Anyone have chrome/polished wheels?

[ddcsteven]

I have been seening a lot of bikes with chrome/polished wheels on black bikes and I think they look really nice.  I was wondering if anyone had done this to there gs500?

[scratch]

A few people have stripped the paint off of their stock rims and polished the lips.  I think a search for 'polished lips' will get you what you're looking for.  Get your mind out of the gutter.

[weaselnoze]

i have a black '00 with polished wheels.  no great pics but here you are..





im workin on the back one as we speak.  should be done and mounted in a week.

[Jeppy]

Are you stripping the paint off yourself or having it professionally done? I'm thinking of taking my rims in and having them chromed.

[werase643]

I bought my SV pimped out
wheels/ frame/ swing arm/ fork legs/ rotor centers
i try to keep it clean but i ain't polishing the shaZam!

[DerekNC]

You can buy "Aircraft Stripper" from Walmart for less than $6 a spray can. A little bit goes a long way and it works great. It'll even take off powdercoating, something that's hard to do even with sandblasting. 

The best way to use it is spray it on and then wrap a garbage bag over it for about an hour. Uncover and the finish should scrap right off. I've even used just a paper towel to wipe off the old finish. Be sure to use heavy rubber gloves and a respirator if you go that route. I used nitrile gloves yesterday to strip a staple gun and I could actually feel a burning sensation through the gloves.

[weaselnoze]

 i used zip strip. i tried aerosal stripper too. couldnt find anything stronger. took several applications and a LOT of rubbing.

[oramac]

I used the aerosol aircraft paint remover and my paint wiped right off.  Used some stainless steel wool for touch up.  Did my front wheel in about 10 minutes.  Mask the center well, and use liberal amounts of water to rinse after removing paint.

[weaselnoze]

well the back wheel is stripped completely. now i just have to polish polish polish! 

the front wheel was a Buddha Loves You.  the finest steel wool still dulls the original metal.  any ideas on what to use?  can i use oil with the steel wool to make it less abrasive?

[scratch]

Either use a greenie (or the back of a sponge with the green back), and/or the Softscrub liquid.

[GeeP]

First off, DON'T use steel wool.  It will set up intergranular dissimilar metal corrosion.  It won't cause any major structural problems with low alloy casting Aluminum but it will make it hard to keep the finish bright.  Use Scotchbrite pads to help remove the paint.

Once you have the paint off, use Aluminum Oxide sandpaper to remove the casting marks / finish.  Start at 220 and work up to 1500 grit, completely sanding out the scratches from the last grade.  Finish with either an abrasive aluminum polish paste or a buffer and rouge.  If done correctly, you'll be able to shave in the result.   

Aluminum has a higher shine than Chrome.  Pure aluminum is used to coat telescope mirrors.  A 1/16 wave surface finish will reflect better than 99 percent of the light that hits it.  The problem is that it's hard to keep it in the polished condition.  Clear laquer helps, but reduces the shine.

[Cal Amari]

Though I have a strong dislike of shiny wheels, I've had good success with aluminum oxide sandpaper (and mineral oil to lube the metal, which GeeP didn't mention) on other aluminum bits that had corroded. I've also used Aluminum Jelly to remove heavy corrosion, though it is highly caustic (IIRC, it contains phosphoric acid). You can get damn close to a mirror finish (as GeeP mentioned) with the oil and sandpaper if you have the time and energy, though I certainly hope you won't go that far.

GeeP, since you're recommending wet-or-dry sandpaper, do you see any reason not to use mineral oil to reduce the friction? I'm curious to know if / why you would advise against it, or if you think it would be OK...

[GeeP]

Sorry, I didn't mention that.  I do so much mechanical work I sometimes forget details that are just natural to me.   

I wet sand with water.  In fact, I use lots of water to wash away the filings and keep the paper from loading.  When machine sanding (Air tools only!) I keep a small hose on the area I'm working with.  I suppose mineral oil would work, but it would be harder to wash away the filings due to cost/cleanup.  Aluminum filings will quickly fill up the paper, expecially at the higher screens.

I can't see any particular reason why you'd want to use mineral oil due to the cost, small quantity available, and cleanup problems.  However, I'm not one to dismiss something just because I havent tried it.  Therefore, I'll say whatever works!   

I prefer 3M "Imperial" type 213Q "Wetordry".  It's available at NAPA autoparts stores.  Type 213Q is an Aluminum Oxide abrasive bonded to an A-weight paper and has a very nice feel in the hand, especially once wet. 

Steer clear of Garnet sandpaper that you find at woodworking stores, or standard paper-backed Aluminum Oxide.  The abrasives aren't very uniform in consistancy, and there's the obvious issue of the paper bond being dissolved by water.  In addition, FAA AC 43-4A "Corrosion Control for Aircraft" lists Aluminum Oxide as the only acceptable abrasive for use in finish work on aircraft structures, in part due to the previously stated dissimilar metal problem.

When you're attempting to develop a decorative finish, determining how much sanding is necessary is simply a matter of practice.  When in doubt sand some more before switching to the next finer abrasive.

[Cal Amari]

^ When I want to polish steel, I use #0000 steel wool and WD-40; you can get a nice brushed-satin finish without a lot of effort. I wet-sand most steel and plastic items (gas tanks, side panels and whatever) with 3M sandpaper and water, though I add some dishwashing liquid to the water (with a few drops on the paper itself) to help keep the paper from loading up with paint. I've used those methods with great success on everything from my nephew's little red wagon to computer cases to many types of motorcycle parts. My experience with polishing aluminum is limited, so I appreciate your input on this; I used mineral oil on small aluminum items because I worried about further corrosion, and thought sanding with oil would help to prevent that. Seems that wet-sanding with water is acceptable, as long as I take steps to protect the finish afterwards... thanks for the feedback.