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The chrome "plating" on my wheels has been absolutely beautiful...until about a month ago. I began to see some black on the edge and inside pf the rims of all wheels. Didn't think too much about that until last Friday. The car was posing for photos with a lovely Home Coming Queen and I noticed a big spot of missing chrome. On further investigation I find that the black spot is primer and that the "Chrome" is actually some fancy paint.

I'm pissed.

Looking for replacement wheels I have found that ALL have no warranty of any kind. You buy 'en and they're yours! The best Chinesium available. I wish we still made stuff in the USA!

I will likely get this stuff off my wheels, paint them the color of the car and add stainless trim rings. But for now, I need a quick fix as I have an activity this Thursday. I'm going to try some chrome paint (ah s..t)  since two of the wheels are passable and on the same side of the car.

Has anyone used chrome paint? Several companies offer them. I just need it to work for a week.

Thanks,IMG_20220925_072603656

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Last edited by Theron
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My wife used some Rustoleum "chrome" metallic paint on a project a few years ago and it looked really good - Surprisingly good!

Here you go:

https://www.amazon.com/Rust-Ol...11352532712&th=1

The Krylon Chrome paint is very good, too:

https://www.amazon.com/Krylon-...0051402803&psc=1

Imho those chrome paints are terrible. They have zero durability, and if you try to topcoat with a clear, it turns a dark silver.



The only place I have found a good use for chrome paint is the inside of a bulb reflector.  Spray it on, let dry, assemble and never touch it.

@imperial posted:

Does Brazil still make the Mangel chrome rims for VW bugs ?

the chrome on those was never long lasting and you often see sets at the swap meet for cheap with peeling chrome.

No. Haven’t for years. Decades maybe. I think Carey had the last load and it’s been a while.

@LI-Rick posted:

Imho those chrome paints are terrible. They have zero durability, and if you try to topcoat with a clear, it turns a dark silver.



The only place I have found a good use for chrome paint is the inside of a bulb reflector.  Spray it on, let dry, assemble and never touch it.

This has been durable as can be, but it costs an arm and a leg.

House of Kolor “Real Chrome” but it looks more like semi-polished aluminum, like I like.

It even suffered a dent without cracking.


The frame on my Vun likewise has a very “alloy-ey” look to it. No idea what paint, but it’s durable as can be.

They even heavily discounted the bike because there was some weld splatter near the frame head that they missed. The paint on that is still intact after 15 years. Sorry I don’t have a better picture of it.

BONUS: Now that we have unlimited editing, I can add it to my post when/if I ever find one. Thx again @Theron

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@dlearl476 posted:

No. Haven’t for years. Decades maybe. I think Carey had the last load and it’s been a while.

This has been durable as can be, but it costs an arm and a leg.

House of Kolor “Real Chrome” but it looks more like semi-polished aluminum, like I like.

It even suffered a dent without cracking.


The frame on my Vun likewise has a very “alloy-ey” look to it. No idea what paint, but it’s durable as can be.

They even heavily discounted the bike because there was some weld splatter near the frame head that they missed. The paint on that is still intact after 15 years. Sorry I don’t have a better picture of it.

BONUS: Now that we have unlimited editing, I can add it to my post when/if I ever find one. Thx again @Theron

David,  Gordon was speaking about a buzz bomb spray paint, not a 2 part catalyzed paint.  Not even remotely the same.  

Those paints you posted look nothing like chrome, btw.

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Sometimes I think Mangels get a bad rap  (1960s colloquialism - see Merriam-Webster citation).

I've had mine for about seven years now, I am at least the third owner, and they look like this:

Mangel

Admittedly, I'm not very finicky about appearance. I try to keep the car clean, splash some protective touch-up paint on stone chips, and don't allow bird droppings to age much before removing them. But my cleaning products are mostly water and a kitchen sponge. For the wheels, I wipe off brake dust every 100 miles or so with, again, water and a sponge, but that's it. I'm told you must wax these wheels or they will instantly turn to dust, but, after seven years of no wax, that hasn't happened.

Okay, okay, this is sunny California. These wheels have probably never seen salt and when they do get wet, they get to dry out in a garage — often a 130-degree garage. But still, I don't think they look too bad. I'm not seeing any cracking, peeling, or flaking. And no heartbreak of psoriasis.

There were a lot of copies of these wheels made in places that were not Brazil, so maybe it's the copies that are responsible for the bad rap (M-W, Op. Cit.).

I do know that Kirk (of the old VS) used to source these until Mangel suddenly stopped making them (around 2011, I think), whereupon he was compelled to use Mangel lookalikes from places that were not Brazil. But these ones do have some Portuguese writing in places you can't see when a tire is mounted, so they are presumably the real deal.

I think Mangels are a lot like cocker spaniels in that they will treat you OK as long as you're not mean to them. As far as I can tell, their only problem is that they need two more slots per wheel.

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Last edited by Sacto Mitch

Has anyone compared old Mangels with real 356 Porsche rims as far as the oval holes , and how close they were to the German original rims ,

and has anyone rechromed a set of Mangels lately .  I know to properly re-chrome rims you need to cut them apart and rechrome the inner and outer pieces separately and weld them back together ,

There were some repro 16 inch rims a few years ago and the oval holes were not as deep as the original German 16 inch rims…..

.

As hinted above, Mangels will never be mistaken for original 356 wheels, as Mangels were made for VW's and had eight slots, while the P wheels had ten.

As to taking apart a Mangel, re-chroming, and re-assembling, the cost would be way more than a set of Greg's (Vintage Motorcars) 190 alloy wheels, which are now available in the VW four-bolt pattern, have the right number of slots to ape a Porshee wheel, and weigh about half a ton less per wheel.

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@Sacto Mitch posted:

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As hinted above, Mangels will never be mistaken for original 356 wheels, as Mangels were made for VW's and had eight slots, while the P wheels had ten.

As to taking apart a Mangel, re-chroming, and re-assembling, the cost would be way more than a set of Greg's (Vintage Motorcars) 190 alloy wheels, which are now available in the VW four-bolt pattern, have the right number of slots to ape a Porshee wheel, and weigh about half a ton less per wheel.

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Correctomundo, Mitch. Mine are 5 years old and the powdercoat looks brand new.

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