:

After sealant:

Great work! Did you use an attachment on a drill with buffing compounds befpore using the Adams products? How are they applied? I just hit mine with polishing rouge and pads but did not get a super shine.. THey have small pits so I many need to go coarser..

 

[lowbush]

Check out Sharkhide.
My boss uses it on his duece coupé engine. Applies it every couple years. Applies it to his wheels once a year but he says even the wheels (in their harsh enviroment) do not even need it once a year.
Amazing stuff.

I second this, it's used for boat brightwork that is Aluminum you have to apply it every 6 months but in my opinion it looks the best. Clear coats to me at least give it a plastic look. Sharkhide is good stuff.

 

[hyghlndr]

Skip the clear coat, they all change color and chip off.

 

[TX SS]

Great work! Did you use an attachment on a drill with buffing compounds befpore using the Adams products? How are they applied? I just hit mine with polishing rouge and pads but did not get a super shine.. THey have small pits so I many need to go coarser..

These rims were in bad shape and pitted horribly. After sanding them all the way down to 180 grit and back up to 2000 I used a corded electric drill and buffing pads with black and green compounds. Then used the Adams 1 & 2 metal polishes. These are applied with a microfiber applicator and wiped off with a microfiber cloth. If you have pitting you'll need to bust out the sandpaper I'm afraid. A good source for supplies and information is Caswell Plating. They have all the compounds, pads and a forum where you can research as necessary. I'm going to try to polish these OEM Ford slots eventually. Will document my process and post when I do.

 

[bronconut73]

These rims were in bad shape and pitted horribly. After sanding them all the way down to 180 grit and back up to 2000 I used a corded electric drill and buffing pads with black and green compounds. Then used the Adams 1 & 2 metal polishes. These are applied with a microfiber applicator and wiped off with a microfiber cloth. If you have pitting you'll need to bust out the sandpaper I'm afraid. A good source for supplies and information is Caswell Plating. They have all the compounds, pads and a forum where you can research as necessary. I'm going to try to polish these OEM Ford slots eventually. Will document my process and post when I do.

That will make an excellent before and after photo opportunity.

 

[nrramse]

I think I'm leaning towards the sealant. Now if I can find a local vendor....

Thanks everyone for answering and posting the pictures.

 

[lowbush]

The only clears that do not yellow are the powder coat and ceramic clears, but you have to have a PC gun and oven to apply those. Here is a clear PC oven aluminum (not mine just pulled it off the web to show):

 

[nrramse]

I ended up with some "Harley Preserve" from a local bike shop. None of the car parts places in my area (Autozone, Oreilly's, PepBoys, Napa) carried aluminum sealant or even heard of it :-(. I also tried a couple of hardware stores, but to no avail.

 

[TX SS]

Because of the specialty nature of the sealants mentioned think you will have to order online.

 

[lowbush]

Most boat stores carry shark hide, which is one of the better Aluminum preservation formulas.