Thread: Can Alloy rim's be Repaired?

Originally Posted by amshaw

Im looking at buying a set of 2nd hand Alloy rims.....But at some point when on 4x4 the wrong nuts where used or nuts became loose and now stud holes are elongated on one rim, ie because of nuts being loose the holes are now wider/bigger

Can they be repaired to a safe normal drivable level? If they can be repaired do they just shim up or alloy weld something else in the stud holes?

Also any idea who may do such repair's in Vic, or better still Country Vic (West)

Thanks for any idea's

don't know about alloys
Can do it with steels (because you can clamp them down ) but i don't think you will get away with it with alloys. Need to scrap that alloy

I've had motorcycle alloys repaired. Not cheap.

Ron

Originally Posted by p38arover

I've had motorcycle alloys repaired. Not cheap.

Ron

mmm Yeah noting to do with alloys is not cheap

I have a buckled alloy that needs fixing. But as it is the sixth wheel i am not too worried about it (buckled it while going round aus). If it is going to cost too much i am going to leave it as if i need a second spare then i will know it wobbles a bit , but i will not care at that point

Originally Posted by amshaw

Im looking at buying a set of 2nd hand Alloy rims.....But at some point when on 4x4 the wrong nuts where used or nuts became loose and now stud holes are elongated on one rim, ie because of nuts being loose the holes are now wider/bigger

Can they be repaired to a safe normal drivable level? If they can be repaired do they just shim up or alloy weld something else in the stud holes?

Also any idea who may do such repair's in Vic, or better still Country Vic (West)

Thanks for any idea's

G'day Andrew,

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I suspect that the cost of repair would outweigh the value of the rim. If the stud holes are all damaged then it would have to be welded. 1st problem is matching the material. There are many different blends of Aluminium and Magnesium that go into the manufacture of these rims. 2nd issue is once welded up the PCD of the stud pattern would have to be re drilled. Doing this without a wheel lathe or without having some sensible method of mounting and laying out the PCD accurately will lead to a less than optimal result.

Better to purchase another rim IMHO

Originally Posted by Stevo_62

G'day Andrew,

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I suspect that the cost of repair would outweigh the value of the rim. If the stud holes are all damaged then it would have to be welded. 1st problem is matching the material. There are many different blends of Aluminium and Magnesium that go into the manufacture of these rims. 2nd issue is once welded up the PCD of the stud pattern would have to be re drilled. Doing this without a wheel lathe or without having some sensible method of mounting and laying out the PCD accurately will lead to a less than optimal result.

Better to purchase another rim IMHO

totally agree .

don't know about alloys
Can do it with steels (because you can clamp them down ) but i don't think you will get away with it with alloys. Need to scrap that alloy

i worked for a small engine rebuild shop in brissy for 2 weeks, they did repairs to alloy wheels, as well as porting and re valving door slammer heads! they had a vacume table that would hold an alloy head/rim.

there are people that could fix these but most would nt be bothered doing the job.
i doubt that they would be welded up and re drilled, they would probably drill a larger hole and fit metal inserts in to reclaim the sizes and angles for the studs.

try looking in classic car mag's there are usually add's for such people.

cheers phil

The only thing you can do is fit tappered inserts that have the standard wheel nut hole in the centre but with a taper on the outside that is matched to a taper that is machined into the rim.

The other thing to take into acount is slight fractures that might be in the rim that could cause more probs down the line so I would get it crack tested or Xrayed before spending any more money on it if your not going to just scrap it.

Do Disco1 alloys rely on the "interference" fit of the rim to the hub like the Disco2 and many new vehicles???? ie the hole in the rim centre is centralising the rim not the wheel studs/nuts.
If so the repairing of the stud holes may be easier than first mentioned????
Andrew