The "magnesium treatment"?

[Jens-Ole]

So, i've been searching this big old internet for a way to make my new Radar repro's look older than they are. I might have read a how to on this page somewhere on what he called "the magnesium treatment" of new alloy wheels. But I cannot seem to find it. Or it's all just in my imagination

Anyway, what i'm aiming for is to have a polished edge/rim and to get the 5 spokes look something like this:

Is this possible?

[slalombuggy]

Tape off the lip, strip the wheel with a mild abrasive such as glass and take them for a blast down the track at the Bonneville Salt Flats. That will give it the nice aged treatment It did on all my untreated aluminum.....

brad

[Jens-Ole]

Sounds perfect, only it's a pretty long way from Norway
But i guess that method will work "manually" too?

[slalombuggy]

You could always experiment on a piece of scrap aluminum using different media to blast the wheels and using an acid to oxidize the metal. Aluminum is much more resistant to oxidization than magnesium so it will be hard to duplicate. Know any good airbrush artists?????

brad

[Jens-Ole]

Airbrush, that's cheating I might just blast them and drive over the winter with snow all over and salted main roads.

[restojohnny]

I would take the clear coat (if there is one) off with the rim down to bare metal and use wheel bearing grease and rub it into the bare metal real good then wipe it off that would give it the look you are wanting but let the grease sit awhile like a day or so....
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[Jens-Ole]

This sounds a little more "easy accessible" compared to the Salt Flats, unfortunately.. Would love to blast down Bonneville with my 2109 engine: "just to get the look on my wheels"

But back to business, have you done this before and if so do you have any pictures?
This is the car and wheels by the way..

[Crankey]

sure, this can be done.

first strip the wheels of clear coat. then mask the areas you want to stay polished. 2-3 layers of masking tape or maybe one layer of duck tape for masking.

sand blast exposed areas. after blasting, don't touch these areas at all with bare fingers or anything that can contaminate the surface.

now over the blasted face, do this process
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rD7o_WXwIA

you can re do the chemical process like the video shows. rubbing the edges of the spokes to highlight them should make them look a bit more worn and used...like they have been in a giants pocket for a thousand years...

or, an easier way to fake that is to rub black paint onto the blasted surface with a sponge. then, after it's dry, rub the surface with scotchbrite until you get the desired grey/black tones you want.

after you have the amount of blackness you like, either chemical or paint process finished, clear coat the whole wheel to seal it. I would do a gloss clear, 3-4 coats. then a mat clear over the center blackened area.

search for "aluminum patina" to learn more.

chemical patina usually works better in a warm condition. not super hot just not in freezing cold open garages. heat up the wheel and chemical to comfortable room temperature.

the process with chemicals will be more frustrating as the chemicals don't usually work as well as the video shows. it will also less durable and harder to control. more toxic as well. but worth a try if you can find the patina chemicals.

the paint method would be easier and more controllable and most likely more durable.

whatever you do, post up your results !

[sub-hatchtim]

oven cleaner will etch and oxidize aluminum
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[sbnova]

I know you want something permanent, but I would suggest Plasti-dip. It comes in spray cans, in many colors, and leaves a mat type finish. You can tape off the rim lip (just be careful when un-masking) and don't have to worry about sandblasting ruining tape or chemicals bleeding under. Using chemicals or sandblasting to oxidize may start a process that eventually ruins your wheels so be careful!

Plasti-dip on the other hand will actually protect what it is covering, and peels off when your done leaving your wheels and their finish intact and unharmed.
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[pondoras box]

I would think that nothing short of faking the funk with paint would work properly. Yes easy off will remove anodized coating and would leave it looking black for a short period of time.

But the problem is that aluminum corrodes differently than magnesium. Magnesium actually corrodes to a hard surface and aluminum corrodes and leaves a soft white powdery surface. Two different looks.

Anodizing aluminum is a chemical process that actually corrodes the surface of aluminum and you just control the color. The reaction leaves a corroded surface that is very hard and seals the aluminum underneath to prevent further corrosion. I guess you could see if any metal coaters in your area do anodizing and try to match a color that would give you the effect your looking for. To do the blotchy look they could possibly leave some of the prep agents on the wheel so the anodizing doesn't come out even.

Just a thought.
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[Crankey]

[GeoffP]

I did these 4 plus years ago...

[Somics]

[ento]

Damm it. This thread ended on a cliffhanger. I was hoping to see how GeoffP achieved the look too
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[heimlich]

If you soak aluminum in purple degreaser it will turn it black through oxidation. Is that what you are wanting? If so, find a sample wheel and try it out first.
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['64cal lookdub]

Blast it and paint it with graphite spray, that's how I've seen some hot rod guys fake magnesium halibrands.

[Glenn]

['64cal lookdub]

^ what did I miss here?