Wheel refurbishment

last Jinmy had zero issues with the alloys and they seemed well protected. Then I bought a LCV Jimny with the budget steel wheels and at 2.5 years old they are looking decidedly tired. The biggest problem appears to be corrosion coming out of the seam, where the rim joins the hub carrier. Even if I paid to get them stripped, blasted and repainted, I've a suspicion that after another 18 months the corrosion will simply reappear - Argh! Maybe I should have bought a nice set of alloys to start with? As for refurbishers in the North of Englandshire - Sorry but no idea regarding quality, price and overall vfm.

My LCV is about the same age and I am also wondering what to do about my wheels as they are starting to rust in places.

If the steels on the yellow one turn scabby then so be it, I doubt the sheep will even notice never mind care, but unfortunately the 5 spoke enkie being the nicest factory alloys and white being the nicest contrast against quasar grey, keeping mistress' wheels clean is a priority.

Ok so people saying durability is an issue with powder is now making me wonder if I would be better investing in one of those little abrasive media guns for the compressor, the little integral hopper wasted media ones that you see on the tool stands at trade shows. That and look to another rattle cans supply than halfords or even use the gravity gun with some machine enamel or something better than cheap cans?

You won't strip the paint off a wheel with those little blast guns, they are just for abrading rust spots about 10mm diameter, and they take ages to do that. You will have trouble with the rubbish paint stripper liquids they sell nowadays too, the wheels really want to go into a pickling vat.

The secret with any finish is what you prime with, alloy needs an etch primer to get through the oxide layer that forms as soon as it is cleaned up. 

Powder coat should stick to alloy and give a durable finish- if it is applied correctly to a properly prepared surface.

The people charging £60 a wheel probably don't care much about the durability of the final finish though.


Find a refurbisher who is prepared to put some sort of guarantee on their work (more than 12 months, obviously not counting mechanical damage), and pay a little more if you have to, preferably someone who has been there for years and you can find reviews that mention long lasting. The trouble is most people have a cheap refurb done to tidy the wheels up to sell the car, and have no idea how long the finish would have lasted.

The ones I had done lasted two years, the original finish lasted 4 years, the wheels on my Gen4 are now coming up to 6 years old and they are perfect.                       
 

So what you are saying is that it's an expensive lottery by virtue of very few people having the finished work long enough for leave a durability review. So consequently it's an industry full of people who's business model is more cut the sheep's throat once rather than shear it every year. But at the same time doing a meaningful job in a diy setting is also fraught with complications. I'm beginning to think that a nylon brush in the drill followed by a scotchbright pad and some white bedliner and saying that is what it is I'm not caring anymore is the answer.