How to: repair bent steelie that's leaking air

[Rick Astley]

If you've got steelies either from aftermarket, Base or Black Diamond trim level, then you have the ability to repair the lip or beading surface of your rim if it's leaking air.

In this how-to, I'll be using your standard 4-slot ubiquitous Ford steelie on my 1961 Ford Thunderbird but the process is the same on any steel rim.

Before you begin, you need essential safety gear:

• Safety mcglarkles for you and any of your buddies holding beer nearby
• Gloves
• Electrical tape to staunch any bleeding should your stroke go astray
• Ear plugs in every orifice and/or Reverend Horton Heat blasting in your garage
• Mother on speed dial

Tools required:

• Hammer, any will do, i prefer ball peen and a 3lb sledge
• Your cheapest punches, on this Harbor Fraught or worse will do you a treat
• Beer. Depending on the angle of your dangle, this could end up being a 2-beer or a 6-beer job. Plan ahead, you don't want to be doing an excruciatingly long hand finish on this job without a beer nearby

Beer 1:
Get your workshop ready and mark on your tire the lady bits of your girl needing the hammering on. This is a very minor bend which is leaking just a few PSI (metric) per week. Your wheel may need more beers and strokes.

Beer 2-3.5:
You've sealed the leak and re-beaded the tire fully! Or did you? Check this by spraying windex or another fluid which will easily show bubbles in surface tension all over the offending bead, spread the love all around the bead if you like.

This steel is pretty damn hard and was formed under 10,000+ lbs of pressure. Feel free to beat on it like it's done you wrong You won't be moving steel very quickly doing this by hand. So stay lubricated and focus on every stroke. A single misguided stroke and before you know it, you're squirting fluids uncontrollably and using that "Mother on speed dial" safety gear!

Beer 4-5:
Now this next step is optional but if you're running beautifully restored Sombreros or another hubcap that's going to get attention, you should address your dirty wheel beater marks. My preferred fix is a high quality surface paint as shown, I go hard and bring two tip widths to treat my Bird real nice and sweet like, she loves the KING SIZE! As always, YMMV, and you gotta use the size of touch-up pen you were blessed with.

** Full Disclosure: if this had been an outside lip I would have taken the effort to round the lip further to look sharp, but on an inside lip, I just wanted the seat to hold properly and stop the leak.

Music suggestion for beating your wheels:

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[VIRUS]

Do you listen to that while riding around? That may be what caused the damage to begin with.

 

[KABQ]

My first concert was Reverend Horton Heat! Also, best write-up of the year so far.

 

[Toccoa]

Once again Rick, you never let us down.

 

[Rick Astley]

Do you listen to that while riding around? That may be what caused the damage to begin with.

Yes and no. (See images below)

My first concert was Reverend Horton Heat! Also, best write-up of the year so far.

Damn, nicely done on the first concert! Your parents were either highly responsible or incredibly irresponsible. Bless them either way!

And a good buddy has a 1962.5 Chiffon Blue Galaxie 500 with a few autographs from the Reverend and Dale Watson on the dash.

And you bend rims pretty easily when you're static dropped at about 1 beer can of frame clearance. Different lines are taken, things get hit.

 

[KABQ]

Yes and no. (See images below)



Damn, nicely done on the first concert! Your parents were either highly responsible or incredibly irresponsible. Bless them either way!

And a good buddy has a 1962.5 Chiffon Blue Galaxie 500 with a few autographs from the Reverend and Dale Watson on the dash.

And you bend rims pretty easily when you're static dropped at about 1 beer can of frame clearance. Different lines are taken, things get hit.

Hard yes on that Galaxie 500 (and your T-Bird as well). I missed an opportunity to buy a plain-jane Galaxie when I lived in Denver, and dreams of a slammed 'billy Ford still float past when I close my eyes.
As to my first show, my parents are cool as hell and I'll leave it at that haha

 

[Cat]

Cute write-up.

 

[Thed]

I just use bottle jacks.

 

[Fly by Nite]

One more bit of important advise!: Do this well away from your car! S**t can go flying when hammers, chisels, and beers are involved..... unless you're going for that patina look on your ride.

 

[Rick Astley]

One more bit of important advise!: Do this well away from your car! S**t can go flying when hammers, chisels, and beers are involved..... unless you're going for that patina look on your ride.

That's why the empty beer cans are stored inside the workshop, it dampens any flying objects.

Duh!

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