Refurbishing Rostyle Wheels

In many ways, Rostyle wheels defined an era for classic car fans in the UK. From the late 1960s and into the 1970s they became common on just about everything from the Mk2 Cortina1600E to the rather more staid Rover P5B, from the sporty MGB to the ubiquitous Vauxhall HC Viva and from the rakish H120 Sunbeam Alpine to the bluff Range Rover all the way through from launch to 1986. In fact they lasted on the SWB Land Rover Defender until 1995.

The Rostyle name comes from Rubery Owen, the company that made them, and is an adaptation of RO-style. Rubery Owen can trace its roots back to 1884 when John Rubery set up an iron works with two brothers. The Rubery Owen name arrived in 1903, some years after Alfred Owen had replaced the two brothers at the company. Rubery Owen prospered and grew. It was a major sponsor of BRM's assault on the Formula One title and Donald Campbell's World Land Speed record breaker, Bluebird. In its heyday in the 1960s Rubery Owen employed over 17,000 people worldwide, and 5000 just at its main works in Darlaston, South Staffordshire. The later downturn and recessions of the 1970s were not kind to the company though, and in 1981 the Darlaston factory was closed, though the company itself survived.

One of its seven divisions in the 1960s was dedicated to supplying components to the motor industry, and the Rostyle wheel is undoubtedly the most famous of those items. This was fitted to many cars as original equipment, to others via the aftermarket. The wheels were designed to mimic the Magnum 'slot' wheels that had been popularised in the USA through motorsport initially, but quickly making the transition to enthusiasts on the road. They were also immortalised in the UK by Wolfrace, whose first wheel was the Slot Mag introduced in 1971 and which quickly became the go-to choice for modifiers and the custom scene on everything from Reliants to Beach Buggies.

The original Mag wheels had been made of magnesium, as befitted their competition heritage. That material was also used for the first Minilite wheels, eight-spoke affairs introduced in 1962 for the BMC Mini, but subsequently available in a massive range of sizes and fitments. However, while magnesium was fine for competition cars, it was less than ideal for road use as it was prone to corrosion, and through the 1960s manufacturers shifted towards aluminium alloy for road use.

However, despite appearances, the Rostyles were made of steel, not alloy. Designed in the mid-1960s, they featured raised 'spokes' that were painted aluminium grey, with the spaces between them being painted black to resemble the slots in the most popular style of Slot Mag wheels. The design did away with the need for hubcaps, a small disc in the centre usually sufficing to display the car's badge or name.

An interesting aside concerns Triumph, who introduced a hub cap for cars such as the early Stag, the TR5/TR6 and big saloons that had a stainless steel wheel trim which was essentially a kind of fake Rostyle. Oddly, it had five fake wheel nuts too, even though the wheel beneath only had four. Many of those trims have been destroyed over the years when owners or garage mechanics failed to realise they were only a hub cap that could be levered off, and instead took a wheel brace to the fake nuts with too much vigour.

Triumph Rostyle hub cap

MG was probably the biggest customer for Rostyle wheels throughout the 1970s, fitting them to both Midgets and MGBs. It is the style from this era that most people associate with the Rostyle name – a silver rim and four main silver 'spokes' leading from this to the centre cap, plus four smaller spokes leading from the rim to the bolt holes, and the spaces between these spokes being painted black. However, there was an earlier and relatively short-lived style offered by MG, and we have refurbished a set of these as well as the later type.

Refurbishment of a Rostyle wheel is time-consuming rather than technically difficult, with painting the black sections neatly usually being the most difficult aspect. For the most authentic finish these should be sprayed black, MGOC Spares stock single use adhesive masks for MGB Rosyle wheels (W545A) to blank off the quadrant sections before spray painting. Some people struggle to get a crisp edge with the adhesive masks. This can be attributed to the stickers having dried out, ineffective degreasing of the wheel before application, significant pitting of the steel, or because the mask has been removed and reapplied to improve alignment, losing adhesion.

Good results can be acheived by hand painting the quadrants using either satin (original) or black gloss enamel paint applied with a fine horse hair brush. Any over-painting should be quickly wiped off with spirits using a clean cloth. Careful preparation is key to achieving professional results and we have covered the various approaches in detail below.

With original Rostyle wheels being anywhere from 45 to 58 years old, increasingly we are finding that many are unserviceable due to significant corrosion of the steel, elongation of the lug holes and kerb damage.

MGOC Spares offer partly refurbished, silver powder-coated Rostyle wheels for MGB and Midget on a 1-4-1 or customer-own unit basis, requiring painting of the quadrants to complete. All wheels are carefully assessed for serviceability prior to refurbishment and are rejected if deemed to be unserviceable. In such circumstances, we refer customers to second-hand part suppliers. When purchasing secondhand units, owners should avoid wheels which show any of the following issues:

• There is significant pitting where the tyre sits against the inside rim (bead) which can give rise to air leaks. this is usually a result of the wheel having been left outside with a tyre on, collecting water between the tyre wall and rim.
• The wheel nut lug holes have ovalized, preventing safe/secure fitting of the wheel nuts.
• There is significant corrosion in the seam between the wheel disc and rim which is inaccessible during media blasting making for poor finish.
• There is damage to the rim which cannot easily be straightened out.  Twisting and/or buckling can be easily detected when the wheel rim is rolled on a level surface – if the wheel skips or wobbles, reject it.
• There is significant gouging or scratches which cannot be built up prior to painting.

In respect of MGBs, it's worth noting that two specifications of Rostyle wheels were fitted by the factory. Rubber bumper MGBs produced from 1976 onwards used Rostyle wheels which had a wider offset to counteract the effect of body roll caused by the increase in ride height and addition of heavy rubber bumpers. These Rostyle wheels can be identified by removing the wheel centres and laying the wheel face down. Wider offset rubber bumper wheels will lay flat across the rim and do not rock/tip from side to side. Earlier Rostyle wheels fitted on chrome bumper MGBs from 1970 to 1974 are narrower in offset, such that these will wobble when laid on their face due to the wheel centre protruding further than the rim. 

The image above displays the earlier (narrow) and later (wide) Rostyle wheels laid on their face. Notice the wide wheel does not lay flat on the rim. 

 

Midget Rostyle Wheel Refurbishment

The wheels shown here are of the early specification Rostyle design fitted to Midgets from October 1969 to 1971, until the introduction of the round wheel arch models. They are in a typical used condition after five decades of hard living. As long as the bead area is not corroded and leaking air, you can undertake a DIY refurbish without removing the tyres.

 

Here you can see water trapped in the joint between the rim and the inner section, but this is a recent occurrence as these wheels have always been stored upright on the car, and mostly in a garage too. As a result, corrosion in this crevice is only light and not detrimental to the wheel's structure. Note that the bolt holes are nice and round rather than ovalled which would make them unsafe for continued use.

 

These wheels have not suffered too much in the way of bumps and scrapes, this slight dent in one rim being the worst we could find. Being steel, it is easy enough to knock out minor damage, but severe dents and buckles will require professional expertise or replacement.

 

For a thorough job, it's preferable to remove the tyres to allow you access to both sides of each wheel, as well as the inner rims. First step was therefore to have the old tyres taken off and disposed of. With the tyres removed, be sure to roll the wheels along a flat surface to check that there is no sideways wobble or skipping from distortion.

 

At this point, you can either remove the paint & corrosion yourself and spray paint the wheels. For this, MGOC Spares stock silver acrylic spray paint (WP1) for wheels. For a set of five wheels we recommend purchasing 2 x 500ml aerosols.
For a professional result, you can purchase replacement silver powder-coated wheels through MGOC Spares on a 1-4-1 or COU basis. If we're not holding stock, please give us a call to arrange collection and refurbishment of your wheels.

 

The shiny new powder coating will need scuffing up to provide a key in those areas where you intend to apply black paint, otherwise the overlaid paint will not adhere well. If you have a steady hand, a good key can be achieved using a combi drill with a small wire brush of the type sold for Dremel-style tools. Alternatively, although more time consuming, wet and dry paper can be used to key the surface. This latter approach gives more control. 

 

For the narrow strips around each square and along the edges where black abutts the silver, a narrower wire brush is needed. Holding the drill so carefully for extended periods could get quite painful, so we found the best approach was to do one wheel at a time, then switch to painting it before returning for the next.

 

On some edges there was a pronounced lip by the ridge that could be followed with the wire brush, but in other places this was much less clearly defined and a steady hand was needed to create the desired path. On this square you can see there are three clear ridges, but none on the outside edge, the assumption being this is due to worn tooling.

 

You can use either a satin or gloss black enamel paint. A satin finish would be original, but many prefer a gloss finish. Using a small paintbrush, paint each section outline and then fill in. Rest your hand on the wheel when painting supporting the brush with your free hand. Alternatively, a judicious application of masking tape can achieve good results in the more fiddly areas. Any mistakes can be wiped off while still wet with spirits and clean cloth as required.

 

The finished results speak for themselves giving the car an authentic factory appearance. However, if you're not up for this level of work or your Rostyle wheels are unserviceable, check out our range of affordable Minilite replicas. 

 

The Later Rostyle (Midget 72-80 & MGB)

This is the later and more familiar type of Rostyle wheel which became a feature of MGs throughout the 1970s. This wheel has been inspected by MGOC Spares' technicians and passed as fit for service, blasted and painted silver. Rather than using a wire brush in an electric rotary tool, key the paint where the black will be applied using emery paper or a Scotchbrite pad.

 

How ever you key the paint, you must ensure that any created dust gets removed. The easiest and surest way of doing this is with a blast from an airline. You will also want to give the surface a good wipe over with panel wipe or a similar degreaser to ensure that any handling residue from finger prints will not compromise the black paint adhesion to the silver paint.

 

Use a cotton bud to clean up any remaining dust or residue which has been pushed into crevices rather than being removed. It is worth doing a final wipe over with a tack cloth before final painting, especially if there is a delay between preparation and painting.

 

If you would like to spray paint your wheels, MGOC Spares offer a Rostyle wheel renovation kit (W545) which contains everything you need to do the job, plus a few spare templates: 25 accurately die cut adhesive masks, two aerosols of silver wheel paint, one aerosol of satin black paint and three sheets of wet & dry paper. We also offer the adhesive masks on an individual basis (W545A).

 

When painting by hand, use a fine brush and work around the indented line before filling in the gaps on each quadrant. Rest your brush hand on the rim of the wheel and use your free hand to support the movement. Any mistakes can be wiped off while still wet with spirits and a clean cloth as required. This can be more time-consuming than spraying with the adhesive masks applied, but with a steady hand, professional results can be achieved. 
Note. Due to worn tooling, it is common for the indented line around the black portion of the wheel to be faded or inconsistently pressed. If you're struggling to find a clear line, adhesive masks (W545A) can be used to provide the correct pattern on the wheel.

 

Whichever method you choose, the finished result should provide a major boost to your car's appearance. The benefit of going the whole hog and doing the bare wheel rather than working around the tyre is that you can inspect it from all sides, even inside the tyre well, and know that the finished article is structurally sound as well as beautiful.

 

Additional items

The centre holes of the Rostyle wheels are usually covered by a cap, which may or may not contain the marque name of the car it belongs to. These unmarked stainless ones are for the Midget (AHA8950).

 

You really won't want to fit rusty old wheel nuts to shiny new wheels, either. It is essential that the radius on the end of the nut matches the profile of the Rosytle wheel's bolt holes. MGOC Spares stock new chromed nuts to fit Rostyle wheels with or without MG logo, also available in stainless steel.

• AHH9152 - MGB Wheel Nut - Chrome - Plain
• W605A - MGB Wheel Nut - Chrome - MG Logo
• AHA8785 - Midget Wheel Nut - Chrome - Plain
• W600A - Midget Wheel Nut - Chrome - MG Logo
• W660A - MGB Wheel Nut - Stainless Steel - Plain
• W665A - MGB Wheel Nut - Stainless Steel - MG Logo
• W650A - Midget Wheel Nut - Stainless Steel - Plain
• W655A - Midget Wheel Nut - Stainless Steel - MG Logo

 

And finally, you can also get stainless steel trims to clip onto the outside of your wheel, and while they were an option in the day and some people prefer the look, bear in mind that the clips used to grip the wheel will scratch your new paint or powder coating down to the metal. For that reason they may be best when used to quickly tidy up slightly tatty wheels.

• W505SS - 14" Stainless Steel Wheel Trim Ring
• W500SS - 13" Stainless Steel Wheel Trim Ring

It's all well and good that you've got newly painted, sparkling wheels but it's important to keep them that way as long as possible (so you can concentrate on your next project). Suitable for all wheels, Redshift Reactive Wheel cleaner is excellent at shifting tough brake dust & road grime. Simply spray on and leave for 2-3 minutes before rinsing. Available in either 750ml spray bottle (A096) or 2.5ltr container (A097).

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