Rim color question?

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While I'm sure going to that length - removing all of the factory paint - will net a beautiful result. Why go that length? Assuming there's no rust, corrosion, etc. under the factory paint - why remove it? Is it an age thing (of the paint, not us)? The material? When I painted my 2007 FJ Cruiser steels wheels in 2007, I sanded the entire wheel, but not through the paint - just evenly and thoroughly scuffed them. I used the duplicolor paint/clear and it lasted till I sold the truck in 2011.

2009...
tiWheelsPF.jpg


2011...
P-Side_508.jpg


By the way, that white bezel was silver (body color) when I bought it. I scuffed it and shot it with Rustoleum the first month I had the truck. It lasted the 3.5 years I owned the truck - without a blemish.
 
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Gottagetone said:
When you have the wheels balanced do the weights scratch the paint? I need to do this job but don't want to constantly do touch ups.
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I had my OEM 18" alloys redone (powder coated to match original color), and when I had the 275/70-18 BFG AT's mounted I specifically asked for tape weights on the inside of the rim. They can also attach the standard weights to the inside lip of the rim.
 
I agree with the above posters. Here are my conclusions:

1. You want rattle can. I would be very upset after having my wheels on for a year if I had gone with powder coating. I have touched up my DIY paint job 2-3 times already.

2. Take your time. I purchased a set of '03-07 wheels to work on while I still was running my 16s. It took about a week but it was nice doing the job a few hours at a time.

3. Brush-on paint stripper is your friend. Use it until the wheels are %100 fee of factory primer/paint

Here are some pics of the project. (I used Duplicolor Mazda Graphite)

Tools/products used
IMG_20110519_221230.jpg

OEM wheels
IMG_20110519_220508.jpg

After one pass of the brush-on paint stripper
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Ready for new primer/paint
IMG_20110519_221143.jpg

Completed wheel (I did not sand in between coats but I loved the end-result)
IMG_20110521_200138.jpg

IMG_20110521_200216.jpg

Wheels looked a little dark in the garage but came into their own in sunlight
IMG_20110526_171611.jpg

IMG_20110526_200925.jpg

Daylight
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^^Looks great Paul. I like the "rough" look. I didn't sand between paint coats or use clear coat to keep that look.
 
If you want that 06/07 smoke look, you have to first apply a very dark charcoal gray, the VERY lightly cover with a high-metallic silver until you get the correct color - if you're going to do this with spray paint.

The trick is to get all 4 wheels to look the same.

If you want to end up with exact matches, it's better to use true automotive paint, and have a custom clearcoat mixed with lots of metallic flake and paint over the dark gray VERY evenly. It's a difficult task, and the actual "smoked metallic" luster that the OEM wheels cannot be duplicated without using the base/clear method.

The easiest to touch up will be to use automotive-grade rattle can in a single-stage color like light metallic gray or graphite, depending on how dark you want to go. Follow that with a couple thin coats of clear to protect the pigment and you should be good for a few years.
 
I didn't clear coat mine---was worried they would come out to shiny. Whats the risk in not clear coating them?
 
ShirazAddict said:
I didn't clear coat mine---was worried they would come out to shiny. Whats the risk in not clear coating them?
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None, If you don't go off-road. Clear coating looks a little blingy-er...If you think you might scratch a wheel over the course of a year, just rattle can it. Touching up clear coat is difficult when you have a scratch that goes through the clear coat/paint/primer as you have to basically do the whole wheel over. With rattle can, you just sand, mask off and spray.
 
I decided to go with powder coat for durability. The powder coating company recommended semi-gloss with a little texture to hide any scratches. They also had a textured Rustoliem paint that matched exactly for the center caps. I will post more pictures of them on the truck when I have the "status" to allow it. I really like how it turned out.
 
Pink Panty Poser said:
I decided to go with powder coat for durability. The powder coating company recommended semi-gloss with a little texture to hide any scratches. They also had a textured Rustoliem paint that matched exactly for the center caps. I will post more pictures of them on the truck when I have the "status" to allow it. I really like how it turned out.
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here is the pic.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/80160582@N07/7349157748/" title="LX wheels and tires by dirkkeyes, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7216/7349157748_1ff5a74eac.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="LX wheels and tires"></a>
 
Wheel look better than I expected on the gold truck! Now, let's talk about those tires!?
 
For those who went the Aircraft Remover route before new paint. How many coats of aircraft remover and how long does each coat sit for before scrubbing and clean off? What did you use to clean it off between coats?

I've got a set of factory 18's I need to take care of so I can get new tires ASAP!

Thanks!
 
Anthony.L said:
For those who went the Aircraft Remover route before new paint. How many coats of aircraft remover and how long does each coat sit for before scrubbing and clean off? What did you use to clean it off between coats?

I've got a set of factory 18's I need to take care of so I can get new tires ASAP!

Thanks!
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I used a long handled BBQ brush & it worked great. Wear gloves & eyewear + LS/pants as that stuff burns bad if it hits skin.

I used a different stripper & went thru about 4 coats before it was at 98% removed; in hindsight I wish I had done one more coat ++ b/c the time/effort to use the wire brush wasn't efficient + the few places I didn't clear all the paint off (1-2 spots per wheel) bug me. It works quick--about 30 minutes--I did 5 wheels & by the time I was applying (with brush) on the last wheel the first had just about stopped bubbling. On one of the forums someone recommended waiting 15 min & then applying a second coat on top of the first, but I tried that & didn't notice any extra stripping power.
 
Anthony.L said:
For those who went the Aircraft Remover route before new paint. How many coats of aircraft remover and how long does each coat sit for before scrubbing and clean off? What did you use to clean it off between coats?

I've got a set of factory 18's I need to take care of so I can get new tires ASAP!

Thanks!
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I tried the spray on first and it did almost nothing. With the paint on kind I did the first coat and used a 1 inch plastic paint scraper to help lift the paint off. Then I did a second coat on the few leftover spots. After a good rinse and wipe dry, the wire cup brush did the rest.

Make sure you rinse em really well. Any left over paint remover in the nooks will prevent your primer and paint from adhering properly.
 
I used the spray on type. I sprayed it on heavy and let it sit for a while per instructions. It took everything off the first pass. I also used a wire wheel on the end of a drill. I am not sure if the others that had a problem with it used a different brand or what. I used was Tal Strip II: Mar-Hyde Tal-Strip II Aircraft Coating Remover Aerosol 3711

But it looks like it is discontinued now....
 
Manhattan said:
Why not a satin or matte clear?
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That would work but you would still have the issue of top coat over paint. You get a scratch and you can't just paint over it b/c you will be painting over the clear/satin/matte/whatever top coat directly in contact with the scratch. Touch-ups wont look as good as you will have all sorts of layering. Hope this makes sense.

With just paint for the outmost layer, you get a scratch and you just sand and spray it, end of story.
 
What happens if you just rattle can on top of the scuffed up factory finish with no prep, etc? These things will have deep gauges on them from a single wheeling trip anyhow, so I figured I don't get much bang for the buck in trying to get them all perfect...
 
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