Anyone with Wheel Knowledge

[DriftingNda240]

I have just bough a set of 17"s and one of the wheels has a crack on the inside lip through and through. So my question is can I just Tig Weld up the crack on the inside and see if it will hold air? It might hold air now but I'm not sure, never had tire mounted on the wheel. By the apperance of the crack it shouldn't hold air. I will post some pics for you too see what I'm talking about and hope you can help so I can refinish the face of the wheels and get them on my car.

[WesTnine9]

Take it to a wheel repair shop or buy a new wheel.You cant fix this yourself unless you know what your doing and posting this here confirms you don't. Just make a few calls.

[liquid_cool]

lots of things come to mind...is it cast?...if so..junk it..second...will it cost more for the repair from a shop-vs- new perchase?....and will the repair hold?..would suck to be stuck somewhere....just buy a new one man..save the trouble.

[DriftingNda240]

THanks, I will look in to just buying a new wheel.

[low91240sx]

If your a decent tig welder and you can machine it go for it I've seen it done but again take into factor the time and that and in the end if it's going to be dependable

[ddgsxr504]

I see your problem, the inside of the wheel says made in Taiwan.

Seriously, you can take that wheel to repair place and have them weld it and grind the weld down. Good as new, it also depends on the price of the wheel. If it costs $150 or less then just get a new one otherwise just get it repaired.

[Gabes13]

nothing bondo can't fix

[s13gebala]

^ jb that *****

[disrupt]

I work for a company that does nothing but look for cracks and recommend repairs in industrial equipment and cranes. If you are going to weld it up you MUST gtsm (gouge to sound metal) or basically chase the crack with a grinder and ensure you get to the end of it. stop at a local welding shop buy a set of liquid penetrate aerosol cans and verify you got the whole crack. Weld fill the area you ground out to the original geometry and grind flush. if you just weld what you can see at the surface the crack will continue to propagate further into the wheel and out towards your surface repair.

Please wear a mask while grinding aluminum since it doesn't corrode (surface corrosion only which protects the rest of the particle) and will stay in your lungs unlike steel which will corrode and be removed by your body

Tig is the way to go.

Best of luck.

[ddgsxr504]

I work for a company that does nothing but look for cracks and recommend repairs in industrial equipment and cranes. If you are going to weld it up you MUST gtsm (gouge to sound metal) or basically chase the crack with a grinder and ensure you get to the end of it. stop at a local welding shop buy a set of liquid penetrate aerosol cans and verify you got the whole crack. Weld fill the area you ground out to the original geometry and grind flush. if you just weld what you can see at the surface the crack will continue to propagate further into the wheel and out towards your surface repair.

Hey, NDI/NDT I do that for a living too, except on Jets and Helicopters.

[DriftingNda240]

Would it be good to drill out the end of the crack before grinding it out? And I'm going to have my High School Welding Instructor weld it, He is one He** of a welder, 25+ years...

[DriftingNda240]

lots of things come to mind...is it cast?...if so..junk it..second...will it cost more for the repair from a shop-vs- new perchase?....and will the repair hold?..would suck to be stuck somewhere....just buy a new one man..save the trouble.

Also ADR has disconiunted the [White] GT-Sport wheels.

[disrupt]

I would just use a grinder. I looked at the pictures again. looks like the crack goes quiet a distance. PLEASE get some liquid penatrants so that you ensure you got all of the crack.

To the NDT inspector. You are in the marine corps doing NDT work. Do you get certified to a government standard like normal industry guys or does the military have their own standards.

[ashibah83]

ADR [White] GT-Sport wheels.

theres your problem