Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Hi,

Trying to find a reputable company to refurbish my plus 2 wheels, i have approached several companies but most i'm not confident with as they want to diamond cut the finished surface, which to me detracts from the rounded profile.

Happy go anywhere in the country i just want a good job carried out.

steve

I used these chaps to powder coat my ordinary knockoffs and they did a lovely job.



[attachment=0]Wheels.jpg[/attachment

just......wet-sand.....the.....all......surfaces....with.....600wet..............then.....polish...'em...........add...some....new.....paint.....sand.....

they..........need................dipping.............to........................remove...................all......................the..........................crap.................first.............................Dear............................Boy..............................so......................whilst...........................you..............are ........................at............................it.............................get.................................them..........................done

TBG wrote:they..........need................dipping.............to........................remove...................all......................the..........................crap.................first.............................Dear............................Boy..............................so......................whilst...........................you..............are ........................at............................it.............................get.................................them..........................done

lol funny man

TBG wrote:I used these chaps to powder coat my ordinary knockoffs and they did a lovely job.

Wheelshine.jpg

[attachment=0]Wheels.jpg[/attachment

Getting my wheels powder coated was on my winter list along with new tyres once they're done. Anyone know of any downsides to powder coating the stock steel wheels?

Re sanding and spraying - been there, done that. Several times. For the cost of powder coating it's too much like hard work.

The only thing to look out for is to take in a spinner so that they can see the problem and make sure there is no powder coating on the surfaces between the spinner and the wheel. You can Dremel it off later but is easier if it masked off at the time.

Make sure that the firm doing the job explains to you their process.
If they tell you they just blast and powder coat, run away.
The process should include a phosphate or chromate coating after blasting.
Lots of powder coaters don't do it, and if you go with one of them, you'll be having it done properly again in a short time.
The correct procedure is more expensive, but critical to longevity of the finished coating.
The process for steel is different than for aluminium, with regard to the phospate / chromate interim coating.

My powder coater does use a primer-undercoat layer.
It does make for a good thick treatment.

The company that does my powder coating is superb and oh so inexpensive, £20 a wheel, shot blasted and coated, but maybe that was a mates rate.

I see no problem with diamond cutting as it's just a way to get a uniform finish. The minimum is taken off to clear any marks. This is done after the wheel has been powder coated black. After cutting, all of the sharp edges should be carefully deburred to round off the sharp edges. That does take some care but has to be done as the clear coat which comes next won't stick to the sharp edge and you'll soon find that bare metal starts to show. If a company says that it doesn't have anyone competent enough to do the deburring properly then they wouldn't be my choice but if you're otherwise happy with work of theirs that you've seen you could perhaps ask them if you could do that stage yourself and then give the wheels back for the final clearcoat.
You've probably tried Lepsons in Gillingham, Kent? My sister has just had a Clio wheel done there. That is somewhat spokey but I haven't seen the result.
https://www.lepsons.com/

MarkDa wrote:My powder coater does use a primer-undercoat layer.
It does make for a good thick treatment.

Heard this process gives better results.

69S4 wrote:
Getting my wheels powder coated was on my winter list along with new tyres once they're done. Anyone know of any downsides to powder coating the stock steel wheels?

Re sanding and spraying - been there, done that. Several times. For the cost of powder coating it's too much like hard work.

Lots of threads on this over the years. Problem seems to be the 'v' gap where the centre joins the rim. Impossible to get powder right to the bottom of the gap, rust starts here and then begins to lift the powder coat off.

Having said that, I bought 5 new powder coated wheels from Sue, so hopefully the coating will stay stuck on.

Back to the original alloy wheel, just had my wife’s JCW Mini wheels done locally and they were diamond cut and they kept the original profile and removed the absolute minimum to just clean them up, they looked better than new when finished. Same place declined to do my Lotus steel wheels as they reckoned their process couldn’t cope well with the joint between the rim and the centre, but they recommended another place which were confident to do them and so far they look fine. First company was in Louth and the second in Grimsby.

Just seen this thread. I need to get my S4 wheels powder coated, does anyone know the RAL number?

Peter