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dirty alum wheels help

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Old Apr 12, 2011 | 11:34 AM
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kyflaresideon20s
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dirty alum wheels help

hello on my baby i got 20 inch chromes i run majority of the year and in the winter i put my progressive aluminum wheels on. i have tried all the aftermarket sprays cleaners and acid to clean them up a bit them i will spend an hour on each wheel to get an ok finish but still far far from perfect. i have always use quality polish such as mothers eagle meguieres all that stuff but cant ever seem to get the shine i want and when i get them somewhat ok it dont last long at all. any idea or suggestions? i though maybe takeing the wheels off and haveing them dippied in acid polished and then cleared? if this is possible any ideas of prices? all input is thanked
 
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Old Apr 12, 2011 | 06:26 PM
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Shine is the microscopic scratches reflecting light. The finer the scratches the more it shines. Directionality can also effect the shine. If you want very shiny, you may have to use different grades of polishes, starting off with what you use is good, but for more shine you might want to try something finer. Maybe try mother's billet polish.

Once you have it shiny, it's just aluminum with a fine moly wax covering it. A carnuba wax may give you a little more time before the wheel starts oxidizing again. Clear coating it once you get it shiny enough is a better idea.
 
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Old May 17, 2011 | 08:29 AM
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Originally Posted by kyflaresideon20s
hello on my baby i got 20 inch chromes i run majority of the year and in the winter i put my progressive aluminum wheels on. i have tried all the aftermarket sprays cleaners and acid to clean them up a bit them i will spend an hour on each wheel to get an ok finish but still far far from perfect. i have always use quality polish such as mothers eagle meguieres all that stuff but cant ever seem to get the shine i want and when i get them somewhat ok it dont last long at all. any idea or suggestions? i though maybe takeing the wheels off and haveing them dippied in acid polished and then cleared? if this is possible any ideas of prices? all input is thanked
I have a question, are the wheels porous or non- porous?
 
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Old Jun 4, 2011 | 01:00 PM
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I use Mother's Mag and Aluminum polish on mine. It protects as well as shines. JMO
 
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Old Jun 5, 2011 | 09:31 AM
  #5  
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check this out ,saw it in another post 01-06-2005, 09:21 PM

Eric C.
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Use the old NAVY standard, BUG JUICE (unsweetened Koolaid the cheaper the better and the cherry works best)and a powered scrub brush. We would sprinkle the powder on the plate wet it a litlle to make it liquid and scrub away. We did this on diamond deck plates in the engine rooms on the des******s using a buffer and all of them shined almost to mirror finish. You can then just wax it to protect it. You can also use real lemon or one of the other lemon juice concentrates. Citric acid is the active ingredient that helps to clean. Just rinse it well anddry it off to to keep from spotting. As long as it doesn't stay on the paint for hours it wont hurt the paint.
__________________ The funny thing is a freind of mine had some brand of polish that he used and said it worked great, he told me to smell it and it smelled like cherry ! so this might just work.
 
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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 07:58 PM
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After you do get them cleaned and clear coated Armor all has a spray to keep them clean, they advertise it on this forum.
 
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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 08:45 PM
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I used Lighting Shine Metal Polish from Wicked Products on my alcoa's when I had my GMC dually. They shined up so good that they looked better than chrome. Wicked Products (800) 276-5474
 
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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 10:19 PM
  #8  
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A truck driver gave me Speedy Metal Polish about ten years ago and I've never used anything else. Those big rigs have a ton of aluminum and he told me that's what they use and it works in my opinion way easier than any other metal polish I've ever tried.
 
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