Painted Wheels Today.

[AppStRunner]

So after 3 weeks of owning the T4R, I decided that my color looks great with painted wheels. So of to advance auto I went, and 12 hours later... shes looking nice with the graphite metallic finish.

I cleaned with soap and water, Scuffed real good with 3M red pad and drill, then applied some lacquer thinner. Then came the taping...which was terrible, because it would not stick to the tire at all, so I ended up mashing it behind rim with a screwdriver then adding around in circles. The good part was, I just re-used the tape circles on the other two tires later. After I taped, I began the painting. First was some self-etching primer(3 coats), then some sandable primer(3), then I sanded it smooth with 800 grit paper. Then came the actual color. Duplicolor HWP 102 Graphite (2 thin, one wet) Then went back over it 3 more times with the Duplicolor HWP 101 clear coat.

 

[bama16]

looks good! i was wondering what that gunmetal looked like with anthracite. when ever i've painted wheels...i used either a cheap deck of cards, or some 3x5 note cards and i stick them in the wheel around the edge..works well and easy to remove.

 

[longrunner]

Those look sweet! Nice job

 

[spongerx]

:trophy:

 

[Pure 98]

well done :thumb3:
I want to do it but not sure.

 

[97-4xFunner]

Looks great!

 

[96743runner]

I like it! Looks great with the anthracite paint.

 

[fightman80]

Looks good man, will that paint hold up to the elements though?? I see alot of folks painting their wheels, but they get all scratched up later........I did a set of wheels on my 87 Grand AM when I was a 18, and they chipped like crazy! I'm just interested to know, because I was thinking of doing my 3 spokes that I run in the winter......

 

[xskydivingdudex]

looks good dude, ive been wanting to do this for a while but im really skeptical since ive nvr done that and it looks kinda skill intensive to do it right the first time. So wat ive been wondering alot is what do u do bout the area that isnt painted behind the weights? Bc everytime i go to get my tires balanced they always move the weights...

 

[Ron Helmuth]

nicely done

My son is the brains of our paint operation-we are prepping our tri double spokes now.

I had forgotten totally about the clear coat step.:nono:

We're laying down a couple of coats of primer alone-no tires or weights involved.

Thanks for sharing the shots.

 

[LINY4Runner]

great job! love the color! matches really well!

nice work! :cheers:

 

[GX4SEVEND]

Just wanted to see how hard it was for you guys who are painting their wheels leaving the tires on? Thats how I would have to do it so i wanted to see how well it worked

 

[Muti007]

looks good dude, ive been wanting to do this for a while but im really skeptical since ive nvr done that and it looks kinda skill intensive to do it right the first time. So wat ive been wondering alot is what do u do bout the area that isnt painted behind the weights? Bc everytime i go to get my tires balanced they always move the weights...

This is my problem too. I just dont have the time, patience and likely skill to do the same, though Id love to paint the 08 4runner rims I got gloss black. When I get my s2k, I really want to paint those wheels gloss black as well, but Im afraid Ill ruin them.

To the OP, your truck and wheels look terrific!

 

[xskydivingdudex]

ya dude thats how i feel. i dont wanna ruin my only set of rims i currently have...

 

[vol4runner]

:thumb3::thumb3: Looks great! Nice work.

 

[kellogg]

Great job, looks very professional. Some smoked tail lights would really complete the look IMO.

 

[AppStRunner]

Thanks

Thanks everyone. I am really enjoying the new look. I think it makes it much more rugged looking. Not only that, but as 96743runner said, It does look great with the anthracite. It almost looks like it is a matching color in most lights, the pictures don't do justice.

That's a great idea with the cards Bama16. Wish I would have thought of that one!

As for the durability of the paint (fightman80) so far they have done great. I was a bit worried about that before I did it, but I didn't like my wheels, and the paint was only 30 dollars for everything. So I went for it. I can scratch them with my fingernail and they do fine, I can rub a key against it and it doesn't scratch. I did a lot of coats to try and prevent that, and I have a grey primer under so when it does scratch its not as noticeable. But you can never prevent all scratches I suppose.

As for the guys about the weights, I was too lazy to care... and just painted over them. I will retouch the paint if they must take them off, but my buddy balances mine, and I might ask If he could just leave the outside weights on as the normal weight of the tire and balance more weight on the inside? we will see.

Next thing coming are some 32" Mickey Thompson Baja ATZ to put on those things! Got them on order now.