Could you get a better picture of the spots you are talking about? I would start by washing the wheel again, then try a clay bar on it. If the spots remain move to a chrome polish on a terry cloth towel, they're more aggressive than a microfiber towel and still won't scratch your wheel. If all else fails you could move to 0000 steel wool lubricated with chrome polish to try and remove the spots.

 

added better pics to post 1

 

where can you find 0000 steel wool?

 

any parts store has it. steel wool with get it out, like mentioned lubricate it with polish.

 

powdercoating....
BEFORE


AFTER

 

I do not recommend this at all, on a fixable polished wheel yes BUT NOT CHROME. A nice 3m rubbing compound (light color) and a soft rag and some elbow grease should do the trick!!! Ask kbracing96 how nice his chrome bumpers and side moldings came out after i got the water spots off!

Dustin

 

Thanks FER
I want to eventually powder coat them because the chrome is starting to peel on the backside. Wasn't sure how shiny or dull the black powder coating would turn out.

Question answered.

 

Have you tried using a clay bar? Not sure if it will help, but it can't hurt to try..

 

A clay bar wouldn't hurt, and you'd likely see some improvement. However, I'd go right to a MILD polish (emphasis is important). OTC products like Meguiar's cleaner wax or Scratch X just might do the trick...also try your favorite metal polish if you'd like. Move up in aggressiveness if and as you need to, but I doubt you'd need something like a compound or heavy polish...in fact, that would likely leave behind more damage than it corrects.

Some folks like 0000 steel wool on chrome, but I don't. Generally, chrome plating is a pretty durable finish, and can take some abuse. To my eyes it looks like what you've got is some baked on grime that will come off with some elbow grease and a mild polish. There is one area on the lip I'd be concerned about - it could be some pitting underneath the chrome...but it's very hard to tell from the one picture. If you can provide some follow-up shots after another effort, that'd be great.

So....clean the wheel (use some QD spray just to be sure there isn't any surface dust or other residue). Then start in with the polish. Use a terry applicator or towel for a bit of extra bite, apply moderate pressure, and work the polish in a bit so the abrasives can break down and do their thing. (20-30 seconds is fine - basically you need to know that it's more than a wipe-on wipe-off thing.) After doing a small section spray some more QD and wipe away the residue to check your work. Good luck...

 

Just buy some turtle wax chrome polish to start out with. Unless it's pitting it will clean it right up. Don't sweat this one too much