Brabus Refurbishment and colour choice.....

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350_Coupe

Active Member
Joined
Oct 31, 2010
Messages
830
Location
Oxfordshire
Car
2005 C350 Coupe SE
ok guys, looking for some help in my decision making process, here's what we're looking at.

I have some 18" Brabus Monoblock VI's for my sport coupe that are in need of a light refurbishment.

The plan is to only run these between March thru November (ish) and use my original cheaper MB 17" alloys during the winter months with winter tyres on them.

(Click to enlarge)


They have some minor kerbing, and various areas of lacquer peel and damage, and some corrosion lifting the lacquer, all in all they are actually quite good, but i want them refurbished before i start using them.
They are currently Brabus Polished Silver i think, the face looks diamond cut to me, with the rims a little more polished, and the inner edges are Silver.

so, now i need to work out....
  • Where to send my wheels to
  • Whether to take them or ship them
  • The type of finish
  • Colour choices

I have read these 2 threads HERE and HERE and with such strong recomendations i have to admit that i may not be looking around as much as i thought, although these guys BJV Engineering - Alloy Wheel Refurbishing have also been recommended/suggested by a member here, and they are a little closer to me


So.....

Finishes
  • Diamond Cut
  • Metallic Paint (powder coating)
  • Black Chrome (BJV Engineering)

My initial thoughts on this are a diamond cut face, with a darker colour on the inner edges, the image above is similar to what i'm thinking, except maybe a slightly darker inner colour, perhaps light anthracite, and for the rim a more polished diamond cut.... what do you guys think that have ahd this diamond cut process done ?

Alternatively i could look to this Black Chrome finish/paint that BJV offers, anyone know how that looks in the flesh ? and what is "Black" Chrome ? lol or, i could go with a silver on the face, and then the darker inner and a polished rim, or diamond cut rim, or this black chrome on the outer rim perhaps.

Bearing in mind the these rims have already suffered because of lacquer issues and it's the main reason for the refurbishment, so obviously i'm a little sceptical on the diamond finish, however they do look good like that.

@jaymanek - if your reading this (thank you) .... what colour did you have yours done in, and was that a straight diamond cut on the rims, or polished ? - also how have they lasted ? (not withstanding your wife's contribution :doh: )

@Howard - thank you for your link to BJV, do you know much about this black Chrome finish ? and have you had some wheels done there ?



So, guys.... especially those that have had wheels refurbished either recently or maybe a year ago, please post your thoughts on the processes, and durability, and any recommendations you may have for where to go.

Colour thoughts also welcome, these are to go on my Obsidian Black Coupe which is im my gallery pictures.


Time scale is not an issue, because i plan to make use of the wheel tyre combination i currently have until November, and switch to winter tyres on those rims, before swapping to these Brabus rims early next year.


Shipping versus Drop-off/Collection
Obviously this is going to be distance restricted, as it stands both of the places mentioned would likely cost more for me to get to in fuel than it would to ship the wheels, i do have the original boxes, however they are far from ideal, so how have you guys found them in regards to shipping ?

I can't afford to put tyres on them right away, is it worth maybe waiting until i can and have the refurbishers put the tyres on, that way any damage is covered ? - it kind of depends on their tyre prices too i guess
 
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Hi there,

I don't know about the black chrome finish , as i've nver had it done.

BJV have refurbed several sets of wheels for me , i tend to just go for the diamond cut lip with painted face ( this might look nice with a black chrome face and cut lip )

BJV IIRC collect wihin 40 miles of their workshops in Flaunden , they charge £20 for this.

I wouldn't have them completely diamond cut , nowhere will guarantee a diamond cut / laqcered finish for longer than 6 months. In fact BJV tried to talk me out of diamond cut lips , as they wouldn't last , but i keep on top of cleaning my wheels , so i insisted and very nice they look too.
 
ok thanks, i'm about 60 miles from them i think on a quick check.

The diamond cut does worry me a little in relation to durability, but i do like the machined "natural" look of the alloy when it's done nicely.

However, i will honestly say i am not the best at staying on top of keeping the car/wheels clean (only have to look out the window right now to know that!)

I don't know about the whole face either, and certainly not as chrome, i don't want the bling affect, nor blinding my reflection of sunlight as i walk to my car lol

Thanks for the input.
 
ok guys, looking for some help in my decision making process, here's what we're looking at.

I have some 18" Brabus Monoblock VI's for my sport coupe that are in need of a light refurbishment.

The plan is to only run these between March thru November (ish) and use my original cheaper MB 17" alloys during the winter months with winter tyres on them.

(Click to enlarge)
They have some minor kerbing, and various areas of lacquer peel and damage, and some corrosion lifting the lacquer, all in all they are actually quite good, but i want them refurbished before i start using them.
They are currently Brabus Polished Silver i think, the face looks diamond cut to me, with the rims a little more polished, and the inner edges are Silver.



so, now i need to work out....
  • Where to send my wheels to
  • Whether to take them or ship them
  • The type of finish
  • Colour choices
I have read these 2 threads HERE and HERE and with such strong recomendations i have to admit that i may not be looking around as much as i thought, although these guys BJV Engineering - Alloy Wheel Refurbishing have also been recommended/suggested by a member here, and they are a little closer to me


So.....



Finishes
  • Diamond Cut
  • Metallic Paint (powder coating)
  • Black Chrome (BJV Engineering)
My initial thoughts on this are a diamond cut face, with a darker colour on the inner edges, the image above is similar to what i'm thinking, except maybe a slightly darker inner colour, perhaps light anthracite, and for the rim a more polished diamond cut.... what do you guys think that have ahd this diamond cut process done ?

Alternatively i could look to this Black Chrome finish/paint that BJV offers, anyone know how that looks in the flesh ? and what is "Black" Chrome ? lol or, i could go with a silver on the face, and then the darker inner and a polished rim, or diamond cut rim, or this black chrome on the outer rim perhaps.

Bearing in mind the these rims have already suffered because of lacquer issues and it's the main reason for the refurbishment, so obviously i'm a little sceptical on the diamond finish, however they do look good like that.

@jaymanek - if your reading this (thank you) .... what colour did you have yours done in, and was that a straight diamond cut on the rims, or polished ? - also how have they lasted ? (not withstanding your wife's contribution :doh: )

@Howard - thank you for your link to BJV, do you know much about this black Chrome finish ? and have you had some wheels done there ?



So, guys.... especially those that have had wheels refurbished either recently or maybe a year ago, please post your thoughts on the processes, and durability, and any recommendations you may have for where to go.

Colour thoughts also welcome, these are to go on my Obsidian Black Coupe which is im my gallery pictures.


Time scale is not an issue, because i plan to make use of the wheel tyre combination i currently have until November, and switch to winter tyres on those rims, before swapping to these Brabus rims early next year.


Shipping versus Drop-off/Collection
Obviously this is going to be distance restricted, as it stands both of the places mentioned would likely cost more for me to get to in fuel than it would to ship the wheels, i do have the original boxes, however they are far from ideal, so how have you guys found them in regards to shipping ?

I can't afford to put tyres on them right away, is it worth maybe waiting until i can and have the refurbishers put the tyres on, that way any damage is covered ? - it kind of depends on their tyre prices too i guess


As far is shipping goes, the cost was £5 per wheel, professionally boxed and double protected. You could send your wheels in your existing boxes safe in the knowledge that Rimfurbish would send back the wheels in the protected boxes. So £40 for all four wheels there and back. :thumb:

As Howard says, not many companies guarantee the diamond-cut finish. However, Rimfurbish do offer a 12, month guarantee on that finish. The refurbers I spoke with before using Rimfurbish quoted no guarantee or three months guarentee.
 
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I can confirm, refurbed Diamond cut wont last, black chrome is a colour I would choose, but you need to consider how itmight look on your car.
 
thanks for that, i do have family up that way, so 2 birds with one stone maybe.....

alternatively the shipping option is not out of the question, as that seems very reasonable.
That chrome colour is just a colour i can't seem to picture for some reason, and if i went with it i would be thinking of it for the rims, rather than the diamond cut finish, and then silver and darker colour on the insets, not sure how the black chrome will look on the car, cause i dont have anything to compare the colour to sa a reference


EDIT:
how shiny are the diamond cut finishes ?.... i'd like a machined finish, and do admit i like the natural alloy finish rather than a powder coated silver made to look like the alloy
 
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i have the 20" version of these Brabus wheels fitted to my GL, and BJV refurbed them at the beggining of the year in the 'black chrome' finish.

finish is quite bright, and they did a very good job considering the nooks and crannies with the twin spokes.

posting a pic up is a bit pointless, as you will not be able to notice much between standard finish and the chrome finish on a picture; you need to be actually looking at the wheels.

i still prefer the diamond cut finish on the 20" amg wheels on my ml amg though.....
 
Diamond cut is pretty shinny, check out some other threds here, search for rimfurbish. They alsoe apper to offer a 12 month guarantee.
 
yep. been trying to look at as many as possible, like i said i'd like the natural machined finish, slightly shiny with an rim/lip that is more polished, but not mirror type polished.

Rimfurbish does seem to be a name that is returning more and more, and the work seems 1st class


EDIT:
anyone know if they do centre caps as well ? - these i think are polished ally as well, and although in good nick, wouldn't hurt from a polish
 
Wicked wheels can do a good job too.
 
Used Rimfurbish in the end..... not exactly speedy, but good finish, went for diamond cut face, and anthracite colour

 
Nice finish!

Shame you didn't send ya slippers off there too! :D
 

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