How to make my wheels look better

[Sebulba]

Hello all,

In looking at the overall curb appeal of our rig, we have a lot to do.  When I look at it though the one thing that really jumps out at me is the condition of my steel wheels.  They are quite rusty and have several layers of paint on them.

Ideally it would be great to have them taken off, sandblasted and painted.  Unrealistic at this point.

I would like to tap into your vast knowledge ---  Would it be possible for a guy, me, to sandblast them in place and paint them.  If so what kind of blaster might work?  Harbor Freight?

Thanks in advance for you insight and help.

Seb

[buswarrior]

Those aren't  bad. Wash them carefully to remove oil, put the wire brush to the brown bits to remove anything loose, a bit of a rough up to the rest for paint adhesion, mask off what you don't want paint on, and rattle can them.

If you take that existing paint off, you'll just start them rusting worse under whatever retail product you use.

In the bigger scheme of things, one of the easier, high impact things one can do to the bus.

Happy coaching!
Buswarrior

[Sebulba]

Those aren't  bad. Wash them carefully to remove oil, put the wire brush to the brown bits to remove anything loose, a bit of a rough up to the rest for paint adhesion, mask off what you don't want paint on, and rattle can them.

If you take that existing paint off, you'll just start them rusting worse under whatever retail product you use.

In the bigger scheme of things, one of the easier, high impact things one can do to the bus.

Happy coaching!
Buswarrior

Hello Bus Warrior,

Great to hear you chime in.  Yes, I think it will make a huge improvement to get these looking better.  Thinking about using while Raptor Liner, that way the texture will help hide the imperfections too.

Seb

[dtcerrato]

We have two hole Budd steel wheels and although rust should always be addressed - inside & outside of steel wheels - we have polished stainless steel simulators over the steel. Back as far as our VW buses - we always had a liking for chrome look on wheels & they look great IMO.

[richard5933]

I did mine similar to how Buswarrior described. Wire brush on a drill and lots of time with wet/dry sandpaper. Got them looking good, then spent half a day taping between the tires and the rims.

Shot a coat of epoxy primer first, followed by a few coats of Dupli-Color white wheel paint. It covers well, and it's really simple to do touch ups down the road.

When I got done, they look great from 5 feet away. Any closer and you can still see remnants of marks in the old paint coming through, especially around the lug nuts where it's been hit over the years as the tires have gone on/off. Next time I'll spend more time with the sandpaper in there.

If you have the ability to raise the wheel off the ground enough to rotate the wheel that will make the whole thing even easier.

[Jim Blackwood]

Our first RV had steel (Bud) wheels and we went with the stainless covers and that was an improvement but this time around when bus shopping I made it a point to only look at buses that had aluminum wheels. Cheapest way to go is to get them with the bus. After that it just gets much more expensive. But, there should be a salvage yard somewhere where you can get them.

Jim

[richard5933]

Our first RV had steel (Bud) wheels and we went with the stainless covers and that was an improvement but this time around when bus shopping I made it a point to only look at buses that had aluminum wheels. Cheapest way to go is to get them with the bus. After that it just gets much more expensive. But, there should be a salvage yard somewhere where you can get them.

Jim

Switching to aluminum wheels involves costs beyond the wheels. Usually it also involved buying lots of new wheel studs as well, and they're not cheap any more.

[Sebulba]

Switching to aluminum wheels involves costs beyond the wheels. Usually it also involved buying lots of new wheel studs as well, and they're not cheap any more.

Yeah, unless I see an incredible deal on Aluminum wheels, I plan the I stick with the steel.

Seb

[oltrunt]

Using masking tape to mask wheels sucks--it's both time consuming and expensive.  I cut a 2" wide strip of sheet metal, rolled it into a circle around the rim, clamped the ends with a "C" clamp and held the whole thing tight against the tire with bungee cords.  Works great.  Jack



.

[Sebulba]

Using masking tape to mask wheels sucks--it's both time consuming and expensive.  I cut a 2" wide strip of sheet metal, rolled it into a circle around the rim, clamped the ends with a "C" clamp and held the whole thing tight against the tire with bungee cords.  Works great.  Jack



.

Very cool, thanks

[chessie4905]

Do some Google searching. You should find an outfit that refurbishes steel rims. Sand blast and repaint or powder coating. They will need tires demounted.
Just checked, there are several listed.

[Van]

Some day a deal on alcoas.

[Jim Blackwood]

Yeah, the cost of studs and nuts would be the thing that would put me off. This is one of those cases where the hardware has to be considered.

Neat trick with the sheet metal.

Jim

[belfert]

One of my steel wheels rusted on the seam inside the wheel where the ring of steel was welded together.  The weld broke when I had new tires put on.  It was really hard to find the issue.  Luckily, the tire shop had a 24.5" wheel in stock.

[Sebulba]

One of my steel wheels rusted on the seam inside the wheel where the ring of steel was welded together.  The weld broke when I had new tires put on.  It was really hard to find the issue.  Luckily, the tire shop had a 24.5" wheel in stock.

So, there is more to it all than cosmetics.  That's good for thought.

Thanks

Seb