I need to sand/polish the surface of my 4 stock 14" wheels.
I read this thread https://www.fiero.nl/cgi-bin...n.cgi?WheelPolishing along with all those I found using "search" here. How many have used this method? Would it be safer to have the entire car up on jack stands? I considered doing this with a tow strap attached to my van (fastened to axels) to prevent my car from taking off.

I am going to check out the used tool store and see if I can find a motor for a resonable cost. With that maybe I can use a pully and a belt to turn the wheel. Common motors turn at 1750 RPM, ah that's a bit fast for polishing up a wheel- to easy to get wrapped up and lose a finger, hand or worse.

Let me know if you used the "on car" method.

[This message has been edited by sparx22 (edited 03-12-2009).]

Id only have the drive wheels up, properly on stands and fronts blocked. Prob wouldnt hurt to use a strap or chain for safety. We used to do lots of tuning and suspension work on the race car with back wheels off the ground and running up to wide open. Like I said, you have to be CAREFUL that your stands are secured in a place that wont let vibrations let it slip off.

I've done 2 sets with rear of the car on concrete blocks (under the lower control arms), no tires or valve stems on the wheels, on the left rotor I put a rag on it with a vicegrip so it couldn't spin, & put the wheel to be polished on the right. started the car, put it in drive, & wet sanded it down like it was on a lathe.

Yes, I highly reccomend it. I have refinished over 20 sets of wheels in my day. No valve stems. Use Mothers Wheel Polish to shine it up. I usually just mount a tireless rim onto the drive axel. I use 2nd gear. It only takes a few minutes per wheel, and is very productive. I just block the front wheels, raise the rear, start the car, put it in second, apply Mothers Wheel Polish with a soft rag, Then buff with a dry rag for a few seconds. You will be done in no time.

If you are refinishing the whole rim, then use a spray on paint remover that you can find at any auto parts store. Spray on the stripper, then spray off. Reapply onto spots that are stubborn and use a soft brush to loosen any remaining paint or clear.

Just use common sense. Good luck. Pics when done.

OK
So which is the LEFT side or the RIGHT side for polishing???????????????????????

The thread I linked above is the left side.

Lou, what are you vise gripping the wheel to??

I want to sue 2nd gear, idle speed good enough?


Sparx22

I just leave the car in 2nd gear (stick) and let it idle. Make sure that your car is properly supported. Basically mount a rim onto the hub, like you were attaching your wheel.

I have an automatic, do you recommend 2nd gear?
Also, if I have the entire rear end off the ground will this work OK if I leave the wheel with tire attached on the opposite side?

Thanks all!
Jim

Experiment. I have never done it with an auto, but try 1st gear first. I have always pulled both rears off, seeing as they need to be dismounted anyway. I just throw an old set of rims and tires on the front. That way i could do all four in less than a half hour. It goes pretty quickly.

I restored a set of rims from an '86 GT. The paint was pretty good but the edges were really bad.
Sanding wasn't going to cut it. I had to remove some metal. This is how I did it...




I strapped an old oil furnace motor to a short section of railroad rail.
A pulley and long lawn mower belt from the farm supply store got things going.
I think the motor was turning about 1750 R.P.M.
I used a carbide tipped cutter from my 7 x 10 lathe. After finishing with carbide
cutter I started to wet sand but found it made too much mess, so I took the
rims to the bathtub for about 8 hours (each) of wet sanding by hand.

I aways treated the rotating mass with great respect
and never had any trouble with tool kickback.

Using the powertrain of car didn't seem nessesary or prudent to me.
I didn't have to run the engine for extended periods of time and burn gas.
I was able to keep the garage door shut. (Winter time -20F)
I didn't have to run the cv joints and boots at extreme angles for extened periods.
If the wheel decided to reach out and grab me and not let go, the powertrain, even at idle,
would no doubt be quite merciless.


If I had to do this alot, I think I would rig up a circular trough around the rim edge to
do the wet sanding right in the garage.

[This message has been edited by cone shark (edited 03-15-2009).]

Shark
I had an idea similar to this but did not consider using the front axel, was going to try to make up a mounting shaft and mandrel.

Good thinking!

Do you recall the motor pulley size and belt length you used?
sparx22

[This message has been edited by sparx22 (edited 03-15-2009).]

Kudos for forward thinking Cone Shark!

This was a while ago. I don't recall the exact size of the pulley or belt.
The motor diameter is about 6.5". So pulley size estimate - about 4.5 -5.0"

I bolted the wheel to the car and set motor where I wanted it.
Then I used a piece of string to get an idea of what size belt I needed
before heading to the store.

[This message has been edited by cone shark (edited 03-16-2009).]