Before you can begin polishing alloy wheels, they must be thoroughly washed to remove any road dirt and debris. Follow our step by step guide on how to wash alloy wheels here. For best results, we recommend using a specific alloy wheel cleaner, car shampoo will only remove the surface dirt from the wheel. Another option is to use one of the more aggressive abrasive kits with either satine mops or abrasive polishes. However, remember that whilst these abrasive processes will remove overt damage they are also marking undamaged alloy. Because we are dealing with abrasive there will be a need to remove the fine scratches imparted on the alloy by the process. The bottom line here is that if the mop slows down substantially you don’t have enough power to hand. Also consider the size of the work piece. Large objects may be heavy and it’s probably easier to polish something like a bike wheel on a bench with a 4” mop on a drill than it is to hold the wheel up to a bench mounted 6” mop.

If you discover damage to your alloys when polishing your alloy wheels. ChipsAway specialists can repair the damage in a matter of hours so your wheels look as good as new again. While some alloys need polishing, others will require wax. This will be dependant on the wheel’s finish, if the wheel has a chrome finish, a chrome polish is required. If the alloys are polished, they will need an aluminium polish. If the alloys are painted or coated, it’s best to choose a quality wax to protect the finish. Thoroughly Wash the AlloysIt’s nearly time to get polishing, but first you will need to apply a good amount of alloy wheel brightener. This product is designed brighten the aluminium and alloy parts, plus is a great product for removing brake dust. Apply an Alloy Polish of Choice Alloy wheels add style and substance to any vehicle, but alloys can get pretty dirty and fade overtime, especially if you do a lot of miles. Its important to care for the alloys as you would care for the car’s paintwork. To keep alloys looking as good as they should, they should be regularly polished to maintain the finish. It's important to dry off your bike. Some people recommend a micro-fibre drying cloth over a chamois, but I use a chamois. The main mistake I used to make was to fold up the chamois into four and then scrub at the bodywork to soak up water. You don't need to do this and all you'll do is rub any remaining grit across the surface, causing hairline scratches. Take your chamois and lay it across surfaces like your tank, take it off, wring out the chamois and repeat. On vertical surfaces, you can pat dry the surface, again, helping to reduce hairline scratches. You may be left with a small film of water or a few beads, but this is fine, they'll evaporate. Once your bike is washed in this way, you'll spend less time keeping it clean. With the Zymol cleaner wax, the surface is sealed and protected. After a ride, you will be able to rinse down the bike to wash off surface grit and retain the shine. You can use the Autoglym Showshine to give an instant gloss. When water stops beading up on the bodywork, it's a sign that you could do with a fresh wash and re-application of wax. Avoid using abrasive cleaning products, as they will harm the quality and longevity of the alloys. Find our favourite alloy wheel cleaners here.

Pressure washers. I don't use a pressure washer. Apart from being incredibly lazy, they're just not necessary. You're cleaning a small surface, not the side of a boat. Using a pressure washer is a bit like turning up to an Archery competition with a sawn-off shotgun. You want more precision for a better result.If there’s a fair amount of polishing to do it makes sense to do it outside and have sufficient mops and buffing soap on hand. Always allow more time than you think the job will take if you’re new to this and aim to finish a certain number parts with the final calico mop rather than do all the roughing out in one hit. Firstly you can then do something else next time rather than get terminally bored with a bike’s worth of polishing. Secondly you get to see some genuine results for one days work rather than moving from dull grey to slightly brighter grey. I've chosen Zymol cleaner wax to accompany the Zymol car shampoo used earlier. It's now strictly a polish, but it is a wax polish, and by far the best one I've used to get a deep shine. When you rinse the bodywork for the second time, you should notice the water 'heet' off the bodywork and even on non-polished surfaces, it will bead up. If it does, this is a good sign of well cleaned bodywork. Metal polishing compound is used to remove surface imperfections, oxidation, and tarnish from metal surfaces, thereby restoring their shine and luster. It is commonly used in various industries, such as automotive, jewellery, manufacturing, and metalworking. Metal polishing compounds can vary in abrasiveness, ranging from coarse compounds for heavy-duty polishing to fine compounds for achieving a mirror-like finish. They can be used on a wide range of metals, including stainless steel, aluminum, brass, copper, silver, and gold.

Metal polishing compounds typically consist of abrasive particles suspended in a binding agent or wax. The abrasive particles can be made of various materials, such as aluminum oxide, diamond dust, or silica, depending on the specific application and desired level of polishing. The binding agent or wax helps to hold the abrasive particles together and provides lubrication during the polishing process.

Post a comment

Within reason a larger power source will give better results, you’ll need to expend less time/effort/energy and there’s less likelihood of damaging the shiny bits. Bench or post mounted grinder/polishers generally have the guts to do the job but you need to match the mop size to the motor’s capabilities. As with all things the amount of energy expended on a job dictates how good the results will be; it’s not all about how hard you polish though. The annoying phrase…don’t work harder, work smarter….is very appropriate when it comes to polishing. It’s also worth investing in a kit that comes with the smaller dolly mops (1”, 1 ½” & 2”) as these can be a godsend. The larger mops cannot get into recesses or tight spaces but the smaller mops can get into the nooks and crannies. Don’t throw a dolly mop away until you’re absolutely sure it’s beyond use; it’s guaranteed that you will need a worn down 1” version the minute you bin it. KEEPING IT IN PERSPECTIVE The final step is to apply a finishing polish to the alloy wheels. Apply the finishing polish with a soft microfibre cloth and polish until the cloth is free from product. The longer you polish the wheels, the shiner they will look, so keep polishing! Take your Meguiars Hot Rims wheel cleaner, set the nozzle to spread the spray and give your pre-rinsed wheels a good coating with the wheel cleaner. It really is fantastic stuff and is safe for bare metal, alloys, lacquer, powder-coated and painted wheels.