Refinishing an oxidized F1 magnesium wheel? help please!

[matthilaman]

Hey everyone, im looking for some advice for a little project i have here. My father bought a F1 wheel back in the 70's. It was off a wrecked McLaren driven by James Hunt and it is a cherished piece of his. i would like to refinish it for him as a fathers day present(along with F1 texas tickets) since he has always been wanting to bring it back to life, but I have no experience with magnesium alloy wheels.

I know this metal is very touchy and reacts negatively to certain acids and liquids. it is pretty oxidized with some rusty bolts, but im not sure how i should go about this. does anyone have experience with this type of metal? should i just start taking sandpaper to it then some metal polish and sealant? i obviously dont wanna mess this up so any help would be awesome. I will be leaving the tire on the wheel since it has a huge crack in it so i obviously couldnt reseal the bead..plus i dont feel comfortable taking a 40 yr old tire off haha.

here are some pics to show the oxidization.

[e46s54dr]

Id media blast it, sand it, steel wool it, then hand polish it.

[Click]

Read up son

http://www.magnesium-elektron.com/data/downloads/DS256SU0.PDF

[Kershaw]

step 1 would be to dismount the tire.

[Sputnik]

wheel specs? lol.

[Keith M]

I've dealt with magnesium firewalls on vintage Bentleys. I would dismount tire, clean with glass beads, scotch-brite then polish. Beware that magnesium oxidizes very fast so you have to keep it polished.

[matthilaman]

Thanks for the info guys. Ill see if my dad is willing to let me take the tire off then go from there. Ill start a refinishing thread for this wheel and the style 5's i have coming in.

The wheel i a 13x16. Tire is a 16.2/26-13.

Any ideas on somewhat restoring the sidewalls?


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[10Toes]

Use a torch and burn it all off...

[Gregs///M]

After polish, be sure to lay down a thick clear coat to protect from oxidation.

[Kershaw]

I've dealt with magnesium firewalls on vintage Bentleys. I would dismount tire, clean with glass beads, scotch-brite then polish. Beware that magnesium oxidizes very fast so you have to keep it polished.

really? a magnesium firewall?

who the fuck thought a highly flammable metal would make a good firewall? wtf. :shock: that will be a quite literal wall of fire.

[Keith M]

The Bentley 8 Litre used cast magnesium for the firewall and various other engine parts. Most earlier models used cast aluminum.

[TobyB]

step 1 would be to dismount the tire.

good luck with step 1- that tire is going to be a rock, glued to a rim that may by now
be even more fragile than it was in 1976. And anyway, the tire's as cool as the rim...

I pull the Goodyear slicks off the wheels every fall- if they stay on over the winter, it's hell
getting them off come spring.

If you want to clean it up, media blasting (mask the tire off, leave it on)
would clean the mag, mechanically clean the steel, then a clear coat.

Very cool- I'd leave it as it is, call it patina!

heh.
t

[Kershaw]

The Bentley 8 Litre used cast magnesium for the firewall and various other engine parts. Most earlier models used cast aluminum.

and how many of these "firewalls" instantly torched the car? i imagine it wouldnt take too big of a fire to make it ignite. :dot:

[Massimo]

magnesium firewalls

lol kinda defeats to purpose.

[Keith M]

They built 100 8 litres with the same 3/4" thick cast firewalls and I believe 100 still exist today. Much less heat than wheels are exposed to, especially on a F1 car and I don't see them spontaneously combusting. The bell housing, transmission, valve and front gear covers were also made of magnesium.