# Curbed alloy



## Mark Pred (Feb 1, 2017)

I'm hyper careful with my wheels, but this morning managed to clip a curb in Waitrose car park. Got out and found part of the curb had come away and that's what I'd clipped. Furious, I got the store manager out and words were exchanged. He frankly didn't want to know and kept harping on about 'you can barely see it' ... anyway, I'll deal with him/Waitrose another day. So, DIY time... cleaned it up first (top pic) an then some very careful sanding/polishing... took me half hour and it's kinda sorted. Phew! I'll probably get the airbrush out and finish it off later, but happy with the result...


----------



## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Hi, Very annoying, but surprising how good damaged diamond cut rims can be improved with a little careful DIY work.
You may find it will start to corrode unless you protect with clear lacquer, so the sooner the better.
Hoggy.


----------



## Mark Pred (Feb 1, 2017)

Yes, you're spot on with that. I'll finish it off with a clear coat applied with the airbrush, once I have applied a thin coat of paint. I'll use an acrylic which I can easily colour match by blending a few drops of different shades of Vallejo metallic greys.

Minor curbing is repairable on diamond cut wheels, which is why I wanted to share this. Happens to us all in the end


----------



## Macauley (May 31, 2017)

Wow that's a major improvement. I have curbed mine around the edge and front. Would you mind sharing your procedure? Did you hand sand it or use a machine?


----------



## MClaine55 (Feb 16, 2018)

Now that's really annoying alright but what a great save with your skills. Tyre sidewall looking very smart too.

Where we live off a very long straight road with a wide lazy s-bend at the end before you keep heading the same direction again. Just before the first bend it's parked cars so one passing through at a time. Trouble is people fly round towards you, dont pull over enough and a bit of kirb opposite them is just waiting to bring misery on our side. Clipped because of van man in my old TT, and rubbed it with side rubber in the same circumstances twice but didn't touch the wheel thankfully. Bit of a Bermuda Triangle.

I've also narrowly missed snagging the low front end on kirbs in car parks so I make sure I don't go too close, so front sensors are helpful.


----------



## macaddict111 (Jun 13, 2018)

Uugh I feel your pain buddy, but amazing fix-up job! I think you're probably the only one who'd know it was there anymore. I curbed one of mine (my fault, trying to slip in to a right-turn lane with not enough width) and my immediate feeling was UUUUUGUGGHHHH!!!


----------



## F1SpaceMonkey (Nov 21, 2015)

I'm curious - what did you expect the store manager to do or say?

I've recently had 3 wheels fixed for £70. Diamond cut too. They came up like new.


----------



## leopard (May 1, 2015)

F1SpaceMonkey said:


> I'm curious - what did you expect the store manager to do or say?


" Accept our sincerest apologies m'lud, now sincerely fcuk off, chancer" :lol:


----------



## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

leopard said:


> F1SpaceMonkey said:
> 
> 
> > I'm curious - what did you expect the store manager to do or say?
> ...


 :lol: :lol: :lol: 
Hoggy.


----------



## F1SpaceMonkey (Nov 21, 2015)

Hoggy said:


> leopard said:
> 
> 
> > F1SpaceMonkey said:
> ...


"apologies the kerb was there and was static, its Waitrose's fault you hit it. - he's £200 to get your wheel fixed"


----------



## dids66 (Feb 7, 2017)

I had my wheel repaired last week 
I took out the insurance when I brought the car ,it was the first time I had used it and I think he did a good job.


----------



## stumpy (Jan 22, 2009)

F1SpaceMonkey said:


> I've recently had 3 wheels fixed for £70. Diamond cut too. They came up like new.


That's a good price, can i ask where? or does any one else have any recommendations?


----------



## Macauley (May 31, 2017)

Just done one of my curbs today, quite pleased with the result. Tomorrow I got a bigger one to fix, looking forward to it!


----------



## F1SpaceMonkey (Nov 21, 2015)

stumpy said:


> F1SpaceMonkey said:
> 
> 
> > I've recently had 3 wheels fixed for £70. Diamond cut too. They came up like new.
> ...


a place in the east midlands. if you are near DM me and i can send you their details.


----------



## cdb (Nov 10, 2017)

Nice result Mark, can you please detail your procedure and what products you used. Thanks.



Mark Pred said:


> Yes, you're spot on with that. I'll finish it off with a clear coat applied with the airbrush, once I have applied a thin coat of paint. I'll use an acrylic which I can easily colour match by blending a few drops of different shades of Vallejo metallic greys.
> 
> Minor curbing is repairable on diamond cut wheels, which is why I wanted to share this. Happens to us all in the end


----------



## Mark Pred (Feb 1, 2017)

F1SpaceMonkey said:


> I'm curious - what did you expect the store manager to do or say?
> 
> I've recently had 3 wheels fixed for £70. Diamond cut too. They came up like new.


A broken kerb, that damaged my car, in their carpark. That's why I called the prick out. He just stood their like a lemon shrugging his shoulders. Utterly useless dim-witted idiot doesn't even cover it. Anyway, I've since made a formal complaint and now received a written apology and £100 in gift vouchers. Interestingly, when I went there last night after work, the offending curb has now been repaired :roll:


----------



## Mark Pred (Feb 1, 2017)

cdb said:


> Nice result Mark, can you please detail your procedure and what products you used. Thanks.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You need to first thoroughly clean the alloy and damaged area. Step two is to mask off the damaged area. If it's a minor scuff, step two is to carefully level off the damaged area by sanding. If the damage goes a bit deeper than the surface, then first fill with some epoxy putty (I use Milliput). For sanding, I start with a fairly course grit and work my down to something very fine. I do this by hand, using foam sanding pads, which you can buy from places like Halfords. I finish off with a sanding stick, which is super fine and effectively polishes the surface. You can get one of these from most model stores or just use a soft nail file, a couple of quid from Tesco (it will have 3 levels of abrasion, colour coded.

Final step is to paint it - I use an airbrush, but you can use touch up paint, but don't use the brush supplied! Use a small craft type paintbrush around a size 2 and apply very thin coats. Paint wise, first a grey Primer, then I mix mini Vallejo acrylics to get a good match, but anything close to the colour of the alloy is OK. Once it has dried, apply a thin clear top coat.

I've done a few mates cars for them, so have plenty of practice at it. But it is really quite easy to repair minor scuffs with a little patience. To get that warm, fuzzy feeling (as no matter how well you repair, you still know where the scuff was), I ask someone to try and spot where the scuff was after I'm done. If they can't see it, I know I've done a good job!

Oh the wheels are dressed with Gyeon Q2 Tire - the best!


----------



## jonnieb2018 (Nov 15, 2018)

I have kerbed my front passenger side alloy around the edge. I am told though because it is diamond cut, you cant just fill, sand and paint but the wheel needs to be skimmed down -is this right?

also slightly off topic but how does everyone else clean their alloys- gets all those little tar spots off?


----------



## Blade Runner (Feb 16, 2018)

jonnieb2018 said:


> also slightly off topic but how does everyone else clean their alloys- gets all those little tar spots off?


Even if you use a good alloy wheel cleaner (such as Bilt Hamber Active Wheel Cleaner) a few stubborn tar spots can remain. I have tried a few different tar removal products, but found that a touch of WD40 is the most effective. It may still take a bit of elbow grease but they do come off.


----------



## jonnieb2018 (Nov 15, 2018)

Thanks BR wil ltry the old WD40 route next time


----------



## BlackTipReefShark (Jun 1, 2016)

Mark Pred said:


> F1SpaceMonkey said:
> 
> 
> > I'm curious - what did you expect the store manager to do or say?
> ...


you sound like a *****


----------



## leopard (May 1, 2015)

BlackTipReefShark said:


> Mark Pred said:
> 
> 
> > F1SpaceMonkey said:
> ...


[smiley=whip.gif] :lol:


----------



## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

jonnieb2018 said:


> I have kerbed my front passenger side alloy around the edge. I am told though because it is diamond cut, you cant just fill, sand and paint but the wheel needs to be skimmed down -is this right?


Hi, As this topic states, it's surprising how good a finish you can get on a kerbed diamond cut rim with lots of soapy water, different grades of wetNdry & patience. Of course if deep you can't fill a diamond cut & expect it to look good.
Hoggy.


----------



## jonnieb2018 (Nov 15, 2018)

Thanks Hoggy


----------



## Mark Pred (Feb 1, 2017)

BlackTipReefShark said:


> Mark Pred said:
> 
> 
> > F1SpaceMonkey said:
> ...


You probably are one :lol:


----------



## Mark Pred (Feb 1, 2017)

jonnieb2018 said:


> I have kerbed my front passenger side alloy around the edge. I am told though because it is diamond cut, you cant just fill, sand and paint but the wheel needs to be skimmed down -is this right?
> 
> also slightly off topic but how does everyone else clean their alloys- gets all those little tar spots off?


Well, you can repair that damage fairly easily as I've described above. I've certainly cleaned up worse than that for a couple of mates. The alternative is an expensive trip to the pros. Judging by your pictures, that's very viable for DIY repair. If you cock it up, at least you tried&#8230;

Cleaning wheels? I do it properly&#8230; first I spray with an iron/fallout remover (Gtechniq W6 in the best you can get IMO), allow to dwell for a few minutes, then rinse off - using a pressure washer. That will get rid of most of the grime and brake dust. Then I use a pre-wash (Valet Pro Citrus) applied with a pressure sprayer (Metso); I then snow foam the car and wheels - as this dwells and seeps off the car, I use a wheel woolie to agitate any remaining dirt on the wheels/brake callipers. Then it's just a case of pressure washing the whole lot off. By now, the car and wheels will be pretty much cleaned. You only then need to do a quick hand wash with a mitt and two buckets/grit guards. Then dry off with a decent Microfibre Drying Towel. Then, if any remaining tar spots exist, just apply a small amount of tar remover and let it dissolve the tar, then wipe off with a paper towel. Gtechniq again sell the best tar remover I have ever used.

I protect the wheels with a coat of spray wax, which keeps them cleaner for longer and also makes cleaning next time round, wheely easy  oh and a quick coat of Gyeon Q2 Tire on the rubber. Some useful links:

https://gtechniq.com/products/

https://www.valetpro.global/Foams-and-P ... s-Pre-Wash

https://www.mesto.de/en/home/products/p ... er-10.html

http://gyeonquartz.com/product/tire/


----------



## Ddave (Mar 6, 2019)

If you want it fixed by a pro last time I heard there was a company called Lepsons that are supposed to be extremely good.


----------



## jonnieb2018 (Nov 15, 2018)

Mark Pred said:


> jonnieb2018 said:
> 
> 
> > I have kerbed my front passenger side alloy around the edge. I am told though because it is diamond cut, you cant just fill, sand and paint but the wheel needs to be skimmed down -is this right?
> ...


Fantastic right up Mark. Will probably give the repair a go later when its better weather and will take good look at those cleaning products. What spray wax do you use and do you use the GTECH on all the car or just the wheels?

When I do clean the car I go over it with a polish to restore the paintwork (say every 6 months) and then Carnauba wax (Collinite) regularly. What do others use out of interest?

I did buy the car with Audis GardX protection -but what benefits this has I don't know
If only I had as much patience these days!

Is this the Milliput you use?


----------

