Wayne ? Anyone?

[PFAMCO]

I started stripping my Fuchs this weekend. First trying 240 grit sandpapper by hand..... too slow and painful. Went to the Drumell tool with sanding discs .... A little quicker, but still very tedious and the little discs had to be changed too often. Hoping to finish the wheels before late Spring, I decided to try the lye method mentioned in your book. I bought some liquid lye and mixed a small amount with water, 50/50, and tried it on a very small section (dime size). I let it set for about 5 minutes wiped the residue with a rag and sanded the spot with the 240. The anodizing came up with little effort. This seems like the way to go, but as you did not have time to try it prior to writing your book you offered no other information. I now have some questions that you may be able to answer. 1. What is the recomended mix, lye and water? 2. How long should it be left on? 3. Is there a flush that could / should be used to get any residue off. 4, Will the lye affect the uncoated surfaces of the wheel?
Thanks, for your help, Paul

[Jdub]

I'd like to bump this one...

Paul:

I've had a lot of luck with chome shops that understood alloy wheels. The tanks they maintain can strip a wheel of anodizing in about two minutes, but can also melt the wheel as well..

So you might see if there is a shop around to handle this for you. Failing that, I guess I'd go 50/50 as you have (and I will be doing exactly what you are now doing in the next week, so do keep me posted on this one).

I would assume that the lye will not damage any non-anodized surface on your FUCHs. Still, I would go slowly, say the entire anodized area of the rim for five minutes, total hosedown. check finish, reapply maybe for a longer time and repeat hosedown.

Let us know how this comes out.

John

[Rot 911]

Paul, use Easy Off oven cleaner. Works just as well and much easier to apply. If you decide to strip the black paint off, check out this Pelican Tech Article: http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarticles/mult_wheel_refinish/fuchs1.htm

[Wayne 962]

There is one of the tech articles where one of our readers said to use lye. I haven't touched a Fuchs wheel since I finished the book, so I can't really confirm anything...

I will say that it's pretty hard for chemicals to damage aluminum. If you're trying to reach the bottom surface, I don't think that you would have to worry, unless you use something really dangerous that might etch the metal...

Still lye is pretty dangerous...

-Wayne

[PFAMCO]

John, Kurt, Wayne, Thanks for your responses. I feel a lot more comfortable with my plan now. My greatest concern was what if any damage I might be doing to the bare metal. I won't be able to get back to the wheels for another week, but will post a reply as to how it all works out. I think that I'll try a 75% / 25% lye to water mix with a water flush before sanding with 240 grit, followed with a second coat of the lye mix and final sanding with wet paper of progresively smaller grit.
Thanks again, Paul

[Jim Sims]

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong here but I believe oven cleaner and lye are just caustic or sodium hydroxide. I believe light metal alloys such as magnesium and aluminum alloys will just dissolve when subjected to this chemical. Isn't this the reagent in the standard "hot tanks" where any pot metal or aluminum just melts and goes away? At the very least, I would rinse the wheels numerous times with water after using the stuff but I wonder if a body paint stripper based on methylene chloride would be better. I would sure do some more research before I put caustic on my wheels. Jim

[Jdub]

I asked Dave at Wheel Enhancement about using stripping baths to deanodize and it/how lye might cause problems when we strip our wheels in the privacy of our homes. Here is his reply:
===========================

John:

You can ruin any wheel if left too long in any of the preparatory tanks for stripping. There are several stages to stripping, anodizing and plating, any of which can ruin a wheel if not controlled properly. The exact contents of each tank are closely monitored to insure that they remain within the tolerances established by the individual shop. Make sure your plater is one with a good reputation for quality, you can tell a lot just by the physical appearance of his or her operation.

Using an oven cleaner or lye to remove the anodized finish does not work effectively as it does not remove the anodization that has been absorbed into the aluminum alloy. It takes many hours of tedious work to try and refinish a wheel by hand and the results are almost always sub par. Lye, or any other caustic chemical, can stain the wheel if not controlled properly.

Please e-mail us if you have any questions.

Thank you, Dave - Wheel Enhancement
============================

I have another mail out to Wheel Werkes and will post that reply when I receive it.

EDIT: And here is the reply from Wheel Werkes:

GOOD MORNING JOHN,IN RESPONSE TO YOUR
QUESTION,I DO NOT RECOMMEND THE PLATING PROCESS
OR POWDER COATING OF WHEELS BECAUSE OF THE HEAT
INVOLVED. I DO NOT THINK MELT DOWN IS A
PROBLEM.EXCESSIVE HEAT WILL CHANGE THE TEMPER OF
THE WHEEL,POSSIBLY MAKING IT BRITTLE OR
SOFT.ADDRESSING THE PRODUCTS YOU MENTIONED THEY
ARE BOTH CAUSTIC MATERIALS AND WILL HELP TO
DISSOLVE THE ANODIZATION BUT THEY ARE A WEAK
CAUSTIC.I AM HESITANT TO RECOMMEND ANY PRODUCT
FOR SELF USE BECAUSE OF THE DANGER OR PERSONAL
INJURY,WITH OUT TALKING TO YOU.ANY CAUSTIC YOU
USE WILL ETCH THE ALLOY AND REQUIRE REFACING OR
REFINISHING THE ALLOY. I WOULD BE HAPPY TO TALK
TO YOU FURTHER IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO GIVE ME A
CALL AT (503)641-8001 THANK YOU FOR CONSIDERING
US AND LOOKING FORWARD TO HELPING YOU ANY WAY I
CAN.THANKS - SKIP

=====
Jeanne McConnell


John