Wheel prep for paint / powdercoat
Discussion
I'm planning to get my wheels painted or powder-coated.
So far I have had the tyres removed, and got most of the old coating off using a gel-type paint stripper & plastic scraper.
Nearly done :
I am planning to use scotchbrite scouring pads to remove the last bits of old paint, then file/sand the slightly scraped rims back to smooth(ish).
I won't be coating them myself - so is this adequate prep before giving them to the coating firm?
Also - paint or powder coat? They will be plain silver, not diamond cut or anything fancy.
So far I have had the tyres removed, and got most of the old coating off using a gel-type paint stripper & plastic scraper.
Nearly done :
I am planning to use scotchbrite scouring pads to remove the last bits of old paint, then file/sand the slightly scraped rims back to smooth(ish).
I won't be coating them myself - so is this adequate prep before giving them to the coating firm?
Also - paint or powder coat? They will be plain silver, not diamond cut or anything fancy.
Thanks all.
I haven't wasted that much time - these were a second-hand set of wheels with rubbish tyres, so my tyre fitter took them off for me, and I've only stripped one and a half wheels.
I still need to check if this is a crack or just a scratch - it wasn't visible until I stripped the wheel :
I haven't wasted that much time - these were a second-hand set of wheels with rubbish tyres, so my tyre fitter took them off for me, and I've only stripped one and a half wheels.
I still need to check if this is a crack or just a scratch - it wasn't visible until I stripped the wheel :
paintman said:
When you spoke to your chosen refurbisher about these wheels what did they tell you to do?
I haven't spoken to them yet - it started with me being curious as to what was under the re-finished and peeling powder coat, and it being a rainy Saturday...I'll be talking to the wheel place when I get out of this bloody hospital (not car related).
AW111 said:
I was planning on powder coat, just wondered if anyone would recommend paint, with reasons.
Paint is always better than powder coating on wheels IF they are prep'd correctly. You will get a much nicer finish and if you get a bit of damage on powdercoat where it chips etc, it will soon start to lift and is irreversible without a full strip and start again from scratch.Edited by AW111 on Sunday 27th June 03:43
Yes, if you want minimal work, a cheap powdercoat job would probably just about be better than a cheap wet spray job, but a proper wet spray job beats all.
That's coming from me, owning a restoration workshop and a powder coating plant. There are applications where powder coat beats wet spray easily, but on virtually everything automotive, a quality wet spray wins every time. Powder Coating DOES chip too easily on something which moves and speed and flexes slightly. Far more easily than a good wet spray. Powder Coating wears and chips a lot LESS easily on something that is static, but exposed to all the elements.
It's horses for a courses.
mbwoy84 said:
Paint is always better than powder coating on wheels IF they are prep'd correctly. You will get a much nicer finish and if you get a bit of damage on powdercoat where it chips etc, it will soon start to lift and is irreversible without a full strip and start again from scratch.
Yes, if you want minimal work, a cheap powdercoat job would probably just about be better than a cheap wet spray job, but a proper wet spray job beats all.
That's coming from me, owning a restoration workshop and a powder coating plant. There are applications where powder coat beats wet spray easily, but on virtually everything automotive, a quality wet spray wins every time. Powder Coating DOES chip too easily on something which moves and speed and flexes slightly. Far more easily than a good wet spray. Powder Coating wears and chips a lot LESS easily on something that is static, but exposed to all the elements.
It's horses for a courses.
Very interesting, thanks.Yes, if you want minimal work, a cheap powdercoat job would probably just about be better than a cheap wet spray job, but a proper wet spray job beats all.
That's coming from me, owning a restoration workshop and a powder coating plant. There are applications where powder coat beats wet spray easily, but on virtually everything automotive, a quality wet spray wins every time. Powder Coating DOES chip too easily on something which moves and speed and flexes slightly. Far more easily than a good wet spray. Powder Coating wears and chips a lot LESS easily on something that is static, but exposed to all the elements.
It's horses for a courses.
I have 2 sets of wheels: each set is 2 x 6.5" + 2 x 7"; I plan to use the four 6.5" wheels.
One pair of 6.5" is factory finish (painted), and perfect except for some minor gutter rash.
The other pair have several patches where the coating has lifted on the sides of the spokes. These are the ones I've paint stripped.
When stripping, I noticed they have been refinished at some stage, as there are scratches on the alloy under the coating.
So if the refinishing was powder-coat, the lifting coat would match what you describe.
I still need to clean and check (dye?) whether the damage to the spoke is just a scratch, or a crack.
If it's a crack, I'll junk that wheel and use the 7" set.
I obviously have to investigate the paint option further.
If you have already gone to the effort of stripping and rubbing them down yourself, you could go the whole hog and paint them yourself.
Rattle cans will do a surprisingly good job if your preparation is done well.
It could still cost you £100 or so in materials and paint, but it's quite satisfying knowing that you have done it yourself.
Obviously helps if you have a garage to spray them in though, won't work in the kitchen...
Rattle cans will do a surprisingly good job if your preparation is done well.
It could still cost you £100 or so in materials and paint, but it's quite satisfying knowing that you have done it yourself.
Obviously helps if you have a garage to spray them in though, won't work in the kitchen...
I've had a suspicion for a while that powder coating is susceptible to impact damage. Once it's done, moisture gets underneath, and you know what happens next. When I was an engineering apprentice, nearly all of us had a motorbike. Many were stripped and re-built by ourselves. The company I worked for, for a very small fee, would paint stuff for you. As most of the work was to military spec, it was the best you could get no matter how much you spent. We all nearly opted for two-pack epoxy paint, designated in our finishes manual as for 'a heavy marine environment.' To call it tough was an understatement. Part of the acceptance procedure was an impact test. About equivalent to hitting it with hard a hammer 100 times with NO DAMAGE.
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