Orbital sanders are your friend.
I did mine back in summer, took them down to (mostly) bare metal by hand and with an orbital, as I was too stupid to use a chemical stripper. I considered simply going all-polished after sanding one spoke up to 2000 and going 'woah'. Out of everything the biggest pain in the ass was getting the clear off the lip and through the fifteen years of accumulated brake dust where the clear had chipped.
Ended up going painted again, did about four coats of white primer, and the closest silver I could find to what was on there. Didn't get enough coats of paint in, only about two and some touch ups, but they still look fine. I think I might take them back down this summer for some touch ups, re polish the lips, and clear the wheels (Due to lack of time, they aren't right now). I think I spent about 35 hours on them in total, between prep and paint.
Or, if by some stroke of luck I find a second set of wheels and tires, I might spend some serious time on them and chemically strip them, and go for the full polish and clear.
