Even though my 17x10.5 Cobra reps have never seen snow or salt the chrome in the barrels has seen better days. Peeling, corrosion, scratches from tire machines, etc. Re-chroming would cost more than new wheels plus the outer visible portion is in good shape so I decided to try and refinish them.
This is what I started with....pretty rough!
I began by trying to clean them with a wire wheel on a drill but it was not up to the task so I switched to a paint & rust stripping wheel. This did the trick!
After about an hour per wheel it was looking pretty good, down to the copper in most places. I also took the extra time to fill in the larger scrapes and dings with spot filler.
Sanded, taped and ready for paint!
Painting supplies: POR-15 silver, foam roller and a foam brush. POR-15 silver uses some sort of powder (possibly aluminum) for it's color and is very difficult to get to look nice with a brush so I used a small roller instead. The foam brush was for the tight areas where the roller couldn't reach.
Pro tip: DO NOT open the lids on POR-15 cans. Once paint gets in the groove the lid will get glued on forever. Instead put 2 screws in the bottom, one for pouring and one for air. Then you can remove the screws and pour out small amounts and seal up the rest.
The finished product:
This is what I started with....pretty rough!
I began by trying to clean them with a wire wheel on a drill but it was not up to the task so I switched to a paint & rust stripping wheel. This did the trick!
After about an hour per wheel it was looking pretty good, down to the copper in most places. I also took the extra time to fill in the larger scrapes and dings with spot filler.
Sanded, taped and ready for paint!
Painting supplies: POR-15 silver, foam roller and a foam brush. POR-15 silver uses some sort of powder (possibly aluminum) for it's color and is very difficult to get to look nice with a brush so I used a small roller instead. The foam brush was for the tight areas where the roller couldn't reach.
Pro tip: DO NOT open the lids on POR-15 cans. Once paint gets in the groove the lid will get glued on forever. Instead put 2 screws in the bottom, one for pouring and one for air. Then you can remove the screws and pour out small amounts and seal up the rest.
The finished product:
