Refinish Help

[sjh500]

Hey guys, I have some Lorinser RS-1's that I had painted on the face with lips polished, and the whole wheel clear coated. I took it to have wheels and tires balanced about 2 weeks after having them refinished, and they came out of the shop with clear peeling in spots on portions of the lips, no clear coming off faces. I'm going through the process of having the a-holes pay for the damage, but it looks like It will take a while and I want to fix them beforehand. Is there a way to get the clear off of the lips only? Since the wheels are aluminum I'm hoping I can take the clear off lips and re-polish, and not mess with the faces since there undamaged. Thanks for the help.

[sjh500]

Anybody out there? I just need to know the best way to take clear off in portions? Or is that possible?

[JE BMW]

take them apart and sand them/ polish them. or you can mask the faces real good and brush on some aircraft stripper, then polish them that'd be easier.

[sjh500]

So easiest would be to tape off the painted faces and then brush on aircraft stripper on the lips? I was thinking that sanding the lips might start flaking the clear off the face also. I really want to keep the faces painted so this sounds like a good idea.

Thanks JE BMW

[JE BMW]

might be a bit messy with the aircraft stuff. you can also try this, doesnt seem that safe, but easier than sanding by hand. make sure you use jack stands if you do ..

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBNhx2CCrDQ"]HOW TO POLISH RIMS.mp4 - YouTube[/ame]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=B_F4TwGP2kE

[sjh500]

Wow never seen or heard of that before! I'm sure that works well, but I think I'll try your first suggestion

[a112]

Aircraft stripper makes sanding easier as the clear coat gets less aggressive for the sanding paper. I always use the paint stripper before sanding/polishing. Be careful with the paint You don't wanna strip. Get it taped up! Also, avoid clear coating polished lips in the future. The shine isn't that great, and it peels of regularly.

[Funbagz]

I have never understood why people put clear coat on polished lips... doesn't that defeat the purpose of polishing the lip? I guess I've never had aluminum lips on my wheels before though. I had Tracer Tech 2s prior to the Tracer Tech 1s that I bought this year and they both have stainless steel lips. Much easier to polish and keep clean. Clear coat is prone to chip and peel so why even bother.

I use Mothers mag and aluminum polish about once a week or so, and I sand out fine scratches with 2000-3000 grit sandpaper dry, and then re-polish.

[sjh500]

Thanks for the help guys...the refinisher was not supposed to clear the lips, so this may be a blessing in disguise.

[pDubs]

Yeah paint/clearcoat needs something to hold on to. That is why you sand and prep surfaces before painting. The scuffed up surface gives it something to hold on to. Polished surfaces won't hold paint well over time.