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Author Topic: Opti-Seal on Dirty Rims?????  (Read 8787 times)

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Offline BigSur

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Re: Opti-Seal on Dirty Rims?????
« Reply #15 on: December 28, 2010, 03:19:34 PM »
Understood.  I think I'll be taking care of that first thing in the morning.

I dont' know whether it's the salt or not, but I've noticed a tiny bit of pitting on only 1 rim.  The rest of them look fine.  I hope I can stop the process before it gets worse.  I was unprepared for the snow.  It's the most we've had in 20+ years and we usually don't get anything at all....hence why I don't switch wheels in the winter.

Last question.  Suppose I do have actual pitting from the salt.  Can this be repaired?  Assuming it can't, if I take the necessary precautions in the future, can I salvage what's left........or am I doomed since the process has already started.  I would really like to save these wheels if possible and will be taking extra precautions in the future.  My next resort is to purchase more durable wheels if this doesn't work out in the end.  I've already been looking at some  :crazy:
BigSur
Tidewater, VA

Offline Old Dogg™

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Re: Opti-Seal on Dirty Rims?????
« Reply #16 on: December 29, 2010, 01:30:09 AM »
Never forget...
Rust never sleeps.
It's just like cancer.

Usually Plated metals that are showing rust above the plating are already rusting below the plating.  What will kill or save you is how good the metal is underneath the plating.  If it's something slow to rust you have plenty of time before the wheels are useless.  They can look pretty bad and still be good wheels....the better the wheels, the slower they will deteriorate.

Do an ONR wash and spray them with something like WD40 and keep it moving.  It's going to be days before a good rain washes the rock salt and brine water off the roads here.
Make sure you rinse the back of your wheels too.  
On the back side it's more productive if you do the 180 thing I was telling you about.
Let me know if I can help.
Good luck!  
You can make money or you can make excuses but you can't do both.

Offline BigSur

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Re: Opti-Seal on Dirty Rims?????
« Reply #17 on: December 29, 2010, 08:39:34 AM »
my last and only concern is trying not to get WD40 on my brake rotors.  Wouldn't that be fatal  :die:
BigSur
Tidewater, VA

Offline Kitzy

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Re: Opti-Seal on Dirty Rims?????
« Reply #18 on: December 29, 2010, 09:30:53 AM »
Won't the WD40 sling? 

I would imagine anything on the rotor would be quickly burned off during braking but the first couple stops might be a little scary. 
If you always do what you\'ve always done, you\'ll always get what you\'ve always got.

Online Too Stroked

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Re: Opti-Seal on Dirty Rims?????
« Reply #19 on: December 29, 2010, 09:39:51 AM »
my last and only concern is trying not to get WD40 on my brake rotors.  Wouldn't that be fatal  :die:

WD-40 - as long as you don't absolutely pour the stuff on - won't hurt your brake rotors. More specifically, it won't hurt your brake pads. Everything in moderation.

As for how much damage has already been done and if it can be reversed, exactly what kind of wheel (base metal) and finish do you have? I'm sssuming from your pictures the base metal is aluminum and they're either polished with no clear coat, polished and clear coated or polished and chrome plated.

If your wheels are just polished, you're actually in luck. Even minor pitting can actually be polished back out. As I think Kitzy has alreay shared with you, if you're willing to work at it, you can bring them back. Then of course you'll have to really protect them.

If you have polished with clear coat, things get a bit more difficult because you will have started to oxidize the base metal through voids in the clear coat. Try to polish the oxidized surfaces too much to remove the oxidation and you'll remove more of the clear coat. Not a good thing.

Finally, if you have actual orange colored rust, you have most likely started to oxidize just the chrome plating. That's bad because it starts to remove the chrome plating - which you cannot simply replace. If you caught it early enough though, the damage should be minimal. Again, don't go too crazy with the polish and protect the surface immediately.

Offline BigSur

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Re: Opti-Seal on Dirty Rims?????
« Reply #20 on: December 29, 2010, 10:03:54 AM »
No orange rust yet...thank goodness.

Thanks guys.  Great advice.  I am working on this today.  :cheers:
BigSur
Tidewater, VA

Online Too Stroked

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Re: Opti-Seal on Dirty Rims?????
« Reply #21 on: December 29, 2010, 10:24:01 AM »
Just to clarify, "rust" is what most people call "oxidation." When chrome plating (or steel for that matter) oxidizes, it shows up as an orange / rust color. When aluminum oxidizes, it shows up as a white powder.

 


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