Harley Sportster Wheel Corrosion

[jw5876]

I noticed that my Sportster's front tyre kept losing pressure despite no obvious signs of damage to the tyre.

I took it to the garage for a replacement tyre and they explained (whilst showing me) that corrosion on the inside of the wheel rim was the cause of the tyre deflating.

The recommended powder coating the wheel rim but this could prove difficult because they wheel has a decorative feature that is a different colour.

Has anyone ever come across this before and is there anything that can be done?

[fastbob]

Not come across this before but at least I'm not the only Sportster rider on here ! Let's have some pictures please . I wonder whether it had that wretched filth that is sold as tire sealant in it at some point . You could have a look on eBay for a new wheel or , if you haven't already done so , you could join Sportster Sickness FB page and check out the For Sale and Wanted section . In fact if you put your query on there with some photos you might get a good response .

[Old-codger]

If the corrosion isnt to bad I would remove the tyre and clean up the surface with a wire wheel then a bit of wet and dry paper to remove the rust then treat the bare alloy with an etch primer to seal. Tyre back on and jobs a good one.

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

I had something similar recently. I just ribbed the rim down to remove the corrosion and painted it with smooth Hammerite. It's been fine since.

[Tiggie]

My boss has it on one of his car alloys. Has to pump it up weekly as it goes from 2.3 to 1.1 in around a week

He's not bothered as its only a runaround and not worth the money fixing. On a bike though it'd be a different story!