hey h-t

i felt like sharing my adventure of restoring my Rikens.

enjoy

Products being used:
-multiple grits of sandpaper
-aircraft paint stripper
-Mothers billet/aluminum polish
-rubber gloves
-microfiber towels
-primer, paint, clear coat

Post 1: original condition i purchased it in, took off metal valve stems, then 400 grit, then 600 grit

Post 1 pics & procedure: 6/2/09

this is how i got them, nice and ugly







this is when aircraft stripper was applied to the gold mesh area, also some on the lip








removal of valve stems






this is where the fun starts! 400 grit+beast mode=exhausted haha

















cig break


this is 600 grit and a couple of destroyed pairs of gloves











________

UPDATE!!!

Post 2: 1000 grit, 1500 grit, and polish by hand then drill bit with furry ball attachment

Post 2 Pictures & Procedures: 6/17/09

update on the Rikens starting the day with 1000 grit no much visual difference but feel is getting smoother






1500 grit, again not much visual difference but feels nicer





AND for the polished product!!!(thanks for the help,my friend em2slo here on H-T) i did the first coat by hand with a microfiber towel, then i got tired and hit it off with a drillbit fur ball looking thing i found in the shop...







unfortunately the Riken's are very old and there are blemishes that just do not want to come off, so i will just try to hit it again with the polishing and i will just deal with the blemishes that do not go away.

and here comes the long stretch for the finish line...

___________

drum roll please *drums*

Final UPDATE!!!

Post 3: Taped off, Primed up (2 coats), sprayed with paint (2-3 coats), sprayed with clear coat (2-3 coats)

Post 3 Pictures & Procedures: 6/20/09

FINAL update on the Rikens with the paint procedure starting with the tape off





next sanding the face with 400 grit to have a smoother surface & after 2 coats of black primer





AND FOR THE FINAL PROCEDURE!!! the 3 coats of paint, 3 coats of clear and removal of tape







i wanted to go gold but there wasn't many options with gold paint at my local pepboys and autozone. so i just went with the paint they had alot of and also the most attractive in the clear casing. Gunmetal..

and that people is my Riken Restore Adventure, thanks for following and hope it helps anyone that wants to do the same..

thanks to my friends bReal, art, bert, em2slo for helping me with these tedious task of restore these very old rims..

comments are always welcome...thanks again H-T..till next project write-up! i will post final pictures of them mounted ASAP..

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Mounted on my vehicle pictures:




thanks for following

 

That's a tough wheel to polish. Good luck!

 

yea man tell me about it. i have 2 or 3 more grits till i actually start polishing.then comes the re painting of the complicating mesh ><*

 

Right about 2 hours in I would look at them and give up.

 

haha i felt the give up coming on around that time. but i was like crap im too deep now i gotta finish the rest of the wheels. OCD kicked me in the face haha

 

And made off with your wallet.

 

absolutely =(

 

nice! what car are they going on?

 

well they were intended for my baby blue ed6 but then i sold it. so now it is going on my new project. D.A.P. ej6 =D it is going to look so nice purple n gold..lets hope the wheels come out the way im imagining haha

 

oh and Mets ftw! (avi) lol

 

bump for me lagging on them..i will get to them next week after my work weekend..

 

BUMP FOR AN UPDATE haha almost there!!

 

Let's finish these up n wrap em by Friday lol

 

Do you need any center caps? I think I might have some; I'll have to check.

 

i really appreciate it, im actually missing one..just PM me with details if anything..

 

bump for the final update..hope it helps others in my shoes

 

good job man, rim polishing is a bitch. show em mounted!

 

yea i will post up a final pic of them mounted when i get my tires..and it was a REAL bitch to polish lol what an experience..thanks again

 

Thats a good job you did there

 

They look good but if you would of started out with a lower grit of sandpaper the lips would of turned out alot better.

 

yea your absolutely right, but i did not have as much money as needed. so i went with just the 400-1500..maybe eventually ill go at em again..maybe haha

 

thanks i appreciate it

 

It's all good they still look great. If you ever think about selling them i might be intersted. I've always liked those. There was a guy local to me selling a set of 14's a wile back and i slacked on them.

 

if i find SSR's or BBS's for a decent price i probably will sell them but i like the slam i get from coilovers and 14s ><*..but if anything i will post them up if i do decide to sell...and that is another reason why i purchased them, i slacked on them aswell a couple years back haha..small world

 

Found one!



Let me know if you want it.