5 Good Reasons To Avoid Wheel Repair Kits

A wheel repair kit may seem like a quick and easy DIY solution, but even the best kit on the market can lead to a botched job.

An experienced professional may pull off a flawless repair with one of these things, but for regular folks, tackling an expensive set of wheels with a cheap repair kit is a big gamble. Is it really worth the risk?

If you ask us, not really. We have five reasons why:

1. Using A Wheel Repair Kit Is Not As Easy As It Seems.

Ignore the resounding “fast and easy” claims advertised on wheel repair kits. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Restoring your wheel requires a lot of time, effort, and care. Surface prep can be difficult, and it’s only the first step. The subsequent process of cleaning, sanding, applying putty, priming, and painting is so volatile that a small hiccup could throw the whole thing out of whack. You might end up doing a lot more work than planned.

By the way, we compared some DIY Wheel Repair Kits here. Take a look and you’ll see what we mean.

2. Wheel Repair Kits Consume Your Time And Money.

Using a DIY wheel repair kit could end up costing the same as hiring a professional to restore your wheel.

Let’s say you value your time at $20 an hour. If you spend three hours on your wheel with a repair kit, that’s $60 in labor right there. Factor in the cost of the kit and any materials you might need, and you could exceed your budget. Even then, you still may not get the results you were expecting.

3. The Paint Doesn’t Always Match.

Unless you’re a pro at paint jobs, you’d have a hard time blending in the new paint with the old paint. The generic paint found in most kits fails to perfectly match the color on most wheels. This makes blemishes inevitable, and they can be difficult to hide.

Professional wheel repair takes practice. That’s why the pros charge so much.

4. Wheel Repair Kits Don’t Provide Any Future Protection.

Only a few things are worse than spending hours on a great wheel repair job only to have it scratched up again the next time you park. If you want tips on how to prevent wheel damage, check out this article.

5. There Are Better Options For About The Same Price.

You’re better off spending the same amount of money (if not a little more) on a professional to repair your wheel. That way, you know the job will get done right. Still, proceed with caution because not all pros provide long-term protection.

To protect your rims – for about the same price as a good repair kit – you can get a set of RimBlades, which can: