Originally Posted By: MI_Roger
Aluminum wheels should NEVER be wire brushed. Any bead cleaning should be with a rouge wheel and soft compound.
Wire brushing an aluminum wheel is a guarantee for more frequent future bead leaks and replacement of wheels.
Not being a ****, but curious. I wasn't a lifer there. Only worked there for a couple years, but the process we had in place was one of the better ones in town and we frequently fixed other shops negligence. However I can't recall replacing rims due to wire brushing.
Do you know how long it would take to clean the beads on 8 24.5s with soft compound? I don't think the customer would want to pay that bill. Granted were talking car tires, but you say all aluminum wheels. So I am curious. Do you run a tire shop using this process? Again not trying to be a ****, but there is the consumer way, the lazy business way, and the best mix of both. Consumers research the best way to do things. If it takes them a day so be it. Lazy people look for the quickest buck in the business. The best mix approach looks at the right way to do it, and implements the most important aspects in order to provide the best service at the proper price. It took us longer than other shops to do tire repairs. Many people would ask why we don't just push a plug in like the other shop and send them on their way. They would complain about the cost as well. At the end of the day, its your name on your work. If the customer doesn't like it too bad, but at the same time you can be waiting around for paint to dry on a steel wheel like your training would tell you.
Reminds me of the TIA handbook. All steel wheels are supposed to be wire brushed by hand, then repainted completely, allowed to dry and then a tire installed. I never met someone who did that professionally. That would take hours.