How do I clean neglected wheels?

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BuckeyeGuy84

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Hello everyone, I'm new to the forums and hoping to find some advice on how to save my KMC Bofa 20" rims. I'll be honest, I don't really know much about cleaning rims other than just basic wheel cleaner and the water hose.. lol. So any help would be very much appreciated. Now I've had these rims on my 2003 Silverado for over 10 years. Sadly, I neglected these rims a lot over the last few years and in result of that I fear that they are ruined. I don't want to buy new or re-dip.. I just can't afford it at this time. But what i would like to do is bring these rims back to life as much as I'm just not sure on what product to use and in what order to use them. Given that my rims are in pretty bad shape I figured I needed to get some help from you guys on the forums. Your thoughts and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I'll try to post some better pictures as soon as the sun comes out. But for now this is the best I could do with my phone. Thank you I'm looking forward to bringing back the shine!! possible

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I just bought a truck that sat for awhile and before that you could tell had barely been touched by washes and the wheels were horrifying. I simply caked them in meguiars ultimate degreaser, let it set for a minute or two and went to town with a hard bristle brush. Took a few passes and they are still not perfect but from a foot away they look near new. Final pass with meguiars ultimate wheel shine and now I look like the guy with the crappy truck and the extra shiny wheels 😁
 
If they've gone without cleaning for a few years, most likely you will find pitting underneath that dirt.

There's two products I would recommend for this job. Meguiar's Wheel Brightener or Brown Royal Wheel Cleaner.

Both are hazardous and you MUST wear proper protection. I wear gloves, mask, and eye protection.

Some people don't do this, and they see no ill effect. The effects come later down the road though, not immediately, so I stress protection.
 
ihaveacamaro said:
If they've gone without cleaning for a few years, most likely you will find pitting underneath that dirt.

There's two products I would recommend for this job. Meguiar's Wheel Brightener or Brown Royal Wheel Cleaner.

Both are hazardous and you MUST wear proper protection. I wear gloves, mask, and eye protection.

Some people don't do this, and they see no ill effect. The effects come later down the road though, not immediately, so I stress protection.
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I meant meguiars wheel brightner! Its been a long day
 
ihaveacamaro said:
If they've gone without cleaning for a few years, most likely you will find pitting underneath that dirt.

There's two products I would recommend for this job. Meguiar's Wheel Brightener or Brown Royal Wheel Cleaner.

Both are hazardous and you MUST wear proper protection. I wear gloves, mask, and eye protection.

Some people don't do this, and they see no ill effect. The effects come later down the road though, not immediately, so I stress protection.
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Yeah they definitely went a few years without cleaning. There's definitely some peeling of the chrome on the inside of the rims. Definitely see some pitting as well. Funny you mention Brown Royal Wheel Cleaner cuz I ordered that stuff on Monday. Should be here by the end of the week. Gonna look into Meguiar's Wheel Brightener as well.
 
Meguiar's DUB wheel cleaner and some Wheel Woolies :dblthumb2:
 
Klasse Act said:
Meguiar's DUB wheel cleaner and some Wheel Woolies :dblthumb2:
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This. Works just as good as Sonax Full Effect, but at a 1/3 of the cost. And available OTC!

If you have Iron-x, that would work too. It's more expensive, but probably more potent than DUB.
 
Im located in Houston Tx, not really sure what to say about the brown stuff other than i ran into quite a few YouTube videos of people talking highly about it. Sone were comparing it vs Sonax Full Effect.
 
KMdef9 said:
This. Works just as good as Sonax Full Effect, but at a 1/3 of the cost. And available OTC!

If you have Iron-x, that would work too. It's more expensive, but probably more potent than DUB.
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:iagree:

BuckeyeGuy84 said:
Im located in Houston Tx, not really sure what to say about the brown stuff other than i ran into quite a few YouTube videos of people talking highly about it. Sone were comparing it vs Sonax Full Effect.
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It does not compare to SFE. Use an iron remover for neglected wheels(Meguirs DUB, SFE, etc).
 
What should I use if I wanted to do something light scrubbing with Steel Wool #0000?

Also what about a good polish to use after cleaning??
 
Honestly I'm not really sure... but if I had to guess I would say they are polished aluminum. Is it possible overtime that the polished could wear off? I really don't know anything about this stuff. Sorry for being a knob.

On second thought aren't they KMC Bofa rims chrome?
 
IME, iron removing products don't have as much cleaning power on severely neglected wheels as does harsh chemicals like megs wheel brightener.

Also, I would not recommend ever using steel wool on your wheels no matter the finish.

OP, pick up some Daytona brushes or wheel woolies to agitate the cleaner and some megs wheel brightener or iron removing wheel cleaner if you wish from Autogeek. I don't believe brown royal is sold here
 
I'm with Roshan. I cringe every time I hear of someone using steel wool on chrome, and these may be PVD chrome which I believe may be more scratch sensitive.

I have, in the past, cleaned chrome plated wheels with steel wool. Yes it's works, and is fast, but it will scratch. Scratching the surface will accelerate the deterioration, especially if left unprotected or not cared for on a regular basis.

I have also used Aluminum foil in the same way as steel wool. To me it's the same, works quickly, but will scratch.

If you have access to a drill, try one of the polishing balls or cones with a mild or medium cut metal polish. It will cut down the work time quite a bit. Doing it by hand can be very time consuming and frustrating.
 
Okay you guys have talked me out of the steel wool. What I'm thinking of doing is buying Speed Master Wheel Brush. I'll start off using the brown cleaner, Then DUB iron remover, Then megs wheel brightener. How does this sound so far? Whats next... polish?
 
BuckeyeGuy84 said:
Okay you guys have talked me out of the steel wool. What I'm thinking of doing is buying Speed Master Wheel Brush. I'll start off using the brown cleaner, Then DUB iron remover, Then megs wheel brightener. How does this sound so far? Whats next... polish?
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Speed master is great. You don't need all those wheel cleaners. Pick up some DUB from pep boys, that should clean them well. Then, you can polish with any chrome polish and a MF applicator pad.


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