My wheel refurb write up

[amccan10]

Hi All,

I've been looking about getting my wheels refurbished for a while now and put together a write up:

My main criteria:

1. My current wheels are slightly kerbed so the edges should be repaired

2. The wheels must be powdercoated and not spray painted.

- Powder coating will provide a much tougher finish than wet spraying

(I've had wheels sprayed before and found that after 9 months or so the paint has some chips in it)

3. Ideally I would need a 1 or 2 day turnaround

- I've only got 1 set of wheels and this was easier than trying source a loan pair or have the car off the road for a prolonged period of time.

4. As there was some bubbling of the paintwork on the inside of the wheel I wanted a "proper job" not just the faces painted.

5. I wanted a nice tidy job but at the same time didn't want to pay over the odds.

So over last few months and have contacted quite a lot of the Glasgow(ish) based refurbishment companies and dismissed most based on the following:

My wheels are gold, many companies did not offer gold powdercoat.

Some only offered a 3-5 day turn around.

Poor customer service, not responding to emails or phone calls quickly.

Clearly trying to rip me off as gold isn't a "standard colour"

Oh and there's another lot close to my work,

Initially I was considering using them but witnessed them acting like bellends on more than a few occasions.

(Firing rockets across the street and shouting abuse at one of my work colleagues for driving a 996)

So eventually I bit the bullet and today have had my wheels refurbished by Chameleon in Renfrew, mainly because they were one of the cheapest of all the companies I contacted, were very quick at responding to emails and offered a 1 day service

The process:

Removal of tyres

Stripping of old paint

Shot blasting

Powder coating

Refit of valves and tyres and wheel balancing of the wheels.

The car was dropped of at 9.15 and was ready for collection at 3.00pm

Contact details can be found here and ask for Linda

http://www.chameleonmetalcoatings.co.uk/

Overall I'm very happy, but I'll let the pics do the talking:

Wheel needing refurb:

Close up:

Stripped and Shot Blasted Wheel:

Finished Wheel:

Close Up:

Overall:

[marky.t.s]

Looking sharp,do you still get an SIDC members discount in there? do you mind sharing the overall cost with us?cheers.

[jamesm]

Looking good mate.

However, the test will be what they are like after a year. Chameleon did wheels for me a while ago and they lasted less than 12 months before the laquer and coating below failed on all 4 wheels. Went back to Chameleon with the problem but they didn't want to know.

I have seen good and bad reports about Chameleon , but personally, I would never recomend them.

[amccan10]

I was quoted £220 for a 1 Day service or £180 for a 3-5 Day. Your best bet would be to email Linda in the office.

As for the coating coming off, thats horrendous.

If I'd have known that I may have considered going else where.

I'd read plenty of reviews on many of the other forums that I've been on. The majority of which were good, granted there were a few that werent great but nothing like that.

In the meantime I'm happy with the finish and I'll see how well it lasts

[jef]

that looks a proper good job mate.

very nice, and close to me - ill definately remember them when the time comes.