DIY: Refinishing your rims.
Joined: Apr 2007
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From: Front Range
DIY: Refinishing your rims.
As everyone is intrested to know what ive done do refinish my rims, im going to go ahead and write a very informative guide to refinishing your rims.
CAUTION!!!!!! I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR MISTAKES IN THIS PROCESS. ALSO, I RECCOMEND YOU DO THIS WITH ALL 4 WHEELS OFF OF THE CAR.
AT SOME POINT DURING MY BAN, I DELETED THE PICS. ILL POST PICTURES OF MY RECENT REPAIR OF SOME CSL WHEELS FROM MY BMW.
SUPPLIES NEEDED:
-Paint thinner
-400 grit sandpaper
-red bondo
-grey primer SPRAY
-wheel paint.. i used Dupli Color Graphite.
-any clear coat spray
-patience
-newspaper and masking tape.
before you start.... remove the centercaps.
HERE IS MY WHEELS BEFORE
STEP 1- Get some paint thinner. use a rag and wipe down all 4 rims with paint thinner to remove any dirt and other imperfections in the rim.
STEP 2- when the wheel is 100% dry and clean, (barrels too) mix your bondo properly and use it to fill the affected areas. make sure you fill it generously.
cardboard helps hold the filler in place.
STEP 3- ... use the 400 grit and sand the entire wheel. you're affected areas should now be even with the rest of the rim.
STEP 4- use a wet rag (water) and wash off all of the crap from the sanding. you want a clean surface before you prime.
STEP 5- mask off the rim with newspaper and masking tape. if you have a better way to do it, go for it. DONT REMOVE THE MASK. YOU WILL NEED IT FOR PAINTING.
STEP 6- roll the wheel out somewhere in the grass or something. take the can of grey spray primer and spray one even coat of primer on the rim. it should look like this.
heres all of them, minus one.. i dont know where it is...
after you prime and you see spots like this (paint drips), dont worry.. we will get to that later.
STEP 7- once all the rims are primed, LIGHTLY sand all 4 rims with 400 grit paper. the areas that have paint drips you should sand more to even it out. make sure you dont sand off the primer.
STEP 8- Use a wet rag to wash off the rims one last time before you paint.
Step 9- get the paint, and start painting. you need 20 minutes in between each coat. i painted inside my garage, with one side closed to reduce wind and dirt that could stick to the paint. here are all of the pictures i have from painting.
I used 4 coats of the wheel paint.
STEP 10- clearcoat. i used a regular clearcoat that i got from home depot. 2 coats should do it.. 20 minutes between each coat.
STEP 11- dont touch the rims for at least a day.
STEP 12- done.
thats about it. PM me with any questions you all have. let me know if you need any help doing anything as well.. ill be happy to help.
good luck, and thanks for supporting my project.
CAUTION!!!!!! I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR MISTAKES IN THIS PROCESS. ALSO, I RECCOMEND YOU DO THIS WITH ALL 4 WHEELS OFF OF THE CAR.
AT SOME POINT DURING MY BAN, I DELETED THE PICS. ILL POST PICTURES OF MY RECENT REPAIR OF SOME CSL WHEELS FROM MY BMW.
SUPPLIES NEEDED:
-Paint thinner
-400 grit sandpaper
-red bondo
-grey primer SPRAY
-wheel paint.. i used Dupli Color Graphite.
-any clear coat spray
-patience
-newspaper and masking tape.
before you start.... remove the centercaps.
HERE IS MY WHEELS BEFORE
STEP 1- Get some paint thinner. use a rag and wipe down all 4 rims with paint thinner to remove any dirt and other imperfections in the rim.
STEP 2- when the wheel is 100% dry and clean, (barrels too) mix your bondo properly and use it to fill the affected areas. make sure you fill it generously.
cardboard helps hold the filler in place.
STEP 3- ... use the 400 grit and sand the entire wheel. you're affected areas should now be even with the rest of the rim.
STEP 4- use a wet rag (water) and wash off all of the crap from the sanding. you want a clean surface before you prime.
STEP 5- mask off the rim with newspaper and masking tape. if you have a better way to do it, go for it. DONT REMOVE THE MASK. YOU WILL NEED IT FOR PAINTING.
STEP 6- roll the wheel out somewhere in the grass or something. take the can of grey spray primer and spray one even coat of primer on the rim. it should look like this.
heres all of them, minus one.. i dont know where it is...
after you prime and you see spots like this (paint drips), dont worry.. we will get to that later.
STEP 7- once all the rims are primed, LIGHTLY sand all 4 rims with 400 grit paper. the areas that have paint drips you should sand more to even it out. make sure you dont sand off the primer.
STEP 8- Use a wet rag to wash off the rims one last time before you paint.
Step 9- get the paint, and start painting. you need 20 minutes in between each coat. i painted inside my garage, with one side closed to reduce wind and dirt that could stick to the paint. here are all of the pictures i have from painting.
I used 4 coats of the wheel paint.
STEP 10- clearcoat. i used a regular clearcoat that i got from home depot. 2 coats should do it.. 20 minutes between each coat.
STEP 11- dont touch the rims for at least a day.
STEP 12- done.
thats about it. PM me with any questions you all have. let me know if you need any help doing anything as well.. ill be happy to help.
good luck, and thanks for supporting my project.
Last edited by express705; Feb 17, 2011 at 09:33 AM.
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Looks pretty good and great writeup. Just be sure not to use any type of wheel cleaner on it for 6-8 months. I used Eagle One wheel spray cleaner on it ~2 months after (thinking it would be fully cured) and it still took off some of the clear coat. Seems like it takes ~6 months to fully cure.