Wonder if anyone has experience with this. I am exploring this as an alternative to chrome. I know it's not the same thing and will not look the same but I would be satisfied with some of the results I have seen online. Wheels would be painted to start so would use aircraft stripper and maybe walnut shells to finish depending on what it takes to remove existing painted finish. To protect the somewhat fragile finish I might use a metal protectant like Wolfgang.

__________________
Tony H
W111 280SE 3.5 Coupe
Manual transmission

Past cars:
Porsche 914 2.0
'64 Jaguar XKE Roadster
'57 Oval Window VW
'71 Toyota Hilux Pickup Truck-Dad bought new
'73 Toyota Celica GT

First class wheel refinishing

You might take a look at this beginning with Post #106. My bundts came out looking good and still in 2024 look pretty nice. This has all the stripper and paint and clear that I used.

Polishing aluminum (in my opinion only) requires a lot of continual work.

Agreed polishing is a lot of work. Not sure how it compares to painting. The stripping is the same for both. This is just hypothetical at this point. Wheels would not have tires on them.
Chrome is too blingy but polishing is more subtle. I may explore some paint options.

__________________
Tony H
W111 280SE 3.5 Coupe
Manual transmission

Past cars:
Porsche 914 2.0
'64 Jaguar XKE Roadster
'57 Oval Window VW
'71 Toyota Hilux Pickup Truck-Dad bought new
'73 Toyota Celica GT

If you choose to polish, consider top coating with a 2x epoxy clear coat. This will protect them for years and make washing/cleaning a breeze.

Here's a link to the ones I refinished over 3 years ago. Still look the same

CLK Light Alloy Forged wheel refinishing

不管是抛光还是告诉喷砂，都是为了能让轮毂重回往日风光