Member
Let me start by saying that i am no expert or novice on this type of stuff. just kinda a perfectionist and a cheapo when it comes to paying someone for something i can do myself. im decently handy and always looking for the satisfaction of doing a job well. on a side note i will say that after having restored a jeep and a motorcycle, the product out there off the shelf are almost as good as the professional work you see done. the big part of how it will turn out is the quality of the prep work and a clean area. with that said DO NOT USE PLASTI DIP - ITS COMPLETE AND TOTAL crap. i sprayed parts of my motorcycle with it and did other parts in a high quality paint. PLASTI DIP or anything like that is a waste of prep work and will not last the same was a paint will.
so for rims plasti dip will not hold up - save yourself the time and money!
When i first got my x6 a few months ago i wasnt used to how wide its stance is and one of the first things i did was destroy a perfect powder coated rim!
x6 curbed rim.jpg
estimates in NYC area are about $155 each wheel. well since i had the wheel off to do my brakes (write up in another thread on this forum), i decided to paint my calipers blue (another thread) and fix this and all the other curb rash.
1) sand or in this case i had to grind down the affected area (a lot)
2) clean the entire wheel with a rubbing alcohol to get off brake dust, grime, grease
3) since this was particularly bad i had to use bondo glaze and putty filler ($5, sold everywhere you would expect - super easy to use right out of the tube). spread it on with a latex glove and just tried my best to shape it to the curve of the lip.
rim putty fill.jpg
4) once product has dried, get some 300 or finer grit and start sanding til smooth (this takes a while) - wipe off dust and repeat with the filler until the desired contour is met (in my case for some deep scratches i had to repeat 3 times to fill the groves) you should be able to close your eyes and run your fingers over the rim and not feel and groves / scratches or ridges
rim putty fill2.jpg
5) once dry time to clean again with rubbing alcohol and a micro fiber towel to get off any lint and dust - you are now ready for paint. my wheels had a black powder coat gloss / shiny finish which really grew on me.
6) choose your color of choice and spray a few fine coats - waiting 15 minutes between and spraying thicker coats as you go
rim sprayed.jpg
they came out much better than expected. total time was about 3 - 4 hours of work for all 4 rims (some were much worse than others, but every wheel needed some attention) i also wasn't sure how close the color was going to match so i wanted to at least have a coat of spray on each wheel, not really counting drying times. if you look really close you can find some imperfections but at any distance greater than 2 feet it looks flawless, and all for under $15
Member
just some more of the completed project just 24 hours after drying. i will wait around 5 days to cure and then maybe hit then with a sealer wax
shiny rim on car.jpgrim on car 2.jpgrim sprayed on car.jpgfull car rim job.jpg
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks