Spraying alloys

HutchGlanzaV

HutchGlanzaV

Member +
I'm thinking about buying a set of rota grids and spraying them (maybe) kawasaki green. Got a couple of questions.

1. Will the new wheels need prepping in any way? Would I be better off going for white wheels so I've got a blank canvas to work on (so to speak).

2. Is this a job that can be done with rattle cans from halfrauds? Is it hard to get good, even coverage?

3. Will I need anything as an over coat to seal it to stop it flaking etc?

4. Is it a job best left to the pro's?

Cheers for your help people, rep will be given for helpful answers.

Love,
Hutch.
 
J

JasonG

Member +
im sparying mine kawaski green too:)
em better of getting it done by pro...or use paint form tin for sparying cars and prime it and laqar it lad!!!
tin can will peel bud:(and not very rreliable will fleak!!
 
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dac69er

dac69er

Super Moderator
to be honest mate. if you havnt got alot of the stuff to do it already it can be cheaper for a pro to do, plus you wold get a better finish.

if you want to have a go yourself then thats fine.

im no painter, but basically, if the paint on the wheels is sound already then just flat and key the paint that is there, prime it and then paint it. once its dry, lacquer it all and it should be good to go. would give the rattle can paint a good week to dry properly indoors in this weather.
 
T

the_names_james

Member +
I'm a painter by trade and I can guarantee you will get runs on wheels with cans. You have a few options but I don't have time to go through them right now so I'll reply with more answers later mate
 
HutchGlanzaV

HutchGlanzaV

Member +
Cheers James. I know it varies from painter to painter but how much roughly would it be for a set of 4 15" wheels to be sprayed?
 
lingl9z

lingl9z

Member +
I did a set of bbs alloys with rattle cans on my old mx5, the thing that took the longest was preparing the wheels, heres some pics

before

photo0126z.jpg


During

SDC10184.jpg

SDC10183.jpg

SDC10187.jpg


After

SDC10189.jpg

SDC10191.jpg
 
dac69er

dac69er

Super Moderator
HutchGlanzaV said:
Cheers James. I know it varies from painter to painter but how much roughly would it be for a set of 4 15" wheels to be sprayed?
Click to expand...

if it was just a straight single colour with minimal prep work needed then a sprayer i used would probably do a set of 4 for about £70, maybe less.
 
lingl9z

lingl9z

Member +
finish was pretty good tbh mate, prep work took me around an hour each wheel. Mainly due to the fact it was really awkwud to rub down in the gaps of these wheels + filling in any little dents etc although you could use high build primer instead! - I did about 2 coats of primer then 3 coats of Plasicoat paint. The guy I sold the car to still has the wheels on it and they still look pretty decent!

I had the sandpaper/wet and dry / filler at home already so only bought the Primer and paint think I got 4 cans of red @ £6 a can and one pretty big can of primer, think the key is to take your time, I had to redo the first one as I tried to rush when spraying it by covering the whole wheel in one go, later realising that's why It ran so I gave it light coats in the end which worked alot better!
 
T

the_names_james

Member +
HutchGlanzaV said:
1. Will the new wheels need prepping in any way? Would I be better off going for white wheels so I've got a blank canvas to work on (so to speak).
Click to expand...

Yes, you'll need to key them up. Scotchbrite is the best stuff to use (red scotch for high solid [HS] or grey scotch for base and clear.) Alternatively get yourself some medium wire wool.
I would recommend HS paint if it's a solid colour you want as you don't need to clearcoat it. Also, as it's name implies, it's got a high solid content which means it covers extremely well. 2 coats should do nicely.

If you were wanting a metallic/pearl finish you have to use basecoat. Base is matt when it dries. All basecoats used in bodyshops have to be waterbased (as opposed to thinners based a.k.a solvent paint, which you can still get and is easier to use) and have to be lacquered. Some basecoats need a dark primer. Red, for example, takes alot of coats to cover a white primer, while yellow needs a white primer.

2. Is this a job that can be done with rattle cans from halfrauds? Is it hard to get good, even coverage?
Click to expand...

You could attempt the job with cans, just go slow. Make sure you clean the wheels thoroughly with a solvent based cleaner after prepping. Paint the sides of the spokes first, then do the face. Do this for each coat. Lots of light coats given time to dry between is much better than a couple of heavy coats. The most obvious advantage is that it's far cheaper than a pro job, and you also get the kudos of saying "I painted them".

A little tip; if you use cans, warm them a little before you begin. The paint will atomise into a finer mist giving a better finish. Some suppliers do cans with a fan nozzle (much better than spot nozzles) and you can even get variable fan nozzles.

3. Will I need anything as an over coat to seal it to stop it flaking etc?
Click to expand...

See above.

4. Is it a job best left to the pro's?
Click to expand...

This is your call. You could get them done for less than £100 if you went HS and the wheels were 'tyreless'. You can add 40-50% to that for base and clear.

Have you thought about powdercoating?
 
HutchGlanzaV

HutchGlanzaV

Member +
No James I hadn't thought about powder coating. What's the advantages/disadvantages over spraying? Still a similar cost for a pro to do?
 
toyotagt

toyotagt

Member +
powder coating is supposed to be longer lasting and tougher...

i sprayed a good few before,
if there is any metal showin you will need to etch prime it, then normal primer, leave dry, sand and better off getting paint mixed as a solid 2 pack paint because its tougher then rattle can sprays, but when u get that u need hardner to mix, of if u wanted a metallic its waterbased so it will need lacquer
 
HutchGlanzaV

HutchGlanzaV

Member +
Sounds like getting someone who knows what they are doing to paint em is in order then. Cheers James, if i could rep you again i would!
 
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the_names_james

Member +
Only thing I'd say with regards to painting them is make sure you trust whoever will be fitting your tyres. If they're not careful the machine will chew up fresh paint.
 
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the_names_james

Member +
At least 2 days to be safe mate. I used to refurb wheels quite regularly and we'd refit tyres within an hour of baking the paint, but sometimes we'd have to rework them due to a heavy handed tyre fitter.
 
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