HOW-TO: Paint Stock Wheels

[srt4_coastie]

How To: Paint Your Stock Rims

First of all there are many owners out there who have done this SIMPLE mod. If any of the guys out there want to add anything feel free. This mod is definitely not the hardest, however taking your time and having a completely free day will make this much easier.

Products:
2-3 Cans of Dupli Color Engine Spray Paint (Wal-Mart, Auto Zone ect…) 2.00-3.50 Can
2-3 Cans of Dupli-Color Touch Up Spray CLEAR COAT Paint 3.50 Can
5-10 Sheets of 220 Grit Sand Paper (This is where you can decide what you want to use…)
Tape
Time


Prep:
Begin by washing the wheels with a mild soap and dry them after cleaning. Next, to make things easy I would suggest taping off where you do not want paint to go first. This not only makes sanding easy but it gets rid of one of the boring parts up front

1-Wash/Dry
2. -Tape Off
3. -Begin Sanding
You will know you are done sanding when it is does not have a shine at all and the texture of the wheel feels slightly rough. You will only make the paint stick better if you take your time sanding.
4. -Rinse with water and dry, make sure all moisture is gone and you have a completely dry working surface.

Painting:
Taking your time and not trying to be a master painter will make this easier. You don’t need any special touch or ability to do this. Just some patience and your favorite drink…or smoke.

1.- Apply the first coat ensuring that you cover everywhere you want paint completely, but not putting down a heavy coat. Wait appx. 10-15mins. Place your finger in a unseen spot and see if it is dry to the touch. Repeat this step 2 more times and feel free to sand in-between. I did not sand in-between coats. After the final coat wait a little longer and ensure that the surface is not completely dry however it is not completely wet either. Good judgment is key with this mod.

2.-Apply clear coat following the same steps as above. Once again take your time. Some people will argue that clear coat is not necessary, that may be true however clear coat will give a long lasting shine and help protect from rock chips and the curb, a little bit.

Finished:
This step in which removing the tape is concerned can make or break your whole day and natural high from the paint fumes. It is essential that you carefully remove the tape and don’t pull paint off the wheels when you do this. You should wait about 30-60 minutes after the last coat of clear coat before removing tape. You can’t wait all day because then the paint and tape will bond together thus making it very hard to remove the tape without pulling some off of the wheel. Be careful mounting the wheels as well, if you do this all in one day, the wheels will not be 100% dry and if your read the spray can it says 48-72hrs to cure 100%. Does this mean your paint will get ruined if you drive with them one before they cure fully, NO but you should use some caution and try not to go rock crawling or curb jumping for a few days. Good Luck and please post here with questions not by PM’s. Thanks to Cashtro who helped me out when I did mine and all you guys out there who did this as well through your .02 out as well

Hank

[Eyeless0486]

Nice writeup. Throw in some pictures if you took some of your wheels. Either way, good information.... someone Sticky this.

[Grifter]

Great writeup Hank. Did you tape up the whole inside on th rim too, it looks like it. The only part that worries me is taping off the spokes...

[Narcisse91]

Dupli-color WHEEL paint works as well

I have the black satin on my stock wheels now, looks pretty good.

[Grifter]

Did you paint the whole rim or just the spokes?

[srt4_coastie]

just the spokes...when i'm home tomorrow i will post pictures...i did not take pictures while doing it but i have several after shots..check back tomorrow

grifter: i painted the whole spoke just not the outside of the spoke, use a duct tape it makes a good paint line and sticks better than painters tape....

[Grifter]

Ok, thanks. I could tell you painted the spokes I meant to ask if you painted the inside of the rim too, I figured you didnt though.

[srt4_coastie]

Here you go...

[WowGuySRT]

those look nice

[Lagzilla]

thnks, im plannin on doin it this week end.. with a couple friends. were taking the whole day to do it so whopefully we will have enough time to do all four rims. did u do one at a time? or all four at once?using somthin to hold up the car?>

[High Octane]

I was thinking of doing opposite of what you have done, leaving just the outside face of the spokes and the small area around the tire, and paint the rest black.
Anone done this yet, if so, any pics??

[wrxkiller510]

was this done with the tire on or off?

[srt4_coastie]

off...duh...jk

[v8-assassin]

yeah i tried just painting the face of the rim but it looks shitty. i did mine on my e-blue car and it looks better in my opinion. i just didnt paint the whole spoke to the end so it look like it has a lip on it.

[Kustomatix]

220 grit? whats the point of sanding then? thats not much grit!