Another RSR Fuchs thread, Got them stripped...kind of like them without the black Options

[Mark Henry]

So I'm doing the RSR treatment to my straight but cosmetically challenged Fuchs.

First I stripped the anodising from one wheel using a caustic soda (also known as lye or Sodium hydroxide) solution, it takes off the anodizing like a champ, but hardly touches the old paint. Bottom left rim first pic has been in the caustic soda . So it was off to the hardware store for some stripper.

The stripper worked, but I had to take off the paint leftovers with the bead blaster (last pic).
They are going back into the caustic soda solution again tonight to get rid of the rest of the anodizing.

I love the finish, it has me debating whether to leave them like this or to paint the usual black background. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

[Mark Henry]

Just a few notes, I changed my solution after 2 rims. Since this is such a weak solution I saw no issue just dumping it on the grass, it wont hurt it, just dilute it with lots of water. I use more than this when I clean out the chicken shed, but you might want to keep pets away from your work area till it dries.


steuspeed PM'ed me about this and I thought I'd share my opinion with everyone.

Will the Lye strip give me the stock gray finish on the lug section? Should I polish the rim and the petals then have it re-anodized? Just found a shop about 40 blocks from my house. APEX Anodizing.

I have a cracked 4-bolt Fuchs here so I scratched the finish to check it out. IMO the gray part of this rim is just the raw unpolished forging, in fact I can clearly see grinder marks. It's just clear anodized.
You would have to clean it before anodizing it and thus run the risk of polishing it too much, if you clean it with a soft cloth you may be OK. You could replicate this finish to a certain extent by bead blasting with a very fine grit.
This finish on the Fuchs are factory grade, they are known to be far from perfect. I know exactly how they polished the petals, you just have to look at it. They spun the rim and hit it with a polisher. Most likely you will end up with better finish than the factory which some CW's might not like.

You must protect the finish when done by paint, clear coat or anodizing, some peeps will even coat it lightly with vaseline (yuck). The issue with clear coat is it will end up slightly darker than stock.
Anodizing would be my choice, it's what the factory did.


That's it for now, I'll update this thread when I finish them. Unfortunately due to other commitments I won't be able to get back to these for a couple of weeks.
Below is a pic of the now raw aluminium rims, cleaned and ready for finishing.

Cheers