Need some input from you guru's

[glhs571]

Okay so I know I've been asking about my centurions already but here it goes. I found a shop called valley chrome in a nearby town that will leave my rims with a mirror like finish. Only thing is I'm not exactly sure if they are gonna sand/polish my rims down to get that effect or if they are going to chrome plate them. I will ask tomorrow. They would be charging me $80 a rim and it would take about a week to finish. Would they be able to chrome plate aluminum rims such as centurions? And if they are doing that, what would be the disadvantage? Thanks

[Marcus86GLHS]

aluminum can be chrome plated. there's no disadvantage i can think of and 80/wheel is a great price for a full restoration and plating job, for that price it sounds like they might just be polishing the wheels.

[86Shelby]

I would stay away from chrome plating aluminum rims. They have a horrible habbit of developing corrosion in the bead area and end up looking and sealing like crap within just a few years.

[ATaylorRacing]

I would think that they would be polished, not chrome. Many factory and after market rims are chrome plated and will start having peeling/corrosion/and leaking issues...such as chrome PTC and mini van rims. I sell rims from after market companies and the only ones that are nice are first copper plated, then nickle plated, and THEN chrome plated.

[glhs571]

Thanks guys, I appreciate all the info..

[glhs571]

They will be polishing the rims and not chrome plating them. I will post pics next week as soon as I get them on my car.

[glhs571]

[glhs571]

Here's what the rims look like after getting them back today, let me know what you all think! As for me I couldn't be happier with the results!

[cobra2411]

Looks good!

Polishing aluminum - yes
Chrome plating aluminum - HELL NO. Done right it's ok but if they do it wrong you'll be left with junk rims...

I have a set that came with my shadow that were plated and it peeled...

[Marcus86GLHS]

very nice. no clear coat? keep the wheel weights on the inside.

[glhs571]

Cobra- were those rims chrome plated? And Marcus-No clear coat, is that what is usually done afterwards? And yes any wheel weights will have to go on the inside.

[Marcus86GLHS]

Yes the factory applied clear coat to the Centurions. However, this clear coat is often the source of cosmetic problems down the road. Its good to have for corrosion prevention, so its a trade-off.

I had a set of Cent I's restored per factory specs 2 years ago (including the clear coat) and after less than 200 miles of driving, and never getting the wheels wet, the clear is popping, lifting, and discoloring on each wheel in small areas. Before restoration, the original clear coat also had similar issues.

After thinking about this I have decided to remove the clear coat entirely, as the car doesnt see wet weather and the trade-off is not worth it to keep the clear on, which seems to be the source of most cosmetic problems with these wheels. Bare aluminum Centurions may actually be a wiser choice for garage-queen type cars.

[glhs571]

Yeah i know the factory apllied the clear coat to a lot of rims. I had to buy aircraft paint stripper from the parts store to prep them. So what do I need to watch out for not having the clear coat on now?

[minigts]

Dang those guys polished the rims for $80 a piece?! That's crazy cheap I think. Just look at the time DJ spent on his. They must have a killer setup and crank out a ton of work to be able to do it for so cheap. It's almost worth shipping them a set to have them done and shipped back.

[glhs571]

Yeah it was well worth it to me, all I know is they started with 220 grit, then 400 and basically worked their way up also using polishing compounds. The guy gave me his business card to refer other people. So if you or anyone else is interested let me know.

[4 l-bodies]

Yeah i know the factory apllied the clear coat to a lot of rims. I had to buy aircraft paint stripper from the parts store to prep them. So what do I need to watch out for not having the clear coat on now?

I wouldn't clear coat the rims if they are polished. The paint needs something to stick to. That is the reason the factory and aftermarket CNC'c small grooves into the wheel. It gives the paint something to adhere to. In the case of the factory applied clearcoats, well they still peel, yellow and spiderweb. There are chemicals designed to treat aluminum if you intend on doing this. One brand is called Alodine 1001. It is a specific aluminum product if a clearcoat is to be applied, as opposed to a solid pigment color.
Without plating, you will need to polish the wheels periodically if you are going to expose the wheel to the elements. Zoops seal is by far the best stuff to use, but hold onto your hat when you price the stuff out. It's expensive!
As far as plating goes, I've plated two aluminum valvecovers on my old GLHS and current GLHT. The GLHT"s plating has been on for 20+ years and still looks almost as good as the day it was applied. GLHS has been plated 13-14 years ago and is still perfect as far as I know. You have zero maintenance with plating. The downside is the cost. It will be more than what you paid to have them polished mainly due to the hazardous waste that is involved. I had many naysayers tell me the plating would peel because of the temps the valvecover would be exposed to. Hasn't been the case at all.
BTW- you got one heck of a deal getting those done for $80/wheel. I just had some rims restored. Beadblasted, CNC'd, powdercoated, straighten as needed. $155 per wheel. Post that contact info up.
Todd

[glhs571]

Sorry for the delay, here are some recent pics. And here is the contact info for those who are interested.
Valley plating 491 perry court. Santa Clara, CA 95054 408-988-5502 ask for Fred Pate.

[Juggy]

yep factory rims r left with a machine finish rather then being polished. I would not clear coat the rims at all, they will come out appearing much more dull, i doubt you will be very happy with the results.

rims look nice how they r!!! get some carnuba wax and keeep them clean. its not hard 2 take care of polished rims, it just requires proper maintenance.

id wax my rims every couple weeks, and they would get the terry cloth/polish treatment over the winter so they were always blingin for spring.

i was trying to find autosol but the local store didnt have it so i went with mothers billet polish and it worked out rather well. the rims i recently polished clean were quite dirty and now they shine like yours