Submitted for your approval...
I decided the curb rash and stuck on tar and scratches etc. were getting to be an eyesore on my ten year old Titans.
So I decided I'd clean them up and give them a new look. Materials needed are steel wool, sandpaper (from 100grit to 400 grit), index cards or stock paper(the heavy stuff your mom uses for scrapbooking), masking tape, dish soap, an old rag, Duplicolor wheel enamel (Graphite on this one), Duplicolor ClearCoat, and a liquid metal filler used on autobody (found at any auto parts store).
**Important: If you're going to repaint your wheels, you'll want a good layer of grime on the sidewalls of your tires. If you haven't been using armorall or some kind of tire black on your tires when you wash it I highly recommend doing that a couple times before you start this project. Trust me.**
Start by cleaning off the wheels, focusing around where any scrapes along the rim are. Leave all the grime on the tire sidewalls, that comes in handy later. I started with some 100 grit sandpaper on mine, they were pretty nasty. You aren't trying to smooth them out, just take out any sharp edges or loose flanges of metal. Also sand around any chips in the finish of the wheel you might have. I had some deep scratches so I went over those as well. Using the liquid metal filler, plaster some into the deep gouges or chips on your finish (which I had). Right now just using a finger or a putty knife will suffice. You want to fill everything in really well, but don't have so much excess you can't sand it off later.
Let the liquid metal dry for a few hours. When you come back to it, you want it a lighter gray. If it hasn't cured enough you'll be sorry later... Assuming everything is peachy, go back at your fillers with sandpaper. Depending on how well you did the filling, you may have to do more or less sanding. I was pretty darn sloppy so I used 100 grit then 200 then 400 to smooth it out. Time to take the wheels off of the car. Remove the axel nut caps and the valve stem caps as well.
If you have a full set of jackstands this job is faster doing all four wheels at once. If you started later in the day I might suggest only doing two at a time since you're waiting for a lot of paint to dry. Take your first wheel off to the side, remove the valve stem cap and clean it off with the dish soap. Car soap might work well also but dish soap has a knack for taking off grime and grease well. Make sure you wash behind the wheel, in and out of all the little spokes, inside the lugnut holes, everywhere except the tire sidewall. Use the old rag for this since it's going to get pretty darn nasty. Dry the wheel thoroughly and set it on the ground. At this point, you should tape off the valve stems to avoide damage from steel wool or sandpaper, or any crap that might float into the valve. Take your steel wool and start scrubbing. This part is crucial because it's going to strip off any wax, topcoat, rust and other crap that would affect paint tack. Again, every nook and cranny, though behind the spokes isn't as crucial here since you won't be putting much paint back there. After you've done the steel wool go back over it with some 400 grit sandpaper to smooth it out a bit. I actually started hosing the wheel off and doing the wetsanding trick too, but I think it would be fine dry.
Wash the wheel again, and rinse it really well since there will be lots of little peices if steel wire everywhere from the wool. Thoroughly dry the wheel and set it aside, it's ready to paint. At this point you could probably clean all 4 wheels at once (or 2) and then go to paint, but I cleaned one then painted it, so I could clean the next wheel while the paint from the first was drying. Nice little cycle. Anyhow, this is where the index cards come in. If you have stock card instead, cut it into 3 strips per page, hamburger style. Stick these in between the sidewall and the tire, and use a lot of them since a tiny crack in coverage can leave a nice little silver corner on your tire.
Here I've started to paint. Use light strokes, and shake the can often to ensure even color. At this point there are two techniques for wheel finish. If you don't want a shine ignore this part. Technique one is to apply a really thick, wet coat of paint which will leave a shine when it dries, then simply protect with the clearcoat. The second method is to get the color you want with the paint, then get the shine with the clearcoat. I went this route since it's easier to polish off drips of clearcoat than paint. So get a nice even coat on, make sure you get inside the spokes and get behind the center of it. I don't feel it's necessary to spray
behind the wheel but you can if you're really OC. Notice I don't have cards covering the entire tire. You don't need the whole thing, and it can be a PITA to go all the way around with cards. What I did was take one from one side and add it to the other, kind of like a snake effect (for a lack of a better way to describe it) and worked my way around the wheel with the paint. The duplicolor is very "glittery" so expect to see a lot of shiny glitter get on your tire sidewall. If a little overspray gets on your tire don't fret, this is where the grime I said to leave on comes in handy. It will act as a barrier that you can scrub off later!!! Roll the wheel into the garage or somewhere safe so that dirt/bugs/whatever can't contaminate it. Let it dry for about 2 hours before you go to clearcoat.
Here I've started spraying clearcoat. I recommend your first coat be very light, just get it on there. Let that dry for about 30 minutes, then come back with a really wet coat. If you hold the can in closer and move your hand faster you'll get a nice wet coat that will give off a shine just like a professional finish. If you don't want a shine just spray it like any paint. You may notice (as in this picture) the clearcoat darkened the paint a lot, and even makes it look patchy and uneven. No worries, once it dries it will level out. As long as your paint coat was on even, you'll be fine. Keep it sheltered again to avoid contamination. You may need several coats to get a good overall shine.
If you notice a texture or crow's feet, no sweat. Let the clearcoat dry for 48 hours then go back with some rubbing compound and a rag and work out the rough spots and crow's feet. Wash the wheel off really well, and get a scotchbrite sponge and scrub that layer of glittery grime off your tire sidewalls. No more overspray! Wax the wheels, black magic on the tires, replace valve stem caps and you're done! I recommend not replacing the wheels until after letting the clearcoat dry for 2-3 hours, and not driving for at least 24 hours (if you can help it!). The heat from your brakes can do weird things to the fresh paint, you might be able to see it in this first pic. It's more visible in direct sunlight though, but nothing completely intolerable.
This is the finish in the shade. The glitter effect is rather muted.
This is the dark finish in direct sunlight. You can see how much more "glittery" it is than the factory finish, but I don't think it looks that bad.
def colormatch to cudas 
Sam-I-Am
