which wheel paint?

Got wheels for Candy Van.  They're currently painted black and I want them Bronze.  It's a factory coating and I reached out to KMC wheels to find out what they used but their answer made it sound like "no idea, we have a third party paint them."

In the past I have just gone to HD and picked up rattle cans, but A) they don't have the color I want and B) I'm not always convinced that's the most durable choice.

So I might break out the detail gun and actually have some paint mixed but this is new to me.  Do I use urethane?  Enamel?  Something else?  Stick with rattle cans?  Center cap might stay black or I might go Bronze with it as well and it's plastic.  Thoughts?  Ideas?

Without knowing if the wheels are painted or powder coated by OEM I'd be a bit worried about existing coating lifting due to solvents in whatever paint system you use.  Best bet would be blasting and prep prior to powder coating or your choice of paint chemistry.  Nothing you don't know already I would suspect.  
Painting the plastic center cap can also be a PITA depending on its material.  Semi-crystalline materials (PP, TPO, nylon) are harder to paint and amorphous materials (ABS, PC, PC/ABS) should take paint easily and well.  Are their material designations on the caps?

I've recently had great luck with Rustoleum Hammered finish spray paint.

My previous go-to was Rustoleum Appliance Epoxy, but that has limited color choice. I've also used VHT high temp metallic engine paint and it seemed very durable (held up to use on a Lemons race car), and there is also VHT engine clear coat available that should add durability/ease of cleaning.

In reply to wawazat :

They are definitely painted, not powdercoated.

newrider3 said:

I've recently had great luck with Rustoleum Hammered finish spray paint.

My previous go-to was Rustoleum Appliance Epoxy, but that has limited color choice. I've also used VHT high temp metallic engine paint and it seemed very durable (held up to use on a Lemons race car), and there is also VHT engine clear coat available that should add durability/ease of cleaning.

I've done them with rustoleum before and it was fine but also didn't keep them long.  I was wondering if there was a "righter" way to do it.

Ive used duplicolor engine paint, duplicolor wheel paint, rustoleum, and base clear.

I think, if i was willing, base clear has been the best solution. Easiest to keep clean and most durable. Also able to be waxed so it reduces brake dust buildup. 

wawazat said:

Nothing you don't know already I would suspect.  

Painting the plastic center cap can also be a PITA depending on its material.  Semi-crystalline materials (PP, TPO, nylon) are harder to paint and amorphous materials (ABS, PC, PC/ABS) should take paint easily and well.  Are their material designations on the caps?

I'll check the center caps.

And as far as assuming that I know... I kinda don't.  I know some things, like how acetone > lacquer thinner > mineral spirits, but my experience with painting things (other than rattle can) is next to zero.

I have had very good luck with Duplicolor wheel paint.  I did 3 or 4 coats of color and then 2 coats of clear on top and the wheels still look good 4 years later.  If I remember right it took about 1 can of color a wheel.

In reply to Aaron_King :

Do you recall what flavor it was?  I know I did some duplicolor on a transmission case and it was Urethane.  Any specific reason to choose one type of plastic over another?  I'm thinking that wheels would encounter road debris and sticks and also some fuzzy brushes for cleaning, so I guess I'm shooting for a chemistry that makes a harder coating?

Just checked the center caps.  No specific marking, but they fell very ABS-ish.

Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) said:

newrider3 said:

I've recently had great luck with Rustoleum Hammered finish spray paint.

My previous go-to was Rustoleum Appliance Epoxy, but that has limited color choice. I've also used VHT high temp metallic engine paint and it seemed very durable (held up to use on a Lemons race car), and there is also VHT engine clear coat available that should add durability/ease of cleaning.

I've done them with rustoleum before and it was fine but also didn't keep them long.  I was wondering if there was a "righter" way to do it.

Spray them with clear after, do a couple coats.  

With paint it is all in the prep.  

In for details, I have wheels to paint now that the weather is warming up.

Rub them down with Scotchbrite first. 

I've done both two-stage urethane automotive paint and the Duplicolor wheel paint. In all cases, the wheels are on cars that see enthusiastic use with frequent wheel removal and tire changes. Everyone here knows that I'm talking about :) They both saw a few chips over time, but just chips. It does help if you sand the lug nut contact points down to bare metal after paint so they don't start a crack.  

In reply to Keith Tanner :

That's good to know.  I know that some enamels I've used tend to stay soft for a while and I didn't want them to get sandblasted with all the road debris.

The lug nuts on these wheels are way down in a hole, so I don't anticipate any problems with any cracks originating down in there.  They also get covered with the center cap so I won't even worry about painting the lug area.

I'm currently playing with some photoshop (jeez I'm terrible at photoshop) with some colors.  These wheels have simulated bead locks that you can remove and I'm tempted to make them possibly a different shade of bronze.  All of the shiny bolt details you see are actually removable... as in, they're actual 6mm flange-head bolts, so they'll come out.  They might get the other shade of bronze as well if I can find one.

I spent some time today at the local paint shop and dug through hundreds of bronze colors and didn't find one that I liked better than this one below, so I bought four cans along with four cans of clear. It's called Antique Brass. We'll see how it holds up.  I have a metric crapload of scotchbrite in every color that I snagged from a yard sale a couple years ago, so I'm ready there.  I think the last wheels I did I used the maroon ones, then when I did a final soap scrub I used the green ones.

I just realized I was sitting right next to a set of those wheels. These were painted...12-15 years ago? Stripped to bare metal, polished the lip, primed and painted with the Duplicolor wheel paint. And yes, they are covered in dust and cobwebs.

Parked outside...These were black wheels scuffed with Scotchbrite and primed/painted with automotive two-part enamel. No clear. They were on the Targa Newfoundland in 2011 and have seen both track and street use since. I will admit I'm not all that careful when chucking my own wheels around. 

I meant chips by the lugs. Here's what can happen. 

I used duplicolor wheel gold on my Subi wheels.  I've done several sets of wheels over the years.  Prep is key!  Scotch brute pads or sanding sponges are my go too.  You have to scuff them or nothing sticks.  Then I use primer, then wheel color and usually 1 coat of clear.  
 

I've done at least 7-8 sets of wheels with duplicolor wheel paint (including several sets of rally wheels, the wheels on my offroad 4x4, and others). The stuff goes on nicely with great coverage and really holds up well. 

In reply to Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) :

It was this:  https://www.duplicolor.com/product/wheel-coating

"  Dupli-Color® Wheel Coating is perfect for customizing or dressing up worn out wheels. This advanced, track-tested acrylic enamel formula restores original wheel appearance and protects against brake dust, chemicals, cleaning solvents, heat, and chipping. Dupli-Color Wheel Coating features a highly durable finish with superior adhesion to steel, aluminum, and plastic wheels and wheel coverings.  "

Rustolium epoxy enamel was mentioned earlier in the thread. Color selection is indeed limited, but it's really durable. 
 

These steel wheels were white when I bought them. They were prepped carefully, and painted about six years before the picture was taken. Not a chip on them. 
 

That Antique Brass looks really good on wheels, I'm planning on doing a set of BMW Style 66 wheels with it this year at some point.

I've had good luck with the Duplicolor wheel paints, but the clear coat always seems to yellow fairly quickly where higher end 2-part stuff seems to not have that problem. For bronze wheels, not a problem at all.

These are duplicolor with clear, and after about a year, the brushed part of the rim was looking kind of rough just because it started to discolor, even though the  paint was still physically holding up well.

FWIW:  I have some aluminum wheels and between the spokes is painted black.  A local shop gets $85 per wheel for painting.

Just go fast so no one sees my lousy paint job... 

As always, you guys deliver.

I really wanted to go with the Duplicolor wheel paint but they just don't make a color I like.

The last wheels I did were some Ranger/Explorer wheels that I put on the Branger.  They were in rough shape.  The clearcoat had come off so there was a lot of pitting.  I stripped them down with a wire wheel and sandpaper.  Final scrub was with some dishsoap and a green scotch brite.  Then I wiped them down with a rag soaked in acetone.  I primed and painted flat black with the plain old normal rustoleum and they looked like a million bucks, but I didn't keep the Branger more than about 2 years after I painted them.

These wheels are already painted with no chips or scratches... should I still prime?  I was thinking I could just shoot color over the scuffed base paint.  I just don't know paint chemistry well.  I always assumed that primer was basically just flat gray paint.

Scuff them with the red scotch pads, wipe them down and spray.  Did that on some VW steel wheels like 30 years ago and they still look good.  I would wash them with Dawn dish soap and water to degrease first, scuff, then wipe them down with acetone or something and hit them with compressed air to get them good and dry.  Wear eye protection.

They sell a shield thing to keep armor all/tire dressing off your wheels that work great to mask the tire off from the paint.

Toebra said:

Scuff them with the red scotch pads, wipe them down and spray.  Did that on some VW steel wheels like 30 years ago and they still look good.  I would wash them with Dawn dish soap and water to degrease first, scuff, then wipe them down with acetone or something and hit them with compressed air to get them good and dry.  Wear eye protection.

 

They sell a shield thing to keep armor all/tire dressing off your wheels that work great to mask the tire off from the paint.

I did a smart thing.  I took the old tires off and I'll paint before I put the new tires on.

I'm hoping to get them prepped tonight so I can shoot tomorrow but very frustratingly not finding my scotch brite pads.