How-To: Paint your OEM wheels
How-To: Paint your OEM wheels
i did this a long time ago, so i wont have any in progress pics. but ill try to make it as detailed as i can.
Items you need to purchase
- Index cards, doesnt really matter what size, as long as you have lots of them.
- 2-4 cans of Duplicolor Engine Enamel in your color of choice (mine was gloss black)
- 2-4 cans of Duplicolor High Performance Wheel Coating Clear Coat
- Simple Green Degreaser, or something similar
- 3M red scuff pad
painting guidelines
by no means do you have to be a professional to do this, this is the first thing i painted on my car with rattle cans, and it came out beautiful. the reason it came out so beautiful is because of the wheel coating clear coat, it is very easy to use, very easy to apply, doesnt run, doesnt spot, just goes on smooth. due to the nature of this paint tho, i highly recomend u start in the mornign early to give them enough time to thouroughly dry.. .you will still be smelling paint a week later tho, just to forewarn you.
but the first time i painted them, i had to leave, so i put them on VERY carefully after 2 hours of drying, and they survived
what to do
the first thing you want to do is get your car in the air. if you have a full set of jackstads that would be best. if not do what i did and work on two wheels at a time.
once you remove the wheels you will want to remove all the weights from them with a pliar and clean them very well with the degreaser and a sponge from your house (dont let the wife/mom/girlfriend find out )
once they are nice and sparkly this is the painfull part, the part of no return.. start hitting them with the scuff pad, make sure to get every single little part of them.. you will be there at least 30 min on each wheel if youre on an r/t wheel. and they will look like crap while youre scuffing. once done, rinse clean and let dry
open up your pack of index cards and place them in between the tire and the wheel to mask the tire off. make sure there is little to no wind, or youre doing it in an enclosed (but ventillated place) or the cards will fly out and mess up the paint and you will get mad (dont ask me how i know )
i didnt primer, or do any other prep other than clean and scuff. and mine are holding out for about 8 months strong. i didn't do the insde of the wheels. and you cant even notice so at this point, grab of can of engine enamel and shake. i put light coats, but not too light .. just enough and let dry. the hardest part of painting my r/t wheels is getting inside the spokes. you literally have to spray from every direction to get every little bit. this is another part. .that in between waiting to dry and re-coating should take about 1.5 -2 hours per wheel. but if you do all 4 at once, you can save time.
once you have the wheel(s) nicely coated and basically dry, its time to hit the clearcoat. i tried light coats of this clear.. but i personally hit it with thick coats. like where i would hold the nozzle down for a good 2 minutes spraying from every direction to get a nice thick coat on it. like i said before . .it goes on smooth so you dont have to worry.
after all 4 are cleared. you should wait a good amount of hours.. id say at least 4-5 before touching them. when i put mine on after 2 hours, if i pressed my finger softly into it, it would leave a fingerprint. so 4-5 hours should be ok.
when mounting them back on, carefully put the lugs in and tighthen them.. they will still be pretty vulnarable that day. so try not to drive unless you have to. once you feel a little better driving them. .. go get them balanced again.
and youre done.
8+months later mine are still looking brand new. .EXCEPT for one little chip from me dropping a $700 snap on air gun on it
before
after
Items you need to purchase
- Index cards, doesnt really matter what size, as long as you have lots of them.
- 2-4 cans of Duplicolor Engine Enamel in your color of choice (mine was gloss black)
- 2-4 cans of Duplicolor High Performance Wheel Coating Clear Coat
- Simple Green Degreaser, or something similar
- 3M red scuff pad
painting guidelines
by no means do you have to be a professional to do this, this is the first thing i painted on my car with rattle cans, and it came out beautiful. the reason it came out so beautiful is because of the wheel coating clear coat, it is very easy to use, very easy to apply, doesnt run, doesnt spot, just goes on smooth. due to the nature of this paint tho, i highly recomend u start in the mornign early to give them enough time to thouroughly dry.. .you will still be smelling paint a week later tho, just to forewarn you.
but the first time i painted them, i had to leave, so i put them on VERY carefully after 2 hours of drying, and they survived
what to do
the first thing you want to do is get your car in the air. if you have a full set of jackstads that would be best. if not do what i did and work on two wheels at a time.
once you remove the wheels you will want to remove all the weights from them with a pliar and clean them very well with the degreaser and a sponge from your house (dont let the wife/mom/girlfriend find out )
once they are nice and sparkly this is the painfull part, the part of no return.. start hitting them with the scuff pad, make sure to get every single little part of them.. you will be there at least 30 min on each wheel if youre on an r/t wheel. and they will look like crap while youre scuffing. once done, rinse clean and let dry
open up your pack of index cards and place them in between the tire and the wheel to mask the tire off. make sure there is little to no wind, or youre doing it in an enclosed (but ventillated place) or the cards will fly out and mess up the paint and you will get mad (dont ask me how i know )
i didnt primer, or do any other prep other than clean and scuff. and mine are holding out for about 8 months strong. i didn't do the insde of the wheels. and you cant even notice so at this point, grab of can of engine enamel and shake. i put light coats, but not too light .. just enough and let dry. the hardest part of painting my r/t wheels is getting inside the spokes. you literally have to spray from every direction to get every little bit. this is another part. .that in between waiting to dry and re-coating should take about 1.5 -2 hours per wheel. but if you do all 4 at once, you can save time.
once you have the wheel(s) nicely coated and basically dry, its time to hit the clearcoat. i tried light coats of this clear.. but i personally hit it with thick coats. like where i would hold the nozzle down for a good 2 minutes spraying from every direction to get a nice thick coat on it. like i said before . .it goes on smooth so you dont have to worry.
after all 4 are cleared. you should wait a good amount of hours.. id say at least 4-5 before touching them. when i put mine on after 2 hours, if i pressed my finger softly into it, it would leave a fingerprint. so 4-5 hours should be ok.
when mounting them back on, carefully put the lugs in and tighthen them.. they will still be pretty vulnarable that day. so try not to drive unless you have to. once you feel a little better driving them. .. go get them balanced again.
and youre done.
8+months later mine are still looking brand new. .EXCEPT for one little chip from me dropping a $700 snap on air gun on it
before
after
Last edited by Louie on Sun Aug 15, 2004 12:37 am, edited 2 times in total.
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nice, im going to do it... oh and ehy do you have to have them re-balanced...
2001 R/T Neon
(Parts) Progress Springs 1.8" Drop, Tokico Blue Struts, 18" OZ Superleggera's Gunmetal, Ice-Man CAI, Ground Wires, Tint, Strut Brace, Clears, SRT4 Shifter, Booger Bushings.
(Stock) Removed 01 R/T wing - Added 02 R/T wing, all badges + moldings removed......
(Parts) Progress Springs 1.8" Drop, Tokico Blue Struts, 18" OZ Superleggera's Gunmetal, Ice-Man CAI, Ground Wires, Tint, Strut Brace, Clears, SRT4 Shifter, Booger Bushings.
(Stock) Removed 01 R/T wing - Added 02 R/T wing, all badges + moldings removed......
01RTsilver wrote:nice, im going to do it... oh and ehy do you have to have them re-balanced...
yepLouie wrote:when mounting them back on, carefully put the lugs in and tighthen them.. they will still be pretty vulnarable that day. so try not to drive unless you have to. once you feel a little better driving them. .. go get them balanced again.
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I realize this is a bit old, but this is awesome. I bought a set of 18's 7 spoke i like them a lot but the paint is chipping and peeling. I didnt want to mess them up anymore by sprayin them but im gonna try this then i will have two sets of 18's haha.
Can you get that engine enamel at any auto parts store or what?
Can you get that engine enamel at any auto parts store or what?
yea ive seen it everywhere. i prefer anything duplicolor makes tho vs. say plastikoteHypnoticcyclone wrote:I realize this is a bit old, but this is awesome. I bought a set of 18's 7 spoke i like them a lot but the paint is chipping and peeling. I didnt want to mess them up anymore by sprayin them but im gonna try this then i will have two sets of 18's haha.
Can you get that engine enamel at any auto parts store or what?
- eVilcreations
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Well, mine are now done(I'll post pics very soon), and I LOVE THEM!!!!!! They don't even look like the same wheels.
I used Dupli-color Semi-Gloss Black High-temp Engine Enamel. I didn't use the clear like Louie did, and mine look very good, but I might very well end up clear coating them just for some added protection.
Thanks for this GREAT how-to Louie, I Love my "new" wheels.
I used Dupli-color Semi-Gloss Black High-temp Engine Enamel. I didn't use the clear like Louie did, and mine look very good, but I might very well end up clear coating them just for some added protection.
Thanks for this GREAT how-to Louie, I Love my "new" wheels.
- eVilcreations
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Here's the pics of mine!!!!!
Well, here's a few pics of mine. I did them the way Louie Describes in his how-to, and I think they turned out beautifully.
Before:
AFTER:
Hope the size of those pics is ok guys. Tell me if you like 'em.
Before:
AFTER:
Hope the size of those pics is ok guys. Tell me if you like 'em.
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- eVilcreations
- Former Jr. Admin
- Posts: 2411
- Joined: Tue Jul 06, 2004 6:52 pm
- Location: the flatlands, KS
- Contact:
- eVilcreations
- Former Jr. Admin
- Posts: 2411
- Joined: Tue Jul 06, 2004 6:52 pm
- Location: the flatlands, KS
- Contact:
- eVilcreations
- Former Jr. Admin
- Posts: 2411
- Joined: Tue Jul 06, 2004 6:52 pm
- Location: the flatlands, KS
- Contact:
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Agreed, looks pretty damn cool.theneonkid wrote:not bad vernon.
evil... when you gonna drop that car adn buy my wing... lol haha
2002 Dodge Neon SE
Mopar Stage 3 Coilovers w/Energy Suspension Polyurethane Bushings
SRT Swap in progress
SRT is powered by an AGP 50 trim stage 4 ball bearing turbo kit
When finished will run no less then 400 HP.
Mopar Stage 3 Coilovers w/Energy Suspension Polyurethane Bushings
SRT Swap in progress
SRT is powered by an AGP 50 trim stage 4 ball bearing turbo kit
When finished will run no less then 400 HP.
- eVilcreations
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neonkid.
I know man, I'm just trying to mod as much as I can since I now have an extra 320 a month car payment, and an extra 60/month for insurance after my wife totalled her neon(not her fault). But we only had liability, and the other people didn't have any insurance, so had to get her another car. Oh well......Modding will occur one way or another.
I know man, I'm just trying to mod as much as I can since I now have an extra 320 a month car payment, and an extra 60/month for insurance after my wife totalled her neon(not her fault). But we only had liability, and the other people didn't have any insurance, so had to get her another car. Oh well......Modding will occur one way or another.
sorry to wake the dead but
2005 Red SRT4
Stage 2, Maddog 72-4
Still needs a paint job
Official "I'm Going to Drive My Neon till it Dies" Club #87
- BlackRoseRacing
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WERD
2003 Silver SXT - Totalled
2005 Silver Subaru Legacy 2.5GT Turbo -Daily
1990 White SR powered 240sx - My sliding slut.
I miss my neon at times. She treated me well and taught me a lot about cars in general. I will always have a special place in my heart for these cars. Heres to the 2gn community.
2005 Silver Subaru Legacy 2.5GT Turbo -Daily
1990 White SR powered 240sx - My sliding slut.
I miss my neon at times. She treated me well and taught me a lot about cars in general. I will always have a special place in my heart for these cars. Heres to the 2gn community.
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You might PM Louie and see if he responds... not sure if he still has the same e-mail or not since I havne't talked to him in a long time.
-Jason
Black '02 Neon R/T | White '02 Neon R/T - SRT-4 Engine Swap
^^^ no, that isn't what I look like haha
Try not to become a man of success but rather to become a man of value. - Albert Einstein
Black '02 Neon R/T | White '02 Neon R/T - SRT-4 Engine Swap
^^^ no, that isn't what I look like haha
Try not to become a man of success but rather to become a man of value. - Albert Einstein
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The idea behind removing wheel weights was to not paint over them. Whenever I have tires mounted, I always tell the guy doing the work (not the salesman) to put the weights on the in-side of the wheel so they don't mess up the finish of the wheel, and make the wheel look tacky.
So, if your weights are on the in-side of the wheel, you don't need to remove them. If they're on the the outside, you should take them off to be able to do a good job on the paint.
Then, have the wheels/tires rebalanced.
So, if your weights are on the in-side of the wheel, you don't need to remove them. If they're on the the outside, you should take them off to be able to do a good job on the paint.
Then, have the wheels/tires rebalanced.
'02 Flame Red SXR/T
(sorry, no link on banner)
Complete Short Throw Shifters sold here! Custom work available!
PM or email aclnes55@yahoo.com for more information.
(sorry, no link on banner)
Complete Short Throw Shifters sold here! Custom work available!
PM or email aclnes55@yahoo.com for more information.
gotcha gotcha, thanks!Maddog wrote:The idea behind removing wheel weights was to not paint over them. Whenever I have tires mounted, I always tell the guy doing the work (not the salesman) to put the weights on the in-side of the wheel so they don't mess up the finish of the wheel, and make the wheel look tacky.
So, if your weights are on the in-side of the wheel, you don't need to remove them. If they're on the the outside, you should take them off to be able to do a good job on the paint.
Then, have the wheels/tires rebalanced.
Better way to do your wheels (which I have done on a multitude of vehicles) is to use a sandblaster.
$14 sandblaster from princess auto, or wherever else if you are American
$10 bag of blasting media (medium grit)
Compressor...If you don't have one of these...I don't even know.
Though sandblasting is preferred, if you don't have a compressor I can see why one would take this route. But for me I may take this route just to do a clearcoat on wheels I have already blasted and painted to perfection.
Might try it later this week, they could use more shine
$14 sandblaster from princess auto, or wherever else if you are American
$10 bag of blasting media (medium grit)
Compressor...If you don't have one of these...I don't even know.
Though sandblasting is preferred, if you don't have a compressor I can see why one would take this route. But for me I may take this route just to do a clearcoat on wheels I have already blasted and painted to perfection.
Might try it later this week, they could use more shine