Diamond Cut Alloy Wheel Repair

For all your enquiries please -
Phone us on: 01603 203 030
E-mail us at: ORDERS@DISTRIGOTRADEPARTS.CO.UK

Are there any limitations to what can be refurbished?

You should always be mindful that we are performing a refurbishment, not manufacturing a brand new wheel, and so there are limits to what can be achieved.

The vast majority of wheels can be successfully refurbished to a high standard and we consistently get excellent feedback from our customers about what we achieve.

However, there are situations where refurbishment is possible but will not bring a wheel back close to its original appearance, or in some cases refurbishment cannot be performed at all.

The general guideline is that the underlying quality of the alloy wheel that we receive determines how successful we will be in returning a wheel back close to its original factory finish.

Any significant flaws in the wheel will inevitably limit how good the refurbishment will be.

Unfortunately it is sometimes not possible to determine this until the wheel has been through the aqua blast stripping process and the bare metal of the wheel is visible for detailed inspection by our technicians.

As a rule of thumb if you have older wheels, excessively corroded wheels or previously welded wheels then it may not be possible for us to achieve a finish just like its original appearance when it first left the factory.

As you would expect, there are situations where a wheel may be beyond repair and it would be unsafe to use even if we attempted to repair it. In these cases we would inform you that we cannot proceed.​

Number of diamond cuts:

There are also limitations on how many times a wheel can be diamond cut. This is because each time a wheel goes through the diamond cutting process the cutting head on the lathe removes a thin layer of metal from the face of the wheel. In these instances we will let you know if this is likely to be a problem and you could opt for a different paint finish altogether.

Mapping lines:

Sometimes a lightly coloured line, known as a ‘mapping line’, will be visible on the edge of the spokes on the face of the wheel after it has been diamond cut. This is a consequence of the diamond cutting process removing very small amounts of metal from the face of the wheel and exposing the underlying primer. Whether mapping lines will be present depends on the profile of the wheel and the number of times that the wheel has been diamond cut previously, which can accentuate the appearance of mapping lines. Our highly skilled technicians aim to minimise the extent of these mapping lines but we cannot be sure in advance how visible the mapping lines will appear on the finished wheel.

Low patterns:

If the area of the wheel to be diamond cut (the ‘pattern’) is low or uneven, perhaps through deliberate design on the part of the wheel manufacturer or having been diamond cut previously, then the center cap and / or any badge details will usually sit proud from the wheel. This is an unavoidable consequence of a low pattern when performing a refurbishment. 

Lathe clamp marks:

Due to the high forces that are encountered during the diamond cutting process each wheel is securely held in the lathe using a clamping mechanism (the ‘lathe jaws’). This enables the wheel to spin at high speed while being cut at the same time. The result is that there will usually be clamp marks visible on the back section of the wheel where the lathe jaws were holding the wheel. It is not possible to diamond cut a wheel without clamping a wheel in this way.