How-to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels



After a few months of rain, dirt and brake dust, billet aluminum wheels will oxidize, stain and loose their shine. This method will show you how to refinish your wheels.

You will need:

- An electric drill

- Tripoli Rouge Buffing Compound (Brown)

- Chrome Rouge Buffing Compound (Green)

- Medium and Fine Buffing wheels 6-8″

- Metal Polish ( I used Mothers Power Buff Ball)

- Microfiber Towels

The 3 main things you need to be aware of when polishing anything are:

1. The Coarseness of Buff and type of Buffing Compound
- Use the correct buff wheels with the correct compounds. Start from course then fine.

2. Direction of Buffing
- Always buff in the even straight directions. That means no ovals or circles or star patterns ect.

3. Pressure Applied and Heat Generated
- Most compounds work the best when they generate alot of heat, but trial and error will tell you how much pressure to apply.

img 1072.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

First thing you need to do is wash the wheel and clean off any dirt and dust particles. If the wheels isn’t clean, the buff will only scratch the wheel.

img 1069.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

You can see the water stains and pits in the wheel here:

img 1070.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

Attach the Medium Buffing wheel to your electric drill and saturate it with the Tripoli (brown) rouge buffing compound.

img 1075.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

Buff the wheels making sure not to bump the wheel with the drill and scratch it.

img 1076.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

Once your done the wheel should look like this:

img 1078.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

img 1079.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

To get rid of any fine scratches repeat the last step but use the fine buff with the green compound. Once that is done, hit the wheel with your favorite metal polish. I chose mother’s power ball.

img 1080.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

Wipe the wheel down with a microfiber towel.

img 1081.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

Finished Wheel

img 1085.thumbnail How to Restore the Shine in Your Billet Aluminum Wheels

DONE