Alloy Wheel Repairs
Since the invention of the wheel people have always tried to improve on its appearance. Modern wheels can be either a steel wheel or a composite alloy wheel. Steel wheels are cheap to manufacture and therefore are cheap to purchase by the consumer. The main draw backs would be there appearance and how quick they rust. Modern alloy wheels are a different kettle of fish due to them being a blend of different metals in there construction this gives you greater strength and durability against rust than a traditional steel wheel would. Due to the improved strength they can also be manufactured in more elaborate shapes and designs than a steel wheel would. The main disadvantage to an alloy wheel would be there cost.
Types of Alloy WheelsThe last stage of an alloy wheels manufacture is its finish. There are 2 main types of alloy wheel finish available (1) Painted finish (2) Machined
Painted alloy Wheels: This is the process where the alloy wheel after manufactured is primed then painted with a colour. Most painted alloys are painted in various types of silver, ranging from very fine aluminium content (smooth metallic finish) to a more course grade of aluminium (more sparkly finish). Other colours include white, red and graphite grey alloy wheel finishes.
Machined Finished Alloy Wheels: This type of finish is less common compared to the painted finish; it's produced by machieing the alloy to a fine finish by precision tools. Then the wheels is highly polished using different grades of cutting compounds and finishing products. Lacquer is then sprayed over the entire Alloy and left to cure in an oven. Once the curing is complete the alloy wheel is given a final polish to remove any imperfections. You can get a mix of finishes for example, the inner spoke sections can be painted and the outer surface of the spokes can be machined.
Alloy Wheel Repairs: At some part of an alloy wheels life it will have been scuffed or scratched by getting to close to stationery or slow moving object when parking or in motion the resulting collision will cause kerbing on the outer rim of the Alloy Wheel. On a painted alloy wheel this will take off chunks of the paint and lacquer around the kerbed area. You can repair a painted alloy 2 different ways, by a smart repairer or a body shop. A Smart Repairservice would come to you to repair the wheel on or off the car depending on the severity of damage. A body shop would need you to take the wheel to them in order for the repair to be carried out. Both the smart repair service and the body shop would use similar techniques to repair the alloy with one main difference; the Smart Repair service would be cheaper. Repairing a machined alloy can only be repaired either by a body shop if it has the specific equipment or needs to be sent back to the manufacturer. The reason for this is where the alloy wheel has been machined and not painted you would need specific equipment to re-machine the wheel which can only be found in some body shops and the wheels manufacturer. The cost to repair a machined alloy therefore is greater than a standard painted wheel.