Refurbing Leon Cupra Starfish Alloys

useyourname

Active Member
Aug 2, 2012
322
0
In a shed
I took the path of trying to refurb my own alloys - I don't think it's as cheap as everyone makes out - expenses have come to £150 so far and I could do with spending more including a decent spray mask.

I've just finished the first wheel. It was the most damaged and I had some hiccups along the way. The colour is e-tech competition white.

I would advise anyone refurbing these alloys is to REMOVE the tyre - I had it all painted and the next day it cracked because of poor coverage on the edges.

I'm doing one at a time in my garage which means I'll have a crappy 16" wheel on for a few weeks at least as I'm leaving it 5-7 days once finished before applying poorboys wheel sealant and then getting the tyre refitted. I'm on the eye out for a spare starfish alloy to help with this..

Here's the pic - the light is crap because my garage door is shut. I'll get another one when it's on the car.

9Iq5TjU.jpg
 

tipping44

Tipping44
Jul 30, 2014
144
0
telford
Yeah looks great, Seems like a lot of hassle and time, Did you get a price on how much is to get the Refurbished by a shop/garage ?
 

useyourname

Active Member
Aug 2, 2012
322
0
In a shed
Yeah looks great, Seems like a lot of hassle and time, Did you get a price on how much is to get the Refurbished by a shop/garage ?


It's around £200+ here. I did want to do this project just to see if I could -- I nearly regretted it when I had to get the the tyre taken off but it's all a learning process. The remaining 3 should be straight forward.. I hope ;-).. Oh and I'll have to wait and see how long they last - it's only 1K paint from aerosols which I know isn't up to the standards of 2k... I've already planned to get them refurbed in 6 months if they turn to pot haha
 
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RICKY3

Active Member
Jun 2, 2012
1,002
3
AYRSHIRE
Instead of taking tyre off just get the outer bead broke No paint edges plus wheel wont get marked puttin tyre back on
 

useyourname

Active Member
Aug 2, 2012
322
0
In a shed
Instead of taking tyre off just get the outer bead broke No paint edges plus wheel wont get marked puttin tyre back on

The tyre place offered this but I turned it down - I didn't want the hassle of getting home to find out I didn't have enough room. I'm going to protect the wheel with cloth as much as I can when they're refitting and I'll probably just get the bead broke on the remaining wheels.
 

dazza1414

Active Member
Apr 17, 2014
36
0
I've got white wheels on my black LC and I think they really stand out but it's a case of loving them or hating them for a lot of people. The only problem I found was that the centre caps soon started to look a different shade of white which in turn made the wheels look almost a creamy colour. I remedied this by carbon wrapping the centre caps and putting seat stickers in the middle. the end result is pretty effective.
 

useyourname

Active Member
Aug 2, 2012
322
0
In a shed
I've got white wheels on my black LC and I think they really stand out but it's a case of loving them or hating them for a lot of people. The only problem I found was that the centre caps soon started to look a different shade of white which in turn made the wheels look almost a creamy colour. I remedied this by carbon wrapping the centre caps and putting seat stickers in the middle. the end result is pretty effective.

My Seat middle parts from the centre caps are not in the best shape - I was considering those vinyl stickers over the top - I'll see how it goes.
 

ibizaboi

Active Member
Feb 18, 2009
392
1
Sudbury
Looks awsome! Im going to be doing this soon how msny coats and primer did you use?and also hoe msny ca.ns per wheel?
 

useyourname

Active Member
Aug 2, 2012
322
0
In a shed
Looks awsome! Im going to be doing this soon how msny coats and primer did you use?and also hoe msny ca.ns per wheel?

Thanks :) Well... as this was the first wheel there was a learning curve.

I used 1 coat of grey primer as a guide coat to show imperfections - this showed lots of bits I missed... I then resanded some and applied etch primer for bare metal areas then did the whole wheel in high build primer to help cover scratches etc...

I then put about 2-3 coats of white primer on. I put about 4-5 coats of colour on - it all depends how thick you apply it - I tried to do lighter coats to start and then gradually build up... then 4 coats of clear coat next day.

I've got 3 cans of colour in total which I think will be enough and 1 can of clear coat that came with it.... I guess 'wheel see' once I've finished how many cans but I think what I have is going to do.

Good luck.
 
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