Ok so I started refinishing the lips of my wheels. I started with 800 sand paper then moved to 1000 then to 1500 and finally 2000. I sanded it all wet. It took me about 15-20 mins to do each level of grit. I took my time and I didnt want to miss any spots. After 2000 I dried the wheels and used Bluemagic wheel polish cream. I worked it in and then used a micro fiber to remove the dirt. The lips look 10x better but they arent as shiney as I'd like them. Is it bc of the sanding or the polish? I trieed polishing a rim that I havent sanded yet and they look brighter than the wheel I sanded already. Any thoughts? Heres some pix to show the before and after.

before:


After:




Notice in teh after pix...the rim doesnt really have a great luster. What can I do to improve that? Thanks for the help!

 

Wax?

Were they clear coated?

 

No I dont think they were....If they are clear coated how should I go about sanding them? Should I maybe start with 400-600-800-1000-1500-2000? Do they make a finer paper than 2000?

 

if its clear coated you don't wanna go through the clear so using anythng below 1000 I would think twice about. :-/

You could try 2000 gritt because it will be easier to remove with regular polish. Honestly I think you need a buffer to make them sparkle. You can do only so much by hand.

 

I have a buffer machine. I just tried rubbing compound. I working it in with my hand and removed it with the buffer. Then I used my metal polish and worked then in by hand, removing it with the buffer. So much better. I have to do the inner part of the lips now. For that, I can work in my compound and polish by hand and use a powerball mini to buff it out. Then I would go back and use the polish and wipe and buff with a micro fiber. Looks like I have my work cut out for me. Good thing Im off from work tomorrow.

 

Cool man keep us posted. Can't wait for the final results. You right tho, the spokes need some good buffing, granted they are white.

 

Well, for starters... The purpose of a buffer is, well, to buff... Use that instead of working it by hand. What kind of polish are you using? I would never go below 1000, or even 1200.... I start out at 2800 IIRC when I worked on my paint.

What kind of polish is it (As previously mentioned)?
What kind of polisher?

 

Wheel polish is Bluemagic wheel polish cream. Polisher is more of a buffer machine I got from pepboys for like $25. I want to get a porter cable in the near future.

As for the paint. I am not using sand paper on them. I wash the wheels with wheel cleaner (meguiers), sand/polish my lips, then re-wash with p21s and scrub the entire wheel. I havent washed the wheels with the p21s yet.

Could you recomend a specific polisher machine if not a porter cable?

 

https://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=552806

Apparently thats like best tool out there after reading reviews of this product.

 

2000 grit is not enough...
I polished a motorcycle frame and forks by myself as a first project and sand paper goes all the way past 12000 grit...at that point it feels like a piece of rubber to the touch but 8000, 10000 and 12000 are the points where it comes to a mirror shine...
Grit levels this high are rare to find in a home store, you may need to order off the internet.