advice, tips and hints needed please. what is the best way to smarten up rusty wheels, without going to major expense? cheap and not too labour intensive advice greatly welcomed.

How much do you want to spend & how bad are they?

Cheapest option is a good wire brush (mind the tyres though!) & "Smoothrite" or "Hammerite" dependant on the finish you want. It's not cheap paint & you can only put on one coat (a second within 6 weeks or so will make the paint bubble & do weird things) but it does look good & will last if done well, kills future build up of rust too.

I would think that the expense of removing the wheels & tyres then sandblasting & spraying wouldn't be worth it, you could probably pick up a set of better wheels on the cheap if you look around. Try good ol' ebay, I've found some reet Landy bargains already.

Cheers,
Marcus.

like marcus said, angle grinder + wirebrush = clean wheels + a decent metal paint = smart new looking wheels (just don't get to close!!!