Orgional 5 slot rim refurbishment questions........

I picked up a set of what I think are orgional 5 slot rims today. 4 of them. They are dirty and 2 of them have a little damage. The damage is in the center hole. It looks like they got damaged either going on or off or maybe someone hit them with something when they were off. But the damage is not really something I would notice. Picts are below.

Full set


One rim, kinda representative of the condition of the set..


These two show the damaged areas.


other rim


I don't really know what I'm going to do wth them. The seller did not want them and I did not want them to go to scrap. I've got about $100 in diesel and the purchase price plus a whole day to go get them.

My understanding is they came on the renegde jeeps. I don't have one and probially never will.

I might use them on another jeep. If I do, how do I fix the two chips out of the aluminum? Can I take them and have some aluminum tig welded in and it blend in like if it were steel? The previous owner used them and ran them never had a problem. So it's only cosmetic.

If I decide to sell them, how much will the chips effect the price? WOuld it be better to sell them individually or as a set?

What are your thoughts Oh Great ECJ Masses?

 

I wouldn't worry about the chips too much, a guy over on IFSJA has a good thread on bringing the gleam back to life on wheels like that.

 

A few years back (wow! Alot back, like 1999) I hit a curb with my fairly new at the time Silverado and broke the bead on my aluminum wheel. I found a company that repairs aluminum wheels. Problem was you had to ship them the wheel for them to determine if it could be fixed and then get an estimate. I ended up buying a take-off from so I did not try them. I also didn't think I wanted to trust a wheel that had been damaged that way. Only problem is I can't remember what their name was. I did a quick search and found this http://www.rimdoc.com/. They have a location in central FL. Might be worth a shot.

 

I am not 100% certain, but I think those wheels may be magnesium!! Take them to someone who knows what they are doing before you add heat, or try to weld the areas. I am going to try to find the thread that I read about the Renegade slots. Good luck

 

Magnesium? That's kind cool.

 

,,,,,,throw them in a hot fire,,, if they if they are mag they will light up and make a pretty bright light when you pour water on them as they burn.

PS.don't do this !!!!!

 

Funny, I was thinking. Hey lets check by seeing if they burn R)
Yes I know Al burns, just not as easily.

 

Mothers Mag and aluminum polish for the shine. I just did mine.
Won't be cheap to fix those, and if you get 'em too hot you'll have real issues.

And, your PM box is full.......................................

 

In box cleaned up a bit.....

I did not plan on fixing them myself. I can dirt-dobber tig weld steel but nothing else..........

But I didn't know if they could or needed to be fixed. I'm not going to restore anything so as long as they are safe to run (and the PO ran them fine) if I were to keep them, I'd just run them. I'm more interested in how to polish them up. They are dirty but seem to be fairly scratch free. there are a few scratches but nothing Ive foudn that was any concern.
'
To be honest, I think all cleaned up, they would look really sharp.

 

This, by hand, is what I used:http://www.amazon.com/Mothers-5100-Aluminum-Polish-Paste/dp/B00068GEJM
Use a towel or cloth with a deer nap to it. Finish with a powerball or other if desired.

 

If you'd like to unload em, I'd take one for sure.

 

I would not worry about the chips missing, like you say just cosmetic. They look like they could use a good cleaning and polishing. I had a set that looked like yours. I sanded, then polished. Started with 220 grit, then 400, then 600, 1200. Then used the Mothers polish. A lot of elbow grease, lots.... Don't be afraid to sand mark and scratches out. Start with 150 or 220, finish with the 1200. Use wet and dry paper, keep paper and rim wet during sanding.

 

I would be interested in one also, if you split them up...

 

Sold one and one will be delivered to Warlock out in Denver....


I'll post the other two in classifyed tomorrow with more pictures........

 

Good snag Warlock!!! Has anyone dealt with the pitting on the inside of the rim? This picture looks worse than it actually is because I haven't brushed off the surface stuff. But, on a couple of these mags, they are pitted about a 1/8" into the middle of the rim. I was told to fill it in with JB weld; but, they didn't understand that these are Magnesium. Also, I would be concerned that whatever I use to rub in could fall out into the tire, and throw it off balance. Has anyone had to deal with this?

 

Get a good strong magnet such as out of a disk drive and hold it just barely above the surface and drag it back and forth over the wheel. If they're aluminium the magnet will drag slightly but it won't if they're magnesium (or titanium). Yes, I know aluminium is non-magnetic but a strong magnet will set up eddy currents in it and that will produce a counter-magnetic field and you'll feel the magnet clogging as you drag it over aluminium.

 

I have for several months now been the proud owner of the two notched wheels.
They did polish up very nicely and one of them is in place on my jeep (still notched). One more and I'll have seven, that would take care of what I could use for my trailer as well, however currently they're stock 16" wheels w/new NDT military tires. ,

 

Looks great.

 

simichrome polish works well too...

i have ONE wheel that i think is an original renegade wheel... i ll post a pic... if it IS a renegade wheel and someone wants it... they can have it as long as they either come get it or pay shipping/find method for same

PM me if youre interested, i ll try to get the pic up tonite/tomorrow AM