These polished rims ....

Greg · Post by **Greg** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 12:57 pm

Ok - so I have a set of 014s to go on and was just preparing my spare rear wheel for spraying black to match the other when I managed to shear one of the f@cking disc bolts off.... the irritating part is that not only was it the last one, but I'd already managed to free it off and it was halfway out when it all went to sh!t... Anyway, now I have work to do to the wheel to get it sorted (although I reckon 5 disc bolts really ought to be enough myself...!) I thought I'd look at polishing the rim like the current TRXotM as well as others...

So - how's it done? strip the whole wheel, polish mask and spray? Or is the rim already machined under the paint? I remember from my old ST days that someone once said their rims were fantastically well machined, then coated with some kind of hi-build primer prior to being painted...

G

dillthedog · Post by **dillthedog** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 3:29 pm

nitro moors paint stripper then high pressure wash them gets all the paint off i found this to be the easy way and rims are machined a good going over with autosol i sprayed mine with pj1 they look good

Post by **phuk72** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 5:04 pm

Or do what I did - paint them silver!

The crap weather in the UK means unless you enjoy polisihing or only ride your bike on dry days, polished rims are a PITA.

This is an old pic but shows you what I'm talking about

billy budge · Post by **billy budge** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 6:22 pm

That there pete is a all time stupendous idea, ive got polished wheel rims and they do look the danglies but as you say are a mare to keep in a1 condition all the time.

Saying that i only get to polishing the wheels once ive finished the forks,yokes,casings and swingarm!!!!! So by then youve lost the will to live anyhow.

Your bike and the wheels are very very nice indeed, may look into the silver paint as ive got silver in my paintjob.

gregs656 · Post by **gregs656** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 7:32 pm

if you polish then laquer them they should be as easy to maintain as painted rims, though i do like the look of the painted ones.

Post by **phuk72** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 7:57 pm

If only it was that easy! The lacquer will wear off and discolour.

Quan-Time · Post by **Quan-Time** » Mon Nov 12, 2007 3:06 pm

the lacquer will crack over not much time at all,, mainly because of heat and the rotating forces..

Polished everytihng is a REAL pain in the ass.. take it from me.. If you can afford it, get chrome. Its possible to chrome a wheel properly, its not cheap, but can be done without any warping.

John M · Post by **John M** » Mon Nov 12, 2007 11:11 pm

Quan-Time wrote:the lacquer will crack over not much time at all,, mainly because of heat and the rotating forces..

Polished everytihng is a REAL pain in the ass.. take it from me.. If you can afford it, get chrome. Its possible to chrome a wheel properly, its not cheap, but can be done without any warping.

Interesting point Quan but is the weight of chrome a problem? I always thought this was one of the negatives of going with this option

Peter850 · Post by **Peter850** » Tue Nov 13, 2007 8:28 am

Not to mention you can't see whats happening under the chrome , as in cracks .

Post by **phuk72** » Tue Nov 13, 2007 8:42 am

The way to go if you want real bling is to have them powder coated shiny silver. A new (and decent) process has just been introduced and it looks the dog's

About Ãƒâ€šÃ‚Â£100 a wheel though

billy budge · Post by **billy budge** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 10:18 pm

If i have a wheel that has been powdercoated black, then due to the 'stick like shite to a blanket' properties of powdercoating, will i be out of luck if i want to polish the rims???

I assume the original trx wheels are just painted, if anybody knows if this can be done then id be grateful of your thoughts.

Cheers.

Quan-Time · Post by **Quan-Time** » Tue Nov 27, 2007 3:11 pm

ok ill start with billy's powder coated delma.

Powder coat is just that, its sprayed on powder, thru which an electric current is passed (via the gun) and earths out on a metalic object.. Some plastics can be done via pre-charging with static electricity.

The powder sticks to metal and is baked on. If you want to get it off, simple acetone and some elbow grease does the job. But you can sand blast / grit blast off powder coat, but it does get annoying because as you blast it you "peen" it down and make it more dense.. which sux.. but can be done.

Usually its removed via acid dip..

@ John M

Chrome is surprisingly light.. its not as thick as you would imagine. To get a QUALITY chrome layer, you much polish everything.
chroming in a nut shell:
1: polish EVERYTHING
2: dip in acid to clean (caustic wash i think)
3: dip in copper solution
repeat steps 2 and 3 6 more times
4: dip in acid to clean
5: dip in nickel.

your all done.
The layers that stick to the part your trying to chrome are measured in micron thickness. Its so small its scary.
You can get whats called "hard chrome" which is a wear resistant, almost ceramic like coating,, VERY good at resisting heat and un-natural forces (ie it will accept a small amount of swell, such as a wheel spinning)
Not sure if anyone out side australia does hard chrome, but i know it works and i know they do bike wheels and give a guarantee for like 1 year (or accident).

blah.. im going to bed.. tired..

billy budge · Post by **billy budge** » Tue Nov 27, 2007 4:06 pm

God bless you all knowing quan, once again you come up trumps!!!

You have made me very happy indeed knowing that, was thinking id be shit out of luck on getting it off.
I wouldnt have been that bothered as its come up lovely after coating but the wheel did have polished rims to start with and the guy said with some careful prep work it shouldnt be a problem to get around.
However he didnt pass this info onto the guy doing the job and you can guess how the rest goes!!!!!!!!

billy budge · Post by **billy budge** » Wed Nov 28, 2007 5:55 pm

Quan or anybody else in the know.....

Apart from pilfering it out of the works photocopier can i buy acetone from any type of shops, do hardware/ironmongers shops sell it???

I know that its frowned upon as its nasty stuff and used for getting of your nut!!!

billy budge · Post by **billy budge** » Wed Nov 28, 2007 6:18 pm

OOOHH.....top man marty!!!

Erm i dont know how much to say but its approx 2inches of the wheel rim on both sides that i need to strip, what do you reckon..about half a pint or summat??

As for needing it mate, just as and when you can thankyou.
Much obliged.