HI to all,
a quick question regarding the condition of my original Campagnolo wheels. The paint has such a strange structure in many places - see the picture. The seller had the rims repainted before the sale last year. Is that something to worry about? Do I have to do something about it now? I could live with the blemish of the imperfect paint.
If a restoration is needed, who in zentral Europe would do such a job?
Thanks.............Eugen
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Hallo Eugen
i am from the south of Germany and I know somebody in my area who has the knowledge to do these rims in the right way let me know if you need help. I wouldn't#t worry about the looks of the paint too much.
But the Campagnolo Rims from that time have the problem of the Magnesium alloy which was produced in a low pressure casting. today after fifty years those rims can have micro cracks and superficial microporosity that can face a threat today with regards to overall strength and stability. I am not a specialist of those rims but that was told to me by more informed people.
I do use my original rims and have no bad feeling at all, I have not heard of a total failure of such Rim but I am sure there will be other opinions about the subject.
As a matter of fact there are two companies in Italy that reproduce the Rims in the same shape and size but of Aluminium that is less likely to suffer the same ageing problems than Magnesium alloys.
hope that helps a little
retards Ulli
Ulli, wow, thanks for the information! The Italian companies I found make them only in 8 and 10 inch wide. On my stock Pantera body I have them in 7 and 8 inch. I would not mind to switch to aluminum rims if available.
If you could share your contact for treating the rims that would be great!
Greetings from Salzburg............Eugen
Eugen, that clearly looks like some sort of reaction between the new paint and subsurface, due to a lack of pre-paint preparation. It is not the result of some sort of structural defect in the wheels. Have them refinished by a Professional wheel refinisher and they will be fine. Just make sure you use someone that has experience with magnesium wheels.
Thanks for confirming that there is no immediate action required!
Campy magnesium rims must be properly refinished. Stripping and painting alone will not work. Furthermore, power coating is even worse. Suggest you contact Michale Savage. He runs a FaceBook group and here is his recent post:
Is there a link to his site or page?
Just go to Facebook and search for DeTomaso Marketplace or click on this link:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/382725028732552/
The moderator is Michael Shortt. He restores a lot of Campagnolo wheels and seems to know exactly how to do it for the best results.
It's Michale Shortt's Facebook Group site
Before refinishing and painting, shouldn’t magnesium wheels be annealed first ?
@joea posted:Before refinishing and painting, shouldn’t magnesium wheels be annealed first ?
YES!!!
Here's a link to an article on how to do it:
Thanks to all! In the meantime I talked with a specialist for magnesium (@Ulli: thanks for the contact!) with a lot of experience with these Campagnolo rims. He says that the paint defects in my photo are a typical sign that the paint-job of the rims was not done properly. He sees this very often. If you leave it, the paint will eventually crumble and the magnesium will be corroded. So it's better to have it restored sooner rather than later.
Eugen
You are very welcome no problem, we are here to help each other to keep these wonderful cars running.
Grüsse Ulli
