DIY :- Wheel Painting
 

Hey guys,

I have finally got around to making up some sort of a DIY for wheel painting. I intended to make it as comprehensive as possible for the learner like myself out there. So it is a long read, but if you are keen on painting your own wheels, I hope this can be of some use. The pictures I took along the way should help it become a little less boring too.

[B]1.[/B] First thing you will need to do, is decide on a colour you want to paint your wheels. A good tip to remember here is to look around and see what other people have done to their wheels online. A Google image search usually does the trick. This is to get an idea of how that colour looks, on the wheel, on the car, in contrast to your / their cars paintwork colour.
This is sometimes difficult to do find especially if you are looking for something a bit different, but you get the idea. If you can get the information, try to get the exact colour & manufacturer of the paint, from the image / forum you find what you like. This is due to the fact that the top of the can of paint is not a 100% perfect replication of the paint colour, once sprayed. The majority of spray cans, have plastic tops, which while this is a good guide, it’s not perfect.

[B]2.[/B] This step you need to be prepared to lose your car for the weekend @ a minimum. It took me around 24 hours of actual work to complete this (This time can be cut down, if you only intend to paint the outside of the wheel). I did do everything how I thought it should be done to ensure the paint stayed on there & did not flake off at a later date. I have seen other people who say you can do it in 4 hours. I really don’t see how this is possible, as I spent 4 hours just cleaning the wheels.

[B]3.[/B] Get your supplies. The below amounts are what I basically used. I did do the whole process on the inside and outside of the wheel. Use your own judgement if you are only going to paint the outside of the wheel, you will need around half of the list below.

Ingredients:-

4 X Sheets 320 grit wet / dry paper – I think it was 80c a sheet @ Bunnings
2 X 320 grit 3M sandblaster flexible sanding pads - $3.80 ea @ Bunnings
1 X Plastic drop sheet / tarp - $3.20 @ Bunnings
Wheel cleaner – I used 2 types, but Meguires Hot rims All Wheel was better. $25 from Super Cheap Auto
1L Wax & Grease remover - $18 (I think) from SCA
A good stiff scrubbing brush to clean the wheels - $3 @ Bunnings
Masking tape. 2 types, the regular stuff and the blue 3M painters tape. $3 & $8 per roll @ Bunnings
2 X 400g Etch Primer - $15 per can
1 X 400g Filler primer - $18 per can
3 X 340g Paint (the colour you want) - $22
2 X 340g clear coat - $19 per can
1 X small can / tube of auto filler (bog) - $8
Gloves & respirator / dust mask.
Other items in the photos I found are not really required.

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I also purchased an electric outdoor heater from Bunnings to get some heat into the paint, once painted and to help it dry quicker. This was $40 on special. This is not required but it will take longer for the paint to dry. Also you don’t really want to be doing any panting when temperatures are below 20°c outside. It should have instructions on the can that say something to this effect.

[B]4.[/B] You need a trolley jack to get under the front centre jacking mount & then the rear diff. Make sure you crack undone the front wheel nuts a little, as you will have no resistance on them once up in the air. Jack up the front, 2 X jack stands under the front & do the same for the rear.

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[B]5.[/B] Give your wheels a really good clean. This is probably the most important part. You need to get all that brake dust, road grime, tar & such to ensure the primer has the best possible surface to adhere too. I literally spent 1 hour peer wheel, maybe more, just cleaning it. Give em a real good scrub using a stiff brush, like the short blue one in the supplies photo. Use a spray of degreaser too. Wait till they dry and clean them again. Be careful not to allow the showing face (outside) of the wheel hit the ground, as you will get big scratches on them if you do. Let them now dry as much as possible before moving on.

Not so clean & cleaned once.

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Cleaned for the second time

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[B]6.[/B] Now you have to use the 320 wet and dry to give the wheels really good all over sand. Get a cup of water and ¼ sheet of 320 paper & get it wet for best use. In this step, you do not want to remove the entire previous colour, but more get the shiny layer off. I did go deeper in a few places, but this was more to get rid of small scratches & get more of an even surface. Try to get everything as level and smooth as you can. If there is a scratch and you can feel it with your finger, once you paint the wheel, it will show through. Keep lightly sanding until these scratches are smoothed out. Paint will not hide mistakes, if you can feel scratches at this stage, it will be reflected in the end product (more than likely). You need to get this step right, or it will stuff the whole finish of the wheel up. TAKR YOUR TIME AND DO IT RIGHT.

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[B]7.[/B] Optional step. Mix up some (bog) body filler. I used this for where I have kerb rash. I was lucky to only have 1 mark on my rims. I sanded it, gave it a clean with the wax and grease remover & then filled it, waited for it to dry and sanded it back to the right shape. Quite simple really. Only mix a little bit though, as you won’t need much. Use the right amount for your needs. If you put too much on, you are only going to have to sand off the excess.

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[B]8.[/B] Give the wheels a good wipe over with wax and grease remover, inside of wheel first and then the outside. This is to remove all impurities from the wheel. I used the blue Oates cleaning cloths; you want a cloth that is not going to leave fibres behind that you will then end up painting over. The cloth should get dirty pretty quick after all the sanding, so change the cloth and keep adding the wax and grease remover onto the cloth whilst wiping.

[B]9.[/B] Time to start prepping for painting. This is best to be done inside a shed or garage, as you don’t want to have spray paint blowing everywhere. If you do have to do it outside, move everything that could get overspray on it (like your car, clothes on the line etc) away from your work area, or move your work area. You need to get the outside walls of both sides of the wheel covered in masking tape. Use small sections of the blue tape & push it in-between the gap of the wheel and tyre. Once this is done use the thicker normal masking tape to cover all the walls of the tyre, on both sides. Get some bricks or blocks to put on the tyre to keep the face of the wheel off the ground, as seen in the photo. Use these as you turn the wheels over, so as not to touch the wheel surface on the ground in anyway. Dont forget to mask your valve caps.

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[B]10.[/B] Set up your wheel on top of the plastic sheet with the blocks under it. I started in the inside of the wheel first. Give it one more wipe over with the wax and grease remover, just to be sure it’s clean. Start with the etch primer, giving a nice even light coat first. Allow this to dry slightly for around 15 min, then apply a slightly thicker coat. You need to be around 6 - 8” away from the wheel when you spray. If you have never sprayed before then try it out on a waste piece of material first, to see how much you can put on before it runs. If you do get a run on the wheel, leave it don’t attempt to wipe it. Keep going painting the wheel, however you will have to let the wheel dry completely and then sand the run out. If you practice with the can first & take your time, you should not get any runs. Repeat for the inside of the other 4 wheels. Allow enough time for the primer to dry, turn the wheel over, give the front a wax and grease wipe like you did for the inside & paint the outside. I did use the heat light in this step, so I kind of cheated a little. If in doubt follow the instructions on the can.

Etch primer.

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[B]11.[/B] Allow the primer to dry, around 3 hours should be enough (see can for specific instructions though). Give the surface a quick wax and grease wipe again and spray the outside of the wheel only with the filler primer (use the same technique as before when spraying). When the wheel is on, the outside of the wheel is really the only part of the wheel you see. it is not necessary to use the filler primer on the inside, as it is just a waste.

Filler Primer.

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[B]12.[/B] I then waited overnight for the filler primer to dry. I had too, it was almost 7 pm and I had ran out of light. Plus I had worked up a thirst.

[B]13.[/B] Now for the best part, the colour. But not until we have sanded back the filler primer first. Use one of the 3M Sandblaster pads, I found these to be good for this as you want a nice quick once over, to put a bit of a key in the primer and to flatten off any high spots. Get the wheel as smooth as you can, using the feel it with your finger to test how it feels. This is the last main step before the colour so if you have any touch up’s to do on the primer, now is the time.

3m Flexible sanding pad

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Sanded down filler primer

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[B]14.[/B] Give the wheels a wipe over again with the wax and grease to remove the sanding residue. Use the same technique that as the cloth gets dirty replace it and keep it wet (not soaking though) with the wax and grease remover.

[B]15.[/B] Finally time for the colour. Turn your plastic sheet over; as it will be covered in etch primer & filler primer. This residue may blow up and around as you are spraying the colour and get onto the wheel, which you really don’t want. So now you have a nice fresh, clean sheet underneath, & you have cleaned the surface to be sprayed. It’s time to put on the colour. Don’t forget to use the bricks or whatever you used again to keep the tyre / wheel off the floor. Spray this in the same way as the etch primer. A thin coat on first, allow this to dry (go slightly tacky) so the next coat will be able to stick to the first coat better and will reduce the risk of runs in the paint. I gave the inside a quick tack coat & 15 min later another top coat, just enough to hide the etch primer colour. I thought as you are not going to really see the inside really, that will be enough.

I gave the outside of the wheels one tack coat waited 15 min (I used the heater again) then sprayed the first coat, heater again for 10 min, then a final second coat. The wheel then went under the heater for around 20 min before being put outside under the pergola. I repeated this process for each wheel inside and out.

Under the heat lamp it was around 50 deg on the wheel.

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Finished product of the top colour coat.

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[B]16.[/B] I waited about 1 hour, & then I applied the clear coat. I only applied this to the outside of the wheel, as again, you can’t really see the inside. It’s the same process really as the top colour coat, thin coat to start and then a couple of nice top final coats. I did the same heating method as before on the colour coats & then left them overnight to dry, before putting them on. I have forgot to mention one crucial point and that is to do your centre caps too ;).

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Clear coat on the right & just the colour coat on the right for comaprison

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Final clear coat all complete, allowed to dry overnight to put on the car.

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Before

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After

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That’s pretty much it. To be honest I have never done any major spray painting like this before and it turned out really well, much better than I had initially anticipated. There are other ways to go about it, which I am sure you will find in numerous DIY’s on other forums online. I have read many and also read a lot about painting and optimum temperatures to spray at etc. This is why I got the heater light, plus I had seen something like it used on TV. All my directions are what I did; I am not saying this to be right in any way, to be fair I did not even follow the instructions on the spray cans properly. Make your own judgment on what I have done above & make the changes you feel the need to, for your own wheel painting project.

The main reason I posted this up was to show people how easy it can be to transform the look of your car, for quite a low cost. It was great fun, I have learnt something & I think it was under $240, which would be less obviously if you just sprayed the outside of the wheel only. Time is the major factor here. Take your time and don’t rush, ensure the wheels are as clean as you can get them, before you start. If you don’t have the weekend without your car, don’t even commit to starting this. I believe the results show from me being patient and taking my time.

Again I am not saying that this is the way to do it, I’m just sharing my experiences with the PWRX community. If anyone has any questions, or can recommend a better way to do a part of the process, or the whole thing, then post it up and I am happy to change things around, to make it better should anyone decide to use it as a guide to do their own wheels.

Top stuff, a very good DIY...

Rep given.

Wow!! Now that's an awesome DIY!!! Thanks for that. I'm intending to respray my wheels in white (same colour as now), but I'm waiting for summer (no wind + high temp)

Adi

I know it's a youtube clip, but here's another diy on it. Well done on the comprehensive write up though, reads great!

[url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oG-1uzLJr0]How to paint your wheels - YouTube[/url]

Thanks mate. I am about to start painting my rims and this has helped me out heaps.
Very informative DIY.