Getting my wheels refinished and straightened as I speak!

[Stu]

Yep, right now outside the Alloy Wheel Repair Specialist guy is refinishing and unbending all four of my wheels. I'm really excited to see the results. I walked out to see how the progress was going and how the process worked, and he said that they were actually bent pretty badly on the inside. He said the wheels looked as if they were clamped down way too hard on a tire machine and left some significant bends. Make sure you go to a reputable service center!! I don't know who the original owner went to, but they must be awful if they have the ability to do that to a wheel.

Here's my before:


http://img842.imageshack.us/img842/3671/before4o.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/842/before4o.jpg/)
http://img840.imageshack.us/img840/3935/before3u.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/840/before3u.jpg/)
http://img580.imageshack.us/img580/3707/before2a.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/580/before2a.jpg/)
http://img849.imageshack.us/img849/1749/before1.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/849/before1.jpg/)

After:

http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/236/photo4aec.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/692/photo4aec.jpg/)
http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/4647/photo3yg.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/268/photo3yg.jpg/)
http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/4130/photo2zi.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/820/photo2zi.jpg/)
http://img607.imageshack.us/img607/8828/photoyd.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/607/photoyd.jpg/)

The pictures speak for themselves. Worth every single penny. The car is so much smoother, and the wheels look nearly new. There are some scuffs that he couldn't get to due to the design of the wheel, but they're not easily noticeable. If you're in the Raleigh area, get Charles Oliver of Alloy Wheel Repair Specialists.

[danewilson77]

What's that going to run?$$$

[Stu]

$800 for all four. Not bad for essentially new 135M's.

[pleasecorrupt]

Couldve had new 135s for that much through Danes eBay share ;)

[billschusteriv]

Nice find Zell. Not a bad price point for wheel repair. I know places that charge more than half that for refinishing and rash repair.


Couldve had new 135s for that much through Danes eBay share ;)

Just about... $980 shipped all tolled... IIRC...

[Stu]

Quick update. He just finished straightening the 2nd wheel :( I feel bad for him. I got him a big Redbull.

The wheels were clamped seriously improperly when these tires were mounted and really knocked them out of shape bad. But, he's starting the cosmetic refinishing process on the two right now. Two more to go after that. I have a feeling this may be more than $800 but we'll see. Regardless, I'm tipping him.

[danewilson77]

Please explain clamped where? During balancing or when mounted on car.

HTC Thunderbolt+TT

[slowCoupe]

I'd be interested to hear about how he does the rash repair and refinishing. Mine are fairly well scratched, unfortunately. Too much time in major cities, it happens.

I've also noticed areas where the paint is simply wearing off, for whatever reason.

[Stu]

Please explain clamped where? During balancing or when mounted on car.

HTC Thunderbolt+TT

I took a look at one of the wheels. I'm not sure how a tire mounting machine works, but the way he explained it was that whatever holds the wheel to the tire mounting machine, it held the wheel way too tight. There was sort of a star pattern of dents in inside of the wheel. Apparently it is making it incredibly difficult to straighten, but totally possible.

My theory is, they are low profile runflat tires. Very stiff. They must have been put on at a shop that didn't know how to properly put those on, and bent the wheels as a result. Apparently they neglected to tell the owner.

[danewilson77]

Ok....got it.

HTC Thunderbolt+TT

[Stu]

Update. The guy only was able to get to 2 wheels on one side. Poor guy worked from 9:00AM-6:00PM. He's going to come back tomorrow to finish the other two, and tomorrow is supposed to be a dangerous day to be outside - 110 degrees + humidity!!

However, the quality of the work and the difference is absolutely incredible. It's unbelievable - they look brand-new. No curb rash, nothing. Totally new wheels.

When I was driving back, it was interesting: since my driver's side hasn't been straightened yet, my ride is really rough on one side but smooth on the other. It's a lot louder as a result, too. But the difference is pretty amazing!

Full pics tomorrow. Absolutely worth every single penny.

[danewilson77]

Great news.

[static667]

I feel bad for that guy. Your wheel must be in pretty bad shape. I'm in for a detailed write up of the finished product.

For Dane,
The most common tire changing machine is kinda like this one.
http://www.asedeals.com/images/R745-Tire-Changer.jpg

If you look on top of the silver disc, you'll see the clamps that Stu is talking about. They hold onto the wheel so you can get the tires on and off. Most newer equipment has set limits that will prevent wheel bending. But I'm sure there are ways to make it happen.

[danewilson77]

^OK....thanks Kyle.

[az3579]

For an older machine, it's easier to bend the wheel.
There are some machines now that have non-scratching material on the bit that separates the tire from the wheel. I think ECS Tuning has such a device, and I think they just happened to have a location in northern CT. :biggrin

[Stu]

I feel bad for that guy. Your wheel must be in pretty bad shape. I'm in for a detailed write up of the finished product.

For Dane,
The most common tire changing machine is kinda like this one.
http://www.asedeals.com/images/R745-Tire-Changer.jpg

If you look on top of the silver disc, you'll see the clamps that Stu is talking about. They hold onto the wheel so you can get the tires on and off. Most newer equipment has set limits that will prevent wheel bending. But I'm sure there are ways to make it happen.

That's exactly what the bends look like and in that pattern. Ugh. What kind of shop did the previous owner go to?! All I can say is, if a shop bends your wheels, you better be telling them to pay for brand-new wheels. The sheer amount of work that goes into unbending bends like that is phenomenal. He said that normally wheels don't take this long to unbend. When one side unbends, another side gets worse, etc. Sounds frustrating from what he said. I apologized to him for all the trouble as I had no idea it was that bad, but he's got a good smile on his face and is very happy to do it.

Needless to say, I'm giving the guy a tip. And another Red Bull :)

[Stu]

After:

http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/236/photo4aec.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/692/photo4aec.jpg/)
http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/4647/photo3yg.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/268/photo3yg.jpg/)
http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/4130/photo2zi.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/820/photo2zi.jpg/)
http://img607.imageshack.us/img607/8828/photoyd.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/607/photoyd.jpg/)

The pictures speak for themselves. Worth every single penny. The car is so much smoother, and the wheels look nearly new. There are some scuffs that he couldn't get to due to the design of the wheel, but they're not easily noticeable.

[danewilson77]

Very nice. Nothing feels better.

[HokieZHP]

looks good

[Whitexi]

They came out good.

[static667]

Nice. I bet it feels like a completely different car.

[Johal E32]

looks good man!

[Stu]

The wheels do need to be rebalanced, but they're cupped/scalloped due to the nature of the bends. When I rebalance them, it'll feel even smoother. But I'm wondering whether it'd even be worth the $60-70 to do it since I need new tires soon anyway. I may get it road-force balanced, that could help.