Ray Singh
Posted a lot
More German exotica in my garage now
Posts: 1,984
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Sept 17, 2018 18:26:32 GMT
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All. I have a boxster S which has this type of alloy wheel.  although without the black centres.  The outer lip is diamond cut and the inner standard alloy wheel. Can anyone on here help to refurb these? As soon as any wheel restorer hears diamond cut - they up their prices.... Its got to be a simple job for a mechanical engineer with the right tools? |
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Sept 17, 2018 18:56:02 GMT
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All. I have a boxster S which has this type of alloy wheel. although without the black centres. The outer lip is diamond cut and the inner standard alloy wheel. Can anyone on here help to refurb these? As soon as any wheel restorer hears diamond cut - they up their prices.... Its got to be a simple job for a mechanical engineer with the right tools? Nope - you need a wheel lathe to recut the diamond cut profile to the wheel - I am not surprised that any alloy wheel specialist sticks his price up when you mention the words diamond cut alloy wheel - the machinery to undertake the task alone is £25k + then factor in the labour & the fact that the wheel requires clear coating once it's been recut - if you need someway of justifying the price of a diamond cut wheel referb then head to your local Porsche dealer and price up a new wheel - I can guarantee that it will be several hundred pounds over the cost of any wheel refurb |
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Last Edit: Sept 17, 2018 18:58:37 GMT by Deleted
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Sept 18, 2018 9:53:41 GMT
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There was a chap on Pistonheads who'd bought one of these wheel lathes, had a lot of trouble setting it up and getting it to work properly (down to issues with the lathe, I think) but did get it going in the end. I could probably dig out his contact details if you wanted, though not very quickly.
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Sept 19, 2018 5:58:37 GMT
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Where abouts are you?
We offer this service at work, based in Peterborough
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Sept 19, 2018 8:18:53 GMT
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If you're going to be using the car all year round then , frankly, a diamond cut finish is a waste of time and you will be lucky for it to last one winter on U.K. roads. Diamond cutting is, at best, a compromise. It's an attempt to get the look of polished bare alloy - but as clear coat wont adhere to a polished aluminium surface the diamond cutting provides a mildly textured surface (like that of a CD) to assist the clear lacquer or clear powder coat to adhere. This works temporarily to a point. The environment that a wheel (particularly the rim) has to endure - bombardment by road debris/grit, salt, water etc. is very harsh and even getting a tyre fitted can be enough to break the clear coated surface on the rim edge allowing corrosion to start. If you look at most cars with diamond cut wheels, even at a year old, you more often than not see the start of corrosion - and once it starts is difficult to address without ANOTHER wheel refurb. In the case of just an outer rim you may be better flatting and polishing it to a high shine and NOT lacquering it and just keeping it clean and polished with Autosol or similar OR keying the surface, etch priming and painting with an "aluminium" silver basecoat and clear coating for a much more durable and virtually maintenance free finish and which looks very, very similar to original. I refurbish A LOT of wheels and the last method is the one I employ the most, such as these I did last week.   As ever, you will get differing opinions but I am speaking from experience of decades of refinishing wheels and have sets that have seen 7 and more winters with no deterioration. |
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Last Edit: Sept 19, 2018 8:59:49 GMT by Deleted
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ChasR
RR Helper
motivation
Posts: 10,192
Club RR Member Number: 170
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Sept 19, 2018 18:38:10 GMT
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As said, Diamond cutting is pricey for a number of reasons other than 'they just can'.
1) The machines cost money. Alot of money. They also cost money to upkeep
2) It also takes alot of time to diamond cut the wheel. It is after all effectively a 'record player' arrangement to cut the wheels right.
3) A good diamond cutter will be careful of how much metal he cuts. On my M3 wheels they can only realistically be recut three times before the wheels can be binned; you're removing metal remember).
4) As said, for the reasons @imperial stated I wouldn't do it. Costs quite a bit for a finish that doesn't last.
That leaves you with a few choices
1) Powdercoat the wheels silver ; the cheapest option and fairly durable too
2) Get your man to spray/coat the wheels with Chrome paint. This will cost me as whoever does it will have more labour to contend with. It will last as long as the powdercoated option mind you as it effectively will be that
3) Paint them yourselves. I've refurbed a few wheels now and these days I get them to do it, despite the extra cost. Why? IME, the paint doesn't always stick (I'm referring to when a tyre is changed for example, even with good 'touch-free' machines; but I've been lucky with my sister's wheels. But to do a set of wheels will take you an entire weekend of sanding, painting, sanding etc. to get a good finish. The cost wasn't much less than getting some powdercoaters to repaint them.
4) Polish the edge of the rim as said. This will be less labour intensive than painting them, but you'll have to keep on top of them. Brake dust being sat on them for a while will embed itself in. A good wheel sealant/wax or Ceramic coating will go a long way here in keeping the brake dust away and having the Chrome keep its lustre.
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Sept 19, 2018 21:05:41 GMT
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If that's a split rim I wonder if they need to dis-assemble them to ensure full refurb of the rim?
What are you being quoted if you don't mind putting it up?
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Needs a bigger hammer mate.......
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ChasR
RR Helper
motivation
Posts: 10,192
Club RR Member Number: 170
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Sept 19, 2018 22:05:51 GMT
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When I asked The Wheel Specialist for mine they wanted £340 to Diamond cut them. They can be variable however regarding the quality of their finishes
Pristine Wheels in MK wanted £400 but their wheels are pretty much done better than an OEM finish.
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Sept 19, 2018 23:14:20 GMT
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Sept 20, 2018 4:33:38 GMT
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I will only use 2 companies for wheel work Wheel Unique up near hull (Dan Taylor): www.instagram.com/wheel_unique/?hl=enand Voodoo Motorsport at Amersham (Elie): voodoomotorsport.co.uk/Personally i would never diamond cut with a lacquered finish as it doesn't last. I would go for polished and use a good wheel wax and sealant to protect the finish. You could chrome powedercoat the lips but i think it usually ends up looking a little cheap in my opinion. |
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'The reason i have pulled you over is to say how incredible and absolutely awesome that is'
Mercedes W109, Mercedes W140 S280 SWB & S320 LWB, W201 cosworth kitted, clk230 Kompressor, w109 300sel, Lincoln Continental 1964, BMW E30 Tech II tourer, MK1 Golf Clipper, BMW E31 840ci sport, JAGUAR XJ40 3.6, Kangoo van, Volvo 740GLE estate, Maserati Quattroporte GTS
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Sept 20, 2018 7:39:14 GMT
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If that's a split rim I wonder if they need to dis-assemble them to ensure full refurb of the rim? What are you being quoted if you don't mind putting it up? I think that you will find that the vast majority of moderns with this type of alloy wheel are not in fact split rim just dummies produced to the cosmetic effect of a split rim |
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Sept 20, 2018 15:05:12 GMT
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Wilk
Part of things
Posts: 528 
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Sept 20, 2018 16:24:14 GMT
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If they're split style make sure they get separated when refurbing. Whoever did mine for the previous owner failed to clean up the bolt holes properly prior to coating. Result now is that corrosion is working its way from inside the bolt holes making the wheels look shabby
Looks like I'll have to get them done again when funds and time permit
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If it can be fixed with a hammer, then it must be an electrical fault
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I wouldn't bother with A1 wheels in wolverhampton. They're rip off merchants. I've had first hand experience. The finish they manage to get didn't last 2 months, and when questioned about it, they said I will need to pay to get them done again - even though the wheels experienced no damage, just peeling paint....no acid car washes or anything! |
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ClassicResto.co.uk - Restoration and maintenance of classic cars - Wolverhampton.
2002 Mercedes E320CDI Estate
1998 Mercedes C240 Sport
1995 Mercedes SL500
1993 Mercedes 500 SEL
1993 Mercedes 500SL - Sold October 2022
1989 Mercedes 300 CE
1985 Mercedes 500 SEC
1985 Porsche 911 Carrera - Sold March 2022
1983 Porshe 944
1978 BMW 1602
1973 Mercedes 350SL
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ChasR
RR Helper
motivation
Posts: 10,192
Club RR Member Number: 170
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If I were going to get Diamond Cut wheels cut similar to how they were originally I'd do them with Chrome paint on the faces and a darker paint inside, like a wheel like Cosmics as per @pete1969 's suggestion. It's alot of prep which of course goes into the cost. Other choice is to polish the face and to keep them clean/seal them
Call Pristine Wheels in Milton Keynes IMHO. They're pretty good.
A cheat is to use "Shadow Chrome". Basically, it's a black basecoat with a dusting of Chrome paint which creates a two dimensional finish. It does add a depth to the wheel.
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