Hello everyone, I have a question ... I just bought a set of used Blitz Type 01 wheels, and it appears that they will need to be cleaned heavily. I have a bottle of Mothers Mag & Aluminum Polish, but I don't know if this is the right way to go about it or not. I read the sticky on wheel cleaning, but it seemed to be for more day-to-day stuff than this -- here are some pics of the wheels:







Thanks!

 

i would still hit them first with a non-acid based wheel cleaner... i like p21s wheel cleaner for this- the key is a good brush. scrub them with the brush and rinse.
repeat

if still not new looking, you can go acid based wheel cleaner. be very careful if you have to do this. easy to etch the wheels... main thing is to always keep them wet while the cleaner is on. and rinse well after brushing them.

have not seen a problem that the above wouldnt get, but if it doesnt post back and we will take you the next step.

 

If the wheels aren't clear coated then I wouldn't use an acid based wheel cleaner. Also, if there is no clear coat then they could probably benefit from a good polishing as well.

 

The centers are cleared but upon further inspection, the centers are in perfect condition, the lips are just dirty, especially around the bolts. So I think that I can afford to use a more aggressive cleaner like the Mother's Mag & Aluminum polish since I'm just doing bare metal, I will have to check and see if it is acid-based though, it's more of a paste so it would seem not to be water-based.

I saw General Kratos's writeup in The Gallery where he took out every single bolt and polished them all individually as well as all the lips, but I was warned against doing this b/c since these are probably rather old wheels (I think the line has been discontinued for a while now), I was told that if I took the bolts out that when I bolted them back up the wheels would never be perfectly round again.... thoughts?

 

[QUOTE=zbrewha863,Aug 23 2007, 08:52 AM] The centers are cleared but upon further inspection, the centers are in perfect condition, the lips are just dirty, especially around the bolts.

 

My best plan of attack would to use P21S polishing soap. It will make the wheels look new again.

I always seal my wheels after I polish them. And afterwards I only use water and soap to maintain

 

Thanks guys, the Mother's Mag & Aluminum polish worked very well (since I was only polishing the lips), and it turns black as you polish (if it's a polishable metal, i.e. not painted, anodized, etc., just bare metal) so you know right away if you should stop or keep going.

It is kind of a PITA to polish out b/c it's so thick and gooey, but I digress -- it worked fine, but I have some little spots that it won't get out (almost look like little rust spots), so I think I'm going to have to have them refinished ... What's a normal price for that? I was quoted $80/wheel.