Painting Alloy Wheels

stilletto_rebel · Postby **stilletto_rebel** » Tue May 14, 2013 11:37 pm

Serious question: I'm thinking of spraying my alloys white using rattle cans. Is this wise?

Mr nanotech · Postby **Mr nanotech** » Wed May 15, 2013 4:02 am

As long as you sand the wheels properly, etch prime them then sand back your primer, base coat etc etc... Basically do all your normal prep and buy decent cans and it will turn out fine. It's cheap to do as long as you prep well. I highly recommend you strip the tyres off the wheels though. If you just mask the tyre and spray what you can see, paint tends to flake off from the edges of the lip.
Basically, you don't want to leave any 'edges' exposed. What I mean by that, are the places where the paint ends and original wheel starts. Paint front and back and do the job properly and it should last.
The biggest thing you need to do though is clean them thoroughly. I cannot emphasis this enough. Buy some brake cleaner and get yourself scrubbing, don't worry about small scratches as you'll be sanding the surface back anyway so the paint has something to bite to.
-clean (immaculately)
-sand
-prime
-paint

You can sand back the primer, use a high fill over it, sand that back etc etc... It's all in the finish you want etc. If you are after gloss finish, then you'll want to sand your etch primer back a bit as it's very coarse. Oh and with etch primer, remember to just dust it on rather than thick coats.

stilletto_rebel · Postby **stilletto_rebel** » Wed May 15, 2013 7:05 am

Thank you Josh. That's exactly the sort of answer I wanted.

hks_kansei · Postby **hks_kansei** » Wed May 15, 2013 7:50 am

For cleaning, I'd suggest using dishwashing soap, and also buying a tin of prepsol.

I'll also add to Josh's list:

Clean (not super important)
Sand
CLEAN (Important, get rid of the sh*t left from sanding)
Wipe with Prepsol
Prime
Paint
Paint Clearcoat (Just gives the paint an extra layer of protection, also helps stop brake dust etc staining the white)

I'd add that I wouldn't sand etch primer, normal primer yes, etch apparently isn't designed o be sanded. (and there's no real need)

Just remember, painted wheels never really last as long as factory paint, factory paint tends to be baked on etc.
Also, white will be a constant cleaning issue.

timk · Postby **timk** » Wed May 15, 2013 10:42 am

I've heard powder coating is bad:
http://www.flyinmiata.com/projects/targ ... hp?UID=135

16bit · Postby **16bit** » Wed May 15, 2013 11:08 am

rattle can if done properly as described above will give you 90% of a pro job as long as you do lots of small coats.

manga_blue · Postby **manga_blue** » Wed May 15, 2013 1:24 pm

White wheels really do need a very good high gloss finish and a simple spoke pattern so you can clean them easily. Anything matt(ish) and the brake dust really sticks to them.

Novice1 · Postby **Novice1** » Wed May 15, 2013 7:05 pm

I found a pack of cards an easy way to protect areas u dont want to get paint on. Just interlap cards between wheel and rim.

Novice1

stilletto_rebel · Postby **stilletto_rebel** » Thu May 16, 2013 9:05 am

Hmmm... I'm going to have to put this one onto the back-burner for the moment as ideally, to take on this job I would need another set of wheels whilst I am preparing and painting the others.

Thanks for all the comments, chaps.

RacePaint in Braeside quoted me $200 per wheel. I'm not sure if that includes the clearcoat, but assume it does.