I refinished 1930 Buick wood spoke wheels with Metal Rescue

[Dwight Romberger]

Here is the pictorial I promised of refinishing my 1930 Buick Model 47 wooden spoke wheels. My goal was to get professional results using products and equipment that are readily available to the D.I.Y. hobbyist. I purchased all the products on the Internet and had them shipped to my home.

Three coats of bare metal epoxy primer (Max Spray 2K primer/filler) in rattle cans filled the rust pits.

I did not take pictures of the basecoat/clearcoat process (3 each). The basecoat is an extremely dark blue 1985 Mercedes-Benz D Blue DB-904. I had it mixed and put in rattle cans by PaintScratch.com. It is a dead ringer for the original color (1930 Buick Traverse Blue). The clearcoat is also in a rattle can (SprayMax 2K Glamour clear coat).

I refinished the rims the old fashoned way (grinding, wire brushing and sanding), priming with a bare metal epoxy-primer (Max Spray 2K primer filler), filling deep rust pits and gouges with a polyester resin finishing putty (Pro-Flex), and painting with Eastwood's cadmium replica paint.

Next week I travel to Hersey PA. for TIRES!

Edited June 22, 2013 by Dwight Romberger (see edit history)

[TexRiv_63]

That looks GREAT!

[michaelod]

Dwight,

Excellent job on the wheels. Thanks for the tip on the rattle can paint. I did not realize there was a company out there able to duplicate any color and put it in a can, I had the engine paint I purchased from Bob's put in rattle cans and that worked out very nicely, but in that situation I had to supply my own paint. How long did you let your wheels soak in the rust remover?

Thanks,

[42crazy]

I stripped my '30 wheels by beadblasting, which is no small chore, trying to turn them inside a blasting cabinet. They turned out beautifully. The toughest part, as you will probably agree with, is taping off the wood when you spray the drum. It's extremely tough trying to put masking tape on compound curves, and getting it underneath the wood by the drum. Yours look great, good job. Very time consuming. Oh, by the way, the bead blasting did not hurt the wood, just be careful and keep the pressure low, and the media not too aggressive. Paul

[Dwight Romberger]

Thanks for the compliments guys.

Michael, I soaked the wheels for 24 hours.

Paul, I agree about the taping. I understand there is masking tape that will make turns and follow contours, but I did not seek it out. You will note I was not able to get the nozzle low enough (the outside edge of the wheel was in the way) to spray under the spokes. This is apparent in the digital photos, not so much in person. After I mount the rims on the wheels, I will have to do some touch ups. I might try using an airbrush to get back under the spokes. Next time I think I would also leave a little bit of the wood (1/16"?) exposed where it meets the steel. I think it would leave a cleaner appearance. I might do that for the touch ups. I agree, bead blasting is definitely a viable option if you have access to the equipment.

Dwight

[Thriller]

Cool. Thanks for sharing. I've been wanting to get started on the artillery wheels on my '29, so this is good to see.

[8014haar]

Any luck finding replacement bolts for the wheels?

[Dwight Romberger]

My wheels bolts are in good shape and all are present. I do recall someone looking for bolts, but I don't remember who it was.