How To Paint Your Wheels

[Mohsen]

hey guys, fellow member said i should write up a tutorial so i will

i bought myself some DTM Rush wheels that were oddly coloured, so i decided to paint them!

what you need

-primer

-sand paper grit really depends how much crap you want to take off. i just used the one pictured as the surface was pretty good.

- masking tape

-PAINT!

-clear!

now the paint and clear can come in rattle cans and if you take your sweet time, they will come up looking great!

Step 1

wash the wheels, dry and sand away!

should look like.. err sanded wheels..

now some of the wheels had some chips which i just filled with some filler and sanded down. unfortunately i didnt take pics of this step.

Step 2

wash the rim again and wipe it down with some turps

them, PRIMER TIME!

allow to dry and if everything looks the goods, (no running, no imperfections) move onto step 3!

Step 3

TIME2PAINT!

using the colour of your choice, (i used metalic cyan ) spray the wheel, i started with the barrels first and then moved onto the spokes. doing even sweeps with the spray leaving a nice even finish (though i did add a little too much in areas but hey its my first time!)

i added another 2 coats per rim. went through about 3 cans.

Step 4

left to dry for a couple hours i came back and started on the clear coat!

pretty much the same as the paint. did 3 coats too

Step 5

kick back and wait!

should look something like this

Hope this helps. all the stuff was bought from super cheap auto. each rim took me about half an hour to prep.

Cheers!

[Dori*mon]

Ah nice, was planning on helping a mate repaint some of his wheels, cheers for the write up

[Mohsen]

no worries. forgot to add, tape up the valves of course

and when dry. tape the lips so you wont chip the paint while putting on tires

[krzysiu]

Mighty car mods just posted video on painting rims

[mad082]

no worries. forgot to add, tape up the valves of course

and when dry. tape the lips so you wont chip the paint while putting on tires

or you could simply just break the bead and leave the tyre on the rim but you would be able to spray all of the lip since the tyre wouldn't be touching it.

[Mohsen]

Mighty car mods just posted video on painting rims

haha yeh jonno was telling me when i was doing mine

or you could simply just break the bead and leave the tyre on the rim but you would be able to spray all of the lip since the tyre wouldn't be touching it.

that could be done too.

nice green badge kent

[EscapingFate]

Ok probs going to sound like a stupid question but how do you remove the tyres from the rims and how do you get them back on... i know a bit of a noob question.

[NISSAN GTR]

i must be honest they look great , i wonder if the paint/prep used by crash repairs will provide a harder longer wearing surface ?

[trustr32]

i must be honest they look great , i wonder if the paint/prep used by crash repairs will provide a harder longer wearing surface ?

Yeah 2 pack paint will dry harder is less prone to chipping and especially peeling when replacing tyres etc. Other than that great work man really good looking result. Next time get some red scotchbrite to get into all the little corners where you cant reach with sandpaper to scuff the surface right up before primer which will make them less likely to peel in those areas.

[mad082]

Ok probs going to sound like a stupid question but how do you remove the tyres from the rims and how do you get them back on... i know a bit of a noob question.

you need to "break the bead", which is usually done with a press (if you have access to a welder you can make one, or you can even make one out of wood, but it won't work as well and may break). then it's a case of using tyre levers to get them off. it's not that hard. then you use tyre levers and a rubber mallet to get them back on, but you run the risk of scratching the rims.

or you can pay a tyre shop to do it.

[iwanta34gtr]

Good write up and fantastic result, well done.

If you get a bit of orange peel from the clear coat - etc, or between layers - you can sand it back with 1200 then 2000 grit wet and dry to smooth it out.

With the clear, if following the above step - you can then buff it up to a magic shine afterwards.

[Fryday13]

Im assuming this is best done with tyres off, but are there any magic taping tricks i could use to cover the tyres or will it be easier and better if i do involve taking the tyres off

[34GeeTeeTee]

Im assuming this is best done with tyres off, but are there any magic taping tricks i could use to cover the tyres or will it be easier and better if i do involve taking the tyres off

I'm about to do my Works XT7's and am not only taking the tyres off but will be removing the valves too so we can spray the whole rim.... There is no reason you cant tape them up but if its a skyline then tyre changes should be as regular as fuel stops so just do it then

[Fryday13]

There is no reason you cant tape them up but if its a skyline then tyre changes should be as regular as fuel stops so just do it then

Touche, im yet to wear them in yet though so ill wait till thats done, and by then Ill know if I really want to paint them

[RB25 SKYLINE]

good write up and they look good for now but unfortunatly uve used a cheap enamel and will look like crap in no time.i would recommend to anyone else doing this to use a 2 pak paint for a better finish and longer lasting results

[wilderboy]

Where to you buy 2pak in a can??

[RB25 SKYLINE]

you will need to use a gun mate

[sydking]

i was looking into getting mine Powder coated, Costs about $450 but i heard much much less likley to chip.

After seeing this though im going to grab my self some paint this weekend, Did you look into hiring a sand blaster? or getting them blasted first?

Not sure how good it will all stick to the existing paint, Or is the idea of the sand paper to leave it rough for the primer to grab hold?

Is ther much choice on clear coats? a more resitant one for stone ships ect.

By any chance did you see if they had a satin or semi gloss black?

[sean133]

sand paper leaves it rough, i finished in a 600 grit paper wet and dry sanding

then etch primer with a proper gun and compressor

then used semi gloss black to spray my corolla rims

no clear coat

in perfect condition hasnt chipped at all.

cost me about 100 bucks in total

[sydking]

You have compresser gun ect already? Wanna do mine