Scraped wheels

[petekarn]

Got a little close to a curb the other day and scraped some of the finish off the stock rim. Has anyone else done this (careless thing) and been able to patch it with a paint or other finish? Even a mediocre fix is better than buying a new rim! Thanks.

 

[moose66]

Re: Scraped rims...

Depending on the degree of the damage, you may be able to get the rim repaired. I have seen several places, in the ad section in the back of Motor Trend for instance, that will repair your wheel. Bad part about it is that you will have to take the wheel off and send it to them. Not everyone has extra wheels lying around. If you live in a metro area, you may try the yellow pages for a local shop that can do the fix.

 

[jwaters943]

Re: Scraped rims...

I did the same thing at my bank drive-thru a few months back. It wasn't too bad (approx. 2.5" long scrape along the very edge of the wheel) so I cleaned it with wheel cleaner and a brush, masked it off, primed it, and painted it with the closest color match of automotive spray paint I could find at my local Pep Boys. It looks good in most lighting conditions and I barely/seldom notice it anymore. It only cost me $15-20 and about an 1 of my time. The only thing I would do different next time would be to sand/file the scraped area down with a dremmel tool so it's nice and smooth before painting it.

I will probably break down and get a new wheel at some point, but I've been trying to decide if a replacement 18" OEM wheel is worth approx. $350 or if I should just get a set of nicer aftermarket 19" wheels.

 

[LLT]

Re: Scraped rims...

Many of the mobile PDR and paint guys cant repair wheels at your spot. Call a local body shop and ask for a referral.

 

[ctrcbob]

Re: Scraped rims...

There is a company in Orlando called "Alloy Wheel Repair" that does this kind of thing.

They fix the curb rash in addition to removing dents from alloy wheels. My buddy (who sometimes posts in this group) had them take a large ding out of an alloy wheel on his car. I watched them do it. Set up in a trailer that goes around to dealers to fix dealer trades. To remove dings and dents he:
1. Removes the wheel from your car.
2. Bolts wheel in a support
3. Removes air from tire (but does not remove tire).
4. Measures wheel roundness with a micrometer.
5. SLIGHTLY heats the area of wheel with a torch.
6. Uses a hydraulic cylinder to push the dent out, VERY SLOWLY.
7. Re-measures wheel with a micrometer.
8. Pumped up tire.
9. Re-installed wheel and tire on car.
10. Only charged $125.00 and well worth it.

Completly fixed the wheel. Operator also said that he can remove "Curb Rash" and he can paint the area around the curb rash.

For those of you in the Orlando area (or anyone), here is more information.
Alloy Wheel Repair Specialists. A Mobile Commercial and Retail Service
Repairing and Polishing . Flat Bead or Standard Wheels. Bent Wheels. Wheel Faces. Polished or Painted Aluminum.
John Martin Owner/Operator Cell: (407) 733-9521 Fax: (386) 345-4471
www.awrswheelrepair.com alloywheels@bellsouth.net

Did a GREAT job.

 

[ctrcbob]

Re: Scraped rims...

In checking out the website, I see there are other locations around the country. Check to see if anything is close to you.

There is a company in Orlando called "Alloy Wheel Repair" that does this kind of thing.

They fix the curb rash in addition to removing dents from alloy wheels. My buddy (who sometimes posts in this group) had them take a large ding out of an alloy wheel on his car. I watched them do it. Set up in a trailer that goes around to dealers to fix dealer trades. To remove dings and dents he:
1. Removes the wheel from your car.
2. Bolts wheel in a support
3. Removes air from tire (but does not remove tire).
4. Measures wheel roundness with a micrometer.
5. SLIGHTLY heats the area of wheel with a torch.
6. Uses a hydraulic cylinder to push the dent out, VERY SLOWLY.
7. Re-measures wheel with a micrometer.
8. Pumped up tire.
9. Re-installed wheel and tire on car.
10. Only charged $125.00 and well worth it.

Completly fixed the wheel. Operator also said that he can remove "Curb Rash" and he can paint the area around the curb rash.

For those of you in the Orlando area (or anyone), here is more information.
Alloy Wheel Repair Specialists. A Mobile Commercial and Retail Service
Repairing and Polishing . Flat Bead or Standard Wheels. Bent Wheels. Wheel Faces. Polished or Painted Aluminum.
John Martin Owner/Operator Cell: (407) 733-9521 Fax: (386) 345-4471
www.awrswheelrepair.com alloywheels@bellsouth.net

Did a GREAT job.

 

[Disaster]

Re: Scraped rims...

10. Only charged $125.00 and well worth it.

A bit steep, IMHO, when you can buy an aftermarket rim for that price. I fixed/refinished all my rims for about $150 bucks on a Toyota Avalon. They were badly corroded from wheel weight damage and curb rash. First I polished up the scratches with sand paper and a dremel. Then I sent them out to a local shop to be baked (cook off original finish) and media blasted ($100.) Finally, I repainted them with wheel paint from the local auto store and finished with a clearcoat. Came out real nice.

P.S. Don't ever let tire shops use clamp on wheel weights. They cut through the finish and will eventually cause aluminum corrosion...especially if you live in a cold climate where salt is used to melt the ice.

 

[ctrcbob]

Re: Scraped rims...

A bit steep, IMHO, when you can buy an aftermarket rim for that price. I fixed/refinished all my rims for about $150 bucks on a Toyota Avalon. They were badly corroded from wheel weight damage and curb rash. First I polished up the scratches with sand paper and a dremel. Then I sent them out to a local shop to be baked (cook off original finish) and media blasted ($100.) Finally, I repainted them with wheel paint from the local auto store and finished with a clearcoat. Came out real nice.

P.S. Don't ever let tire shops use clamp on wheel weights. They cut through the finish and will eventually cause aluminum corrosion...especially if you live in a cold climate where salt is used to melt the ice.

That $125. was to remove a DENT, (large ding in wheel where it meets the tire), not to fix a scrape.

Believe me, it was well worth the money, and is not something that you can do yourself.