How to paint wheels black?

[monthefish]

Following my "I don't like black wheels" thread I am now looking for advice on how to do it.
(I can almost justify my apprent hypocrisy)

Any tips? (other than "don't do it" )

[gi daddy]

prep your wheels .if you can get hold of some road cones.Spray the in sides of your wheels.While there still wet ,flip them over and carefully place on the cone ,Then spray the front .any over spray will just melt in to the back you have just sprayed .or you can let the back dry and mask them out ,and then spray the fronts.

[monthefish]

Good tips, thanks.

[Wheelrepairit]

Using a black primer helps no end and cuts down on the amount of topcoat used.

[MagicalTrevor]

800 grit wet and dry - sand down wheels
1200 grit wet and dry - sand them down nice and smooth
Use metal filler to fill in any dings
Sand down as necessary
Use primer, taking it easy and build up around 2/3 layers leaving time between each layer
Allow 24 hours to cure
If still perfect then continue, otherwise make it perfect
Spray 3/4 layers of colour as above
Allow 24 hours to cure
Apply a couple of layers of lacquer (take it easy, it runs like an ostrich!)

Get really pissed off when you scuff one! In fact make sure you use a nice non-rusty socket to put the nut back on!

[monthefish]

Thanks for that. Is steel wool suitable to give the surface a key? I was thinking it might be good to deal with the curved surfaces...

Edited by monthefish on Wednesday 28th September 07:54

[MagicalTrevor]

monthefish said:

Thanks for that. Is steel wool suitable to give the surface a key? I was thinking it might be good to deal with the curved surfaces...

Edited by monthefish on Wednesday 28th September 07:54

No idea mate, I'd be worried about marring the surface with steel wool. If you have fairly flat wheels then getting a sanding block would make life easier for you

[monthefish]

MagicalTrevor said:

monthefish said:

Thanks for that. Is steel wool suitable to give the surface a key? I was thinking it might be good to deal with the curved surfaces...

Edited by monthefish on Wednesday 28th September 07:54

No idea mate, I'd be worried about marring the surface with steel wool. If you have fairly flat wheels then getting a sanding block would make life easier for you

Don't worry, it's not a pristine permanent set I'm considering doing this to - it's a cheap (£25 each) set of smaller alloys I'm putting on one of my cars for winter (shod with winter tyres). The purpose of the 'black' is to try to disguise how small the wheels will look (going from 18" to 16")

Dare I say it, but I'm probably going to use Hammerite Satin Black spray paint for them too...

Edited by monthefish on Wednesday 28th September 12:39

[MagicalTrevor]

monthefish said:

Don't worry, it's not a pristine permanent set I'm considering doing this to - it's a cheap (£25 each) set of smaller alloys I'm putting on one of my cars for winter (shod with winter tyres). The propose of the 'black' is to try to disguise how small the wheels will look (going from 18" to 16")

Dare I say it, but I'm probably going to use Hammerite Satin Black spray paint for them too...

Ah well, steel wool is probably alright then

[monthefish]

If I'm feeling brave, I might even post the results....

[Wheelrepairit]

"Scotchbrite" is what you need to key them up, wont leave scratches.

[OldSkoolRS]

Make sure you clean them first and degrease them before sanding them down (otherwise you just push the contaminants into the surface and the paint won't stick, so you get circles in the paint finish). There are specific panel wipes/degreasers you can use, but for a budget job you could try meths or white spirit.

[Wheelrepairit]

Google " alloypaints" , they have everything you need, I think.

[OldSkoolRS]

Wheelrepairit said:

Google " alloypaints" , they have everything you need, I think.

Make sure you don't miss out the 'i' in alloypaints otherwise you might wonder what wheelrepairit is on about. Thanks for the link idea BTW.

[TallPaul]

Dont use steel wool on alloy wheels! Personally, I'd say 1200 is too fine to key them for primer, I'd finish with 500, maybe even 320, depending on what sort of primer (how thick) you are using. Then dry flat with 500 or wet flat with 800 and paint.