Alloy Wheel Refurbishment

The process for Powder Coated alloy wheels refurbishment.

1. The wheels are pressure washed to remove grime and dirt.

2. Remove tyres & check wheels for damage (especially the lip of the rim) any cracks repaired and welded, rim repaired then machined.

3. Chemical strip.

4. Light grit blasting if needed.

5. Pre-heat and degas the wheels in an industrial oven.

6. Powder coat and lacquer.
(More about Powder Coating)

7. Refit tyres and balance the wheel.

What is powder coating?

This is a method of painting by which electrically charged powder paint is spray applied via a high voltage, low ampere power unit to a grounded work piece i.e. an alloy wheel.
Electrostatic attraction holds the powder to the coated part.

The coated part is then heated in an industrial oven to over 200c which then melts / fuses the powder on to the alloy wheel.

This results in a very durable, scratch resistant high gloss finish, which is three times stronger than solvent based paints. Unlike liquid paint it contains no solvents and is therefore very environmentally friendly. Click this link for more information about powder coating.

Why chemically strip?

This is a more effective way to strip the old paint off the alloy wheels, unlike grit blasting which can be very harsh and pit the surface of the alloy wheels.

The wheels are placed into a preheated tank of paint stripping chemical. The chemical solution is agitated by a pump and eductor system, this is vitally necessary to remove the old paint from the wheels. In addition to this is a secondary pump, used to continually re-circulate the chemical and stripped residue through a filter press. The residue is held and compressed in the press which is later disposed of.

The cleaned chemical is then returned to the tank. This keeps the chemical in optimum condition to enable us to strip the alloy wheels more effectively.