I researched Rim Guard. It looks like its a dealer only thing. It also mentions that its live stock edible. I think it must be beet juice or something.
I think I may try the VCI powder. The manufacturer says to mix 2-4 pounds per 50 gallons of water. The downside is that it costs $145 for 5 pounds. My tires hold 47 gallons so I'd put 2.5 pounds in each tire plus some antifreeze. So total cost would be $145 plus a couple of bottles of antifreeze. And I can do it myself.
Here is how I see my other options:
Methanol/washer fluid: Expensive; I'm guessing around $300+ _if_ I can get it in bulk (I'd need 2 55 gallon drums). And without some sort of pump it would be very tedious. The drill pump might help. Probably still number 2 on my list. (If there is a known ratio of methanol to water that will still prevent rust this option would look better).
Tubes plus whatever. I'd have to buy the tubes, breakdown and reinstall the tires plus tubes. And I don't want tubes.
Rim Guard. Cost of dealer install. Anyone know how much? Add transportation to that. Otherwise, seems like a good product but not DIY.
Water plus antifreeze. By far the easiest and most affordable. However, I'm not confident that the antifreeze alone is sufficient to prevent rust. So far there doesn't seem to be a ready answer to this. I'd go this route in a heartbeat if knew that the antifreeze would prevent rust.
Sigh.
