DIY alloy wheel painting?

[anonymous-user]

Can anyone tell me if / how I can paint a set of alloys black myself? Are there special primers / paints for alloys? I suppose they are currently laquered over powder coat?

I'm not bothered about achieving a perfect result, just something that looks OK and will not flake off.

The wheels are unmarked (effectively new) in silver, unfortunately black was not an option when I bought them, and a pro-refurb is not an option now (about £200 for 4).

[grahambell]

No problem - if the existing coating is OK you should be able to get away with simply wet sanding it with 600 grade wet and dry paper and spraying with normal touch up aerosol.

[anonymous-user]

Thanks Graham,

I seem to be unable to find any aerosol paint designed for wheels - shops say they used to stock it but don't now.

Would car body paint aerosols work OK, and would I need to laquer over the top?

[grahambell]

Hi Jim,

Sorry for late reply. Yes, normal car aerosols should be OK. Least ways I hope so because I'm just doing the wheels off my MR2.

Wouldn't bother with lacquer if you're only doing solid black as you should be able to get a decent shine with that if it's gloss finish - which solid colours tend to be.

[anonymous-user]

Thanks Graham

[Wildfire]

Hi Jim

Personallly I would go with some standard Aerosols, then finish up with a good wheel lacquer, as aerosol paint isn't the most resiliant stuff in the world. I've used wheel lacquer before on my mini and it was pretty good. A couple of cans give a long lasting finish.

Chris

[Yazmin]

Hi Jim

Just wanted to know how you got on with this- was it easy/ difficult? And what was the result?

[Dift]

Have a look at PlastiDip.

There are some interesting videos on YouTube also.

If you want cheap and cheerful, and something non permanent, you can't do much wrong.

[trv8]

Dift said:

Have a look at PlastiDip.

There are some interesting videos on YouTube also.

If you want cheap and cheerful, and something non permanent, you can't do much wrong.

Plastidip is great if you want a matt finish...or you can apply a wax when dried for nice sheen.
For a gloss finish with Plastidip, you'll need to use their 'Glossifier' which then adds to the cost.