When I bought the truck, it had a terrible set of bias ply tires on it. So the first task was to get some decent radials on it. Not having the $500 for a set of new tires, I spent a few days tracking down a used set and having them mounted.
The wheels however were equal parts black & surface rust. So I put the truck up on jack stands and pulled the wheels.
What then followed was an hour or so of using a wire brush in my angle grinder to make the wheels shiny clean and me a grubby mess of paint flakes & rust dust.
Then went on a coat of etching primer.
And finally a couple coats of gloss white.
Once they were dry I bolted them on. It is amazing how much of a difference they made to the look of the truck. Just compare the picture below to the one at the top of this article. The only change is the wheels.
Seriously, I HAVE to demonstrate the electrolytic removal of rust to you. You could have even left the tires on the rims while doing the job….wouldn’t have harmed them.
A LARGE plastic tote or pan with warm water, washing soda, a battery charger and some iron/steel anodes would get rid of the rust in time, with very little effort on your part…and you could do other things while it’s working.
Don’t use stainless for the anodes…they give off hexavalent chromium!
http://www.stovebolt.com/techtips/rust/electrolytic_derusting.htm
Also a good site:
http://www.icehouse.net/overland/derusting.html