I stole a set of 18 inch 2004 disco rims when I bought some tires for 100$....iwant them black......but I don't wanna powdercoat.......what's the best way to paint rims after I blast them with sand to roughen them up

Should I strip them fully......with sand or keep the stock paint

 

The paint won't last at all. It will flake immediately and look horrible.

 

BULL.

I have painted two sets of rims..

Either sand very well, paint it, and use a clear coat.
OR
Sand very well and paint. It will wear quicker this way but touch up will be easier.

If you want your rims to look really good, then paint good with many thin coats and a good clear coat.

If you want them to look ok and easy to touch up then just paint and go.

 

To maximize longevity of the paint, use a self-etching primer before you paint, then be sure to seal it with a clear coat...

That being said, the guys that do sandblasting in this area also seem to be capable of powercoating, the general price I was getting was $50.00 each for blasting and powercoating. After attempting to paint my wheels, I would gladly pay someone next time as it was not worth the hassle... Trust me

 

cheapest i've found was 100$ per rim...and i've had powdercoated rims before...yea they hold up.... but i'm not investing 500$ into a set of rims i paid 100$ for...

paint is the way to go for me...i'll use self etching primer and truck bed liner paint then clear coat it...

 

I helped my friend paint his wheels on his Jeep, and i'll just add a little advice.
It is much easier to take the tires off and paint. Saves lots of time, you'll be glad you did it.
With wheels, prep is crucial, so spend alot of time to avoid orange peel.
I don't know how bed liner goes on compared to normal paint, but dont do more than 3 to 4 coats MAX. If you can wetsand between each coat (but not after the last) it will look like a pro did it. Use 1500-2000 grit if you do it. I know thats not something you hear people say to do often, but wetsanding is how they repaint cars too.

Last, throw on a nice coat of quality marine wax. This will help your paint last much longer. If you ignore the rest of what I said and just do this, your paint will last if done right!

 

I sandblasted my stock 16" wheels than shot an etching primmer on them. Than I went to my local paint shop and had them mix up the factory paint code for bonetti grey and painted them with an autimotive paint. 3parts paint, 2 parts reducer, 1 part hardener. No clear coat. Look great and not a chip in one of them.

 

DON'T USE THE TRUCK BED LINER IN A RATTLE CAN...I tried it on another vehicle of mine and it came out looking like garbage. Use Herculiner or something similar.

 

They make wheel paint in rattle cans. Just sand, prime, 2 coats of base balck and 3 coats of clear. That is all I did, only with the stock color. I wouldn't use clear over the bedliner, and really I wouldn't use it at all, just use paint. the bedliner will grab mud and brake dust.