Red "Rimblade" rim protectors on Multicoat Red 19" wheels (w/ photo)

[gpetti]

Hi
one more question. After any scraping "sacrificing" how do they look? My son suggested that black might not look as bad after scraping. Do you replace these after scraping and is that easy?
Ok that was about 3 questions.

 

[SteveS0353]

Hi
one more question. After any scraping "sacrificing" how do they look? My son suggested that black might not look as bad after scraping. Do you replace these after scraping and is that easy?
Ok that was about 3 questions.

I don't have definitive answers for any of your questions, because I have not scraped them yet, nor tried to replace them. The Rim Blade material is a flexible silicone extrusion, and the color is uniform throughout. Assuming you could clean any debris in the scratches and they were not too deep, I think it would look OK. They are bonded to the wheel with a double-sided 3M tape, and the installation kit includes an adhesive accelerant wipe for each wheel. The bond seems quite strong, but not impossible to remove as they are intended to be sacrificial and replaced as appropriate.

 

[Herbie65]

I don't have definitive answers for any of your questions, because I have not scraped them yet, nor tried to replace them. The Rim Blade material is a flexible silicone extrusion, and the color is uniform throughout. Assuming you could clean any debris in the scratches and they were not too deep, I think it would look OK. They are bonded to the wheel with a double-sided 3M tape, and the installation kit includes an adhesive accelerant wipe for each wheel. The bond seems quite strong, but not impossible to remove as they are intended to be sacrificial and replaced as appropriate.

I prefer an alloyGator which is made of sturdy nylon. Compare this to a 3M tape held rubber Rimband. especially how it is holding up when scraping along a curb...

 

[artsci]

I prefer an alloyGator which is made of sturdy nylon. Compare this to a 3M tape held rubber Rimband. especially how it is holding up when scraping along a curb...

My Alloy Gators were messed up pretty badly by some curb scrapes and they didn't protect the wheels. And they were a pain to remove and replace. None of these products are what they're cracked up to be. Frankly, I've given up on rim protectors. I've learned to be far more careful around curbs and other things that can damage the rims.

 

[gpetti]

My Alloy Gators were messed up pretty badly by some curb scrapes and they didn't protect the wheels. And they were a pain to remove and replace. None of these products are what they're cracked up to be. Frankly, I've given up on rim protectors. I've learned to be far more careful around curbs and other things that can damage the rims.

Hi according to the post above, rim blades don't share these problems:
Red wheels (w/ photo) - Page 2

Obviously YMMV and ultimately I've decided to try them out on my winter wheels as they are about $70 and easy to remove if I don't like them. I will report back in this thread either way. I will not be depending on these as a magic solution but I know form the past that no matter how careful I am, sometimes things happen.

 

[artsci]

Hi according to the post above, rim blades don't share these problems:
Red wheels (w/ photo) - Page 2

Obviously YMMV and ultimately I've decided to try them out on my winter wheels as they are about $70 and easy to remove if I don't like them. I will report back in this thread either way. I will not be depending on these as a magic solution but I know form the past that no matter how careful I am, sometimes things happen.

Some protection is proabably a good thing, even if not perfect, expecially when the car is relatively new and unfamiiiar. As you get more confortable with the car you may find them unnecessary.

 

[gpetti]

Some protection is proabably a good thing, even if not perfect, expecially when the car is relatively new and unfamiiiar. As you get more confortable with the car you may find them unnecessary.

You'd think! I did my damage after a few months. Having built up a bit of confidence, one rushed maneuver is all it takes.

 

[Dborn]

Just installed Alligators on two cars, mine and my kids new Mazda. Not that big a deal to install. They look fine. I just like the little bit of insurance they provide.

 

[morbot]

Some protection is proabably a good thing, even if not perfect, expecially when the car is relatively new and unfamiiiar. As you get more confortable with the car you may find them unnecessary.

I've only parallel parked my car a couple times, but I find with the auto-tilt mirrors in reverse it's pretty easy. I have the tilt set low so I can see my rear tire as it relates to the curb and make sure I keep my distance.

 

[gpetti]

So after taking my time to do a good job putting red rimblades on my winter wheels, I finally got my car and took it to a local mechanic to get the wheels put on. One thing I hadn't taken into account is that due to the change in TPMS sensors the mechanic had to take the tires off the wheels to install the new sensors (the wheels were originally on my older Tesla). As it turned out, two of my tires needed replacing too. Thus I ended up with the rim blades damaged badly enough on two wheels that I removed them and one other wheel in need of attention. So disappointing. Currently I have rimblades on one side and not on the other so I guess at least I can take comparative pictures to aid in my future decision on whether I want to stick with the red rim blades. Ultimately I think I will have to take them all off, particularly as only one of the two is really still in good shape.

 

[gpetti]

Have my summer tires on now with the rimblades. Doing my best not to test their effectiveness. Will further report if I curb them.