Clearcoated Rims???

[PUREPWR]

I have a question about rims. I found some wheels that i really like on ebay. They are polished but have no clearcoat on them it says. Do rims normally come with clear coat or what. please help the auction ends saturday. thanks guys. and if anybody konws of a slp loudmouth for sale for a 96 t/a let me know. thanks. tom

[tabahr]

There are two kinds of shiny rims... Chrome and polished.

Chrome rims are actually plated in chrome, no clearcoat. These rims are mirror shiny and pretty much maintenance free (other than standard washing / waxing)

Polished rims are just what the name implies... polished. These rims do not shine as well and will require maintenance to keep them looking nice. I recommend Mothers aluminum polish.

[PUREPWR]

So should i not buy these since they are just polished with no clearcoat?

[Ryan98T/A]

No no no, it all depends upon how much work you want to put out to care for your wheels. Like he said above, chrome is basically maintenance free, just wipe them down and they are good to go. With polished wheels, what you can do to lower the amount of maintenance is use this stuff called zoop seal. It basically seals in the shine. And if the polishing job is done well enough, polished wheels can shine as well as chrome. I have a set of polished wheels that are very shiny.


Check out the pic, would you be able to tell they were polished and not chrome at first look???

[Performin Norman]

I had polished rims on my viper and it wasn't much work at all.

[tabahr]

Correct... there is nothing *wrong* with polished rims. It's a good lower cost alternative to chrome. Polishing them can be fun.

[Injuneer]

My AFS replica ZR1's are a "polished" finish, and came from AFS with the clearcoat already on them. They require no more maintenance than a painted wheel. A few good coats of Zaino and they shed brake dust and look great all the time.

On the other hand, my Weld Pro-Stars are polished, but NOT clear coated, and I generally give them a good once over with Mothers "Billet" polish about twice a year. But the Pro-Stars are only used 1/4-mile at a time, and never in rain...

If you drive in the snow, and the polished (non-clear coated) wheels are exposed to salt, you will have a major mess on your hands..... let them sit long enough with salt on them, and they will turn black and start to "pit". And, they can be discolored by some wheel and tire cleaning products.

I prefer the slightly "softer" shine of the polished wheels. I think after living in CA for 3 years, I never wanted to see another chrome wheel in my life. And the "polished" finish is a throwback to my first set of aftermarket wheels.... the 15x6 Cragar S/S wheels I put on my 1963 Impala......

[fastTa]

I also think the polished look is much better looking and well worth the additional maintenance. Chrome just seems almost too fake looking. IMHO

[pugmire]

Anyone know if the OEM WS6 polished aluminum wheels are clearcoated or not? What is typically used for the clearcoat (i.e. can I clearcoat the wheels if I need to do some polishing to get some blemishes out)?