So after a lot of hard work and not a lot of joy trying to clean off brake dust embedded into the alloy rims, I'm wondering is there anything that they can be sprayed with to stop this reoccurring once I get them clean again. Now I know why people buy the painted ones, must be much easier to clean off.
I don't know about prevention (other than an alloy polish) however a cleaner which has worked well for me is this http://www.meguiars.com.au/wheels-ty...wheel-cleaner/ - only advice is to wear rubber/latex gloves when using it.
If its iron dust from the disk you need something like Bodens Wheely Clean, it contains an acid which converts the rust stains to a soluble form, anything that turns purple will do the job, I just buy the cheapest on on sale, it works well on white autopaint as well.
Thanks guys but because the rims are chromed on the outside and anodised on the inside everything I've read says not to use acid. Now that I'm aware of the problem I'm looking at a protective measure.
I've never used this, however it's non acid http://www.meguiars.com.au/wheels-ty...wheel-cleaner/
I wonder if this stuff would repel brake dust? http://www.hydrobead.com/
It appears they have a 2 part white paint which is supposed to work but then that defeats the purpose of having alloy rims. Probably be better off getting them painted.Originally Posted by RayLamp
I got given a second hand set of alloy rims for my ute and sent them down to get sand blasted and powder coated for 100 bucks each.
They were real bad and had to be done twice.
You are right - painting would defeat the purpose. I was more thinking of this http://www.hydrobead.com/howtohydrobead
I did read that one but not meant for use with soaps and oils, agitation etc also reduced it's lifespan so I looked at their other products and that's where I found the 2 part paint.
The outsides look fine and only the insides are black from the brake dust. I'm trying not to spend any more on the boat as the boss is already starting to make comments.
One thing I did try with a bit of success before getting them powder coated was Autosol Alloy Polish and some small polishing pads from Supercheap that fit into the battery drill.
It did a good job of taking the brake dust off and left the rims nice and shiny but was a bit difficult to get into all the little nooks and crannies.
http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/Pro...it-8pce/386608
http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/Pro...sh-75mL/280137
Marto, too aggressive as it strips the anodising, I've nearly cleared it all up now I'm looking to preventative measures. It was unfortunate that it was 2 years before I took the tyres off and realised my error in not doing it earlier. Generally it would have been annually but as my trips to the ramp is quite short, under half an hour I let it go longer.
No worries mate. Mine had 12 years worth of brake dust and corrosion on them so needed a heavy handed approachl
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