Restoring Fiat Roosevelt "Libre" Wheels
"Backyard Style"

Lets Begin:
The starting point are some badly pitted and corroded Fiat Roosevelt aluminum wheels. These wheels have a history of being fragile, but if you have a pair that has survived this long, chances are that they are a set of the last ones and are ok to use. You should go over the wheels carefully looking for cracks. Especially around the lug holes and where the centers connect with the rim. These wheels used special bolts that have a smaller diameter than standard mag wheel nuts. If your wheels have been modified with inserts, then you are ahead of the game. If standard mag wheel nuts fit your wheels, then your wheels have been modified or are the American Racing version and should also be ok. Regardless of the fasteners, If you have old or rusted bolts, you should consider replacing them with new ones. These bolts are no longer available from dealers and will have to be custom machined. Some information on doing this is available here.

Back in 1969 when these wheels were cast, there were very few places that were familiar with aluminum wheels and many were damaged by tire changing tools. These wheels showed evidence of damage due to tire tools during changing (dents to the rim from lug wrenches) and grinding on the rims from tire changing machines. After 35 years, there is no telling how many tires these wheels have seen. Sadly these wheels were pretty badly banged up with some curb rash, dents from tire tools or mounting, and pretty bad pits from the corrosion. But you can see that the wheels are presentable and could be used for a daily driver, which is what I'm after.

A local wheel shop here in St. Louis quoted me a price of $400 sight unseen to restore these wheels to better than new condition. Sadly this would bring my total investment to over $800 for these wheels so I'm going to have to live with them as they are. I have about $30 total in my restoration including special 3m grinding wheels and buffing wheels from Harbor Freight. I've found similar materials also in local auto stores but at much higher cost. If you have a paint show nearby you can check with their supplier. Usually they will deal with the public if they are not too busy, they will even give lots of free advise (only the materials are expensive) I'm satisfied with the results after a few hours of labor, and they look much better than most of the wheels that I see on the road today.

You may click on pictures for larger views

Starting Point:
Hopefully your wheels won't be in this condition. You can see the heavy pitting and corrosion on the entire surface. Brake powder was also encrusted on the back surface making it hard to see what they were. The color of the aluminum had changed so much that the wheels had a magnesium color. At this point a good washing with Simple Green will help get some of the surface dirt, brake dust and corrosion off the wheel.

At this point, I like to use a coarse plastic scrubbing pad like a 3M Scotchbrite pad to kind of grind off the tops of the corrosion. After you get as far as you are going to go with the Scotchbrite pad, you can dry off the wheel and move on to some more caustic action.

Removing Pits and Corrosion: Eagle car care products makes an "etching" aluminum wheel cleaner that is perfect for getting off the oxidation, rust colored corrosion and will help to loosen some of the more stubborn brake dust. It goes on as a foam that doesn't run off the wheel quickly like some other brands. Before using this product. Acid if left on the wheel without agitation will produce it's own discoloration that is very difficult to remove. so keep the wheel wet and the foam moving as you work. I would recommend that you put on some rubber gloves and eye protection. Spray the wheels liberally with the etching spray. Let it sit for a couple of minutes. Don't let it pool or dry on your wheels, or you will have more problems than you started with!!!. The acid will dull the wheels to a uniform gray casting color. This is not a bad thing. It is perfect for the center section, and will get rid of any stains and most discoloration of the aluminum on the polished area of the rims. This is a perfect time to use this harsh stuff on the wheels. Once you begin polishing, you won't want to use this stuff ever again.

After letting it sit for a minute, being careful to keep spraying the places where it runs off, you can take the Scotchbrite pad and work the acid into the corrosion and brake dust. You should have a pretty thick brown/gray mess at this point. Rinse off the wheel with water and survey your work. This wheel took over four applications of acid and scrubbing before it started looking much better. I could probably have done an other four sessions. The acid should lighten the aluminum color back to normal and remove any rust stains and corrosion. After you are satisfied with the condition, you can do a final rinse and dry the wheel. You can spend as much time here as you want. This is the time where the most difference is made in the process.

Once the wheel is dry, you can decide how to proceed with the next step. There are two issues with this design. The polished rim and the sand cast center section. I like to use a dry Scotchbrite pad on the cast section. After you hit the center with the scotchbrite pad, you can re-apply the acid to restore the gray casting color. If you have access to a glass bead blaster you can do a better job in this area. Just be sure to mask off the rims or you will make your work harder.

If you do decide to send the wheels out to be blasted, don't use sand or anything that will harden the wheels and make them brittle. Plastic media is best followed by glass beads. At this point you can decide to paint your centers or leave them a natural finish. The wheels can be powder coated, or Eastwood makes a spray that simulates the natural sand casting. This might make your wheels easier to clean with the brakedust. BTW, after your are finished with your wheels, you will want to use only soap and water or special products for wheels that are painted or coated to clean your wheels even if you leave them natural. Harsh acids will ruin your lug nuts and eat off the polished surfaces. Generally I was pleased with the original finish after getting all the corrosion off the wheels and sanding down the rims to remove the sandblast finish.

I know this is supposed to be a "backyard" project without using exotic methods, so the wheel in the picture on the right represents my results with just soap, and sandpaper. The results were quite satisfactory though, I did however wish that the "factory" finish of the sand casting was more uniform, and didn't want to restort to paint, so when an opportunity arose to borrow a blast cabinet, I masked off the rims and gently went over the center sections with fine glass beads which produced a very smooth patina which looks much better than the original finish. Glass bead blasting makes short work of removing all brake dust and corrosion from the wheels like majic, but you must be careful not to go overboard with the process or you will harden wheels that are already prone to cracking. Plastic is the best media to use followed by fine glass media. Acid will still be necessary to create a uniform color to the casting and remove stains from the aluminum.

Polishing: For the polished rims, I used a 3m pad on a drill to remove most of the corrosion pits. These come in different colors to represent the coarsness. I started with the coarse orange and then moved on to the blue medium wheels. Then I like to use Scotchbrite pad for a uniform satin texture, then 180 wet or dry paper, to 300 wet or dry paper, to 600 wet or dry paper, and then use a polishing wheel. If you have pretty good rims to start with, you could go to 1200 wet and have a nice finish to color polish. For the final finish I use some red rouge polishing compound to bring out the luster of the aluminum. The result is a near chrome finish. More time with the sander could have removed almost all of the corrosion on the rims, but I can stay focused only so long. I'm looking for about a 90% job. The overall effect is quite satisfying. If after a while I decide to go after 5% of the rest of the restoration, I can with the wheels mounted on the car. The polishing never stops. Remember only use soap and water or products for painted wheels with your polished wheels, or you will begin the polishing process all over again.

Total time investment was about two hours per wheel of dirty wet work. You can save yourself some time and mess by using a small palm sander and good polishing compound (stick) and buffing wheel. I like using a 1/4" drill motor for doing the rims as it is light and can be maneuvered into small places. I highly recommend gloves, and safety glasses while working with the buffer and acid to protect yourself.

One of the nice things about Aluminum wheels is that almost any wheel can be completely restored (even these wheels) by a professional with the welding equipment and large lathes that that they have to spin the wheels. The polishing equipment will be able to take care of all of the pitting that is evident on these wheels. After a few years of use, I may decide to send them out to be professionally restored, but for right now I consider them to be in "nice condition" which is what I bought but didn't get!!!