Cleaning negected aluminum wheels - suggestions?

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wgasa84

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Hey all i hope this is the right place to ask this question. I've searched for about a week before posting this...

What cleaner should I use to clean the barrels?

I've tried Sonax Full Effect, Iron-x, Eagle One PVD & Aluminum Cleaner, and Simple Green Extreme @ 1:1 all with heavy agitation with a very stiff brissle brush. The only thing that touched the contamination (that made a big visible difference after I dryed the area) was the Simple Green Extreme. I also used two aluminum polishes with a microfiber pad and it helped to some degree but it still didn't get the barrels as clean as i got the face of the wheel. I thought I had pictures of the barrels but I must have been so frustrated I didn't take them...I'm about to say screw it and not worry about more than cleaning them off and not getting them shinny...


Backstory: I'm a hobbyist who's just figured things out as I go... started by hand and then moved to a DA Harbor Freight polisher (pretty happy with it) a few years ago.


We picked up at horse trailer that is in overall great shape for 15 years old. The bare aluminum wheels and tread plate had seem some better days. I got the face of passenger side wheels and the passenger side fender polished up nicely. I'll attack the rest over the next few weekends, then a full detail on the paint.

Thanks!
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I forgot to mention, the barrels are not smooth... the wheels have very little groves. They almost look like the wheels were cut on a lathe.

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The trailer looks great.

If the barrels are pretty rough you might need to scuff or sand them. You could try a scrub pad first and then move up to sanding.

Since they so hidden I'd skip them, or go at them with a really aggressive sand paper and stop there, but it's not my trailer.
 
What did you use on the treadplate, assuming you polished them?
I wouldn't worry about the barrels being shined other than cleaning them since they can't be seen.
 
wgasa84 said:
I forgot to mention, the barrels are not smooth... the wheels have very little groves. They almost look like the wheels were cut on a lathe.

I would not remove those. That's part of the wheel's look. Just get a terry cloth and rub out. Or use a polisher and buff over them...

Tom
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99C5Coupe said:
What did you use on the treadplate, assuming you polished them?
I wouldn't worry about the barrels being shined other than cleaning them since they can't be seen.
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I used the Turtle Wax Chrome & Metal polish on this side. I'm going to do a 50/50 test between the Chemical Guys Heavy Metal Polish and the Turtle Wax Chrome & Metal Polish on the front tread plate to see what works better... I tried both of these on the one of the barrels with the MF pad on my DA polisher and a Mother Mini powe ball and it 'helped'... just not nearly in the same ball park as the front of the wheel where I used the same process.

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Mantilgh said:
The trailer looks great.

If the barrels are pretty rough you might need to scuff or sand them. You could try a scrub pad first and then move up to sanding.

Since they so hidden I'd skip them, or go at them with a really aggressive sand paper and stop there, but it's not my trailer.
Click to expand...

Thanks! I can't wait to see how it looks after I finish with the paint and the rest if the tread plate. I doubt it's had anything besides getting washed a few times a year

Don't get me wrong, the previous owners took great care of it. They obviously kept it under cover since there is almost zero rust on it and the paint is in good condition.

My plan for the paint is to wash, decon, compound with M105, (if needed) polish with M205, then the Klasse Twins for a durable finish. I picked up some Mckees RV Vinyl Decal restorer that I'll try to restore the graphics with.



Sanding..... That sounds like considerably more work than I would care to do for something that is seen only by me and someone replacing the tires! Thanks for the info though.

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I think I'm going to give Steel Wool a try....
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Cool.

I forgot about steel wool. That would be a step up from a scrub pad and not as aggressive as a sand paper I would use.

You could try one of your cleaners with the wool too.


Just wondering, do you know what the the sides are made of?

It can make a big difference in what type you product you should use. If it is thinly painted aluminum, do not use an abrasive polish.


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I haven't put a magnet to the trailer to see if the sides are steel or aluminum, but I believe it's steel sided. Logan Coach trailers are definitely some of the better made horse trailers so I'm hoping it's a paint job similar to a car. I'm going to call the manufacture to see how they paint their trailers so I can properly address the paint.

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It looks more like steel, you usually see a bunch of rivets at the seams with aluminum.

If they give you an idea of what to use that would be cool, but they (or the customer service rep) may have no idea.



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Mantilgh said:
It looks more like steel, you usually see a bunch of rivets at the seams with aluminum.

If they give you an idea of what to use that would be cool, but they (or the customer service rep) may have no idea.



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Yeah, Logan is known for using a 3M adhesive for adhering aluminum panels to the steel frame of the trailer. Frankly I'd be shocked if it's aluminum... we would have gotten one hell of a deal if it's aluminum!

If they are as useless as most CS reps usually are; I'll just have to test as I would with automotive paint. Hell, I don't even know if it has a clear coat on it. I haven't washed it since we bought it. With the current heat (it was 95* today) it'll be a while before I want to start working on the paint. The alumnimn tread plate and wheels will take me probably 3 more sessions. I still need to do a full decon, polish and wax on my DD 2016 CrewCab Silverado 2500HD as it already has some pretty good swirling, scratches and contaminated paint so that'll take priority if we get some cooler weather.



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I would stop where you are. It will be enough to maintain them as is. They look awesome and the barrels are not very visible with that wheel design.

If you want to go further, you can use a metal polish with a cotton wheel on a speed drill. Make sure they are not coated first. If they are coated, the corrosion may be under the paint and you will need to strip to make them perfect.

Kerosene will also do a good job with steel wool to melt road tar and grime as will iron x.


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ZiggyPopp said:
I would stop where you are. It will be enough to maintain them as is. They look awesome and the barrels are not very visible with that wheel design.

If you want to go further, you can use a metal polish with a cotton wheel on a speed drill. Make sure they are not coated first. If they are coated, the corrosion may be under the paint and you will need to strip to make them perfect.

Kerosene will also do a good job with steel wool to melt road tar and grime as will iron x.


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Thanks I appreciate your input. Im going to try steel wool just to see what i can get off so I have an idea of what steel wool can do for future detailing.

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I've had great success using OTC metal polishes and tapered Buffs or mushroom buffs and rotary drills or rotary buffers in cleaning up the barrels (rust and minor scratching) to the same level as the rim and face. Just be careful when using extensions on a rotary a little duct tape or electrical tape covering the metal extension will save you a major headache.

https://www.autogeekonline.net/foru...luminum-wheels-aluminum-finishing-polish.html
 
Vegas Transplant said:
I've had great success using OTC metal polishes and tapered Buffs or mushroom buffs and rotary drills or rotary buffers in cleaning up the barrels (rust and minor scratching) to the same level as the rim and face. Just be careful when using extensions on a rotary a little duct tape or electrical tape covering the metal extension will save you a major headache.

https://www.autogeekonline.net/foru...luminum-wheels-aluminum-finishing-polish.html
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Thank you for the info. I've been looking into those buffs.

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