I bought 98 SE rims, which are brown/bronze but I would like to remove all the paint and repaint them gold'ish. I dont know where to start. Can someone walk me through this or is anyone willing to help?! Im located in Belleville, NJ 07109. Here are some questions. If there is anything else you can add, please feel free...

-How do I take off the current paint? I do have an 1,800psi power washer but do I need a specific type of paint thinner or something prior to power-washing these suckers?

-Once the paint is off, any prep work needed?

-What type of paint do I need and where do I get it?

-How do I clear coat them or protect it from scratches?

All the help is appreciated...

Thanks in advance!

 

Use some air craft stripper. Buy the aerosol can at autozone. Spray that on and let it soak. It will break the paint down. Use EXTREME CAUTION with that chemical. Mask all surfaces you want protected and use chemical resistant gloves. Scrub off the paint when it drives, repeat the process a few times and wash the rim in between each application. Then begin wet sanding... Next prime the rim, paint it, and clear coat it, allowing decent in between coats.

 

How to paint your wheels


What you will need
-Jack
-Jackstands
-Tire iron is handy but not necessary
-Duplicolor wheel paint in the color you choose (I used one can of "Graphite" for four wheels)
-Duplicolor wheel paint in clear
-Aircraft stripper ($4 can at Autozone)
-Plastic scraper (I actually just used some of those plastic knives they give you for cutting cakes)
-Wheel brush with plastic bristles (comes in handy)
-Masking tape
-Index cards (I used 3x5)
-400 grit sandpaper

Steps

1. Take the wheels off the car.
2. Wash/dry the wheels throughly.



3. Once dry, spray on the aircraft stripper in an even coat. It is ok to get some on the tire, just don't let it sit too long and wipe it off with a paper towel. Try to use some protective rubber gloves, if you get any aircraft stripper on your skin it will burn like hell.
4. Wait anywhere from 10-30 minutes depending on weather conditions for the stripper to work. The paint should be soft and easy to scrape off and look like this...



5. Once you scrape all the clearcoat/paint off that you can brush off the excess shavings, etc. with your wheel brush and repeat steps 2-4.
6. Wash/Dry wheels again.
7. Get the 400 grit sand paper and sand down the wheels till the painting surface is nice and smooth.
8. Wash/Dry wheels again.
9. Put the index cards in the gap between the tire and wheel like this...



this is done to prevent overspray onto the tire.
10. Spray on LIGHT and EVEN coats of paint. Wait for the paint to dry completely before spraying on another coat. I sprayed on 5 coats of the actual paint followed by 3 coats of clearcoat.



11. When your last coat of clearcoat is dry you are done, get the wheels back on your car and enjoy.

Tips:

1. Be careful with the aircraft stripper, you do not want to get this on your skin, in your eyes, etc. it burns like hell. I'd recommend at least wearing rubber protective gloves to prevent the stripper to get on your fingers when you are spraying on the aircraft stripper/scraping off the paint. Try to wear glasses and a face mask too.
2. Do this during DRY weather, moisture in the air screws with the way the wheels dry and makes the painted wheels bumpy. We had to sand the wheels down and do another coat bc of this. It also lengthens the drying time dramatically...from a couple minutes to over an hour.
3. If you wanted to leave the lip bare metal you would (when scraping the paint off the wheels) need to scrape the lip area down to BARE METAL. Leave no paint or clearcoat on the area at all. I used a sturdy metal chisel to do the job.
4. This thread can be helpful...read through it, there are some pics of wheels painted different colors.

http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=316500

 

after you strip the old paint and sand make sure you clean all dust and debris off the wheel with a microfiber cloth or something. make sure the primer goes on fat and even. doing several thin coats is better than a few real wet coats. follow the instructions on the spray can about how long between coats. just buy wheel clear coat and put on as manny coats as you want the more the better just be consistent. when I painted mine I put more coats of clear on the fronts because I was tired and just wanted to finish by the time I got to the rears and the fronts were noticeably darker until I put more clear on the rears. take your time and youll get the best results. good luck

 

Have a tire shop dismount the tires, it will make the job easier, cleaner.
A fresh mount and balance with wheel weights moved to the inside make a nice clean finish.

 

air craft stripper works great. but you will need a brush or scrapper of some sort. I used a power washer also but still need a brush to remove all the old paint. Make sure wheels are dry and dust free before you prime. I wanted professional results so I bought a paint gun and a air compressor. I also used automotive paint from sherwin-williams auto. I used etching primer to prep my wheels for paint(come in a can)...it helps the paint stick to metals a lot better. Light even coats. Hardest part was the clearcoat. The timing to apply clearcoat is very critical. be sure to follow instructions carefully or u will mess up...trust me!

 

A die grinder with a wire wheel works good for taking the stripper off.. Safety glasses are a must though cause that **** flies everywhere..

 

awesome info... I would've never thought about ALL these things... Thanks to the repliers so far!

I'm not sure if I want to go chrome or gold, like the current 18" wheels in my sig. What do ya think?

 

Chrome IMO looks a bit tacky.

Good catch. I was scoping those wheels out on NYCM to do the same thing, but I don't have a garage or driveway to paint them in.

What color car do you have? Do you have chrome trim or black trim? i've seen SE 16s look really nice in gold, or bronze, or gunmetal, or black.

 

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Well, I bought that aircraft stripper and that, along with a scraper and an 1800 psi power power washer took off the paint on two of the rims. (I tried 2 of them in case it didnt go so well). Im going to lightly sand it and them prime them. I havent really decided on a color but Im inclining towards GOLD. I did have the dude that painted the G35 wheels reach out to me but I dont have extra money, nor the time to drive all the way to NY.

 

damn, iv painted about 6 of my friends cars wheels, thought i was pro, came on here, nevermind. listen to these guys. haha

i guess im a newb compaired to these guys

 

GL with it. You have enough info to smash that job now.!!

 

I've done this to my ford ranger wheels, and they dont look too bad. i would say to use high heat engine paint on the wheels f you're going to do a dark color. sand/clean the wheels as you normally would. paint them on a very hot day. coat every 20 mins at least 3 times. let cure for a day or two to really bake that paint on.

 

on a old set of wheels i did what it says in the previous post..however...i put playing cards between the rim and tire......so it wont spray over.....and i would be VERY Careful with primer and paint like someone said up there...better to do thin layers a couple times then alot of primer at once.....be patient and goodluck

 

Well, I started the process. They are stripped and primed. I just have to sand and paint...
I'll post pics soon

 

Waiting on PICS I want to paint my 16" SE's either the stock color or GunMetal, I have a Crimzon Blaze car what would look better?

 

GunMetal FTW!

 

Hey could you guys post some pics of the rims u guys painted im thinking about doing it but im not sure...
Thanks

 

You can buy rim paint also, which works great!

 

good tread, great info, thanks guys i'm thinking of doing it.

 

en you mean take off the old paint, by that you mean the stock paint on the rims right or the stock coloring or w\e because i want to do this and my rims are unpainted just stock, also is there no need for primer?