petre

Thats my bike. U see it really look nice in black, but the silver wheels really dont match the all-black body. So, can i just remove the wheels and spray paint it or do i need to follow certain steps to change the colour of the wheels? Thanks.

The_Jazz

I don't think that you can just spray paint the wheels unless you don't care about how it will look in the future. Spray paint isn't going to bond very well to the paint underneath and will chip and flake very easily.

I think you should just buy new wheels in black, if they're even made. In the long run, I think you'd be ruining your bike.

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Bear Cub

The best thing you could do would be to take the wheels and have them powdercoated black, which is relatively inexpensive these days. The finish will hold up better than the factory one will.

petre

Thanks for the suggestion CW,but can i powder-coat the wheels myself, or should i send the wheels to a paint shop?

Martian

Powder coating is definitely not a DIY job. You'll need to send it to a shop.

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petre

Ow okay then. One last question, how would a usual powder-coat paint job cost me if the wheels are size 15''?

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Bear Cub

On the high end, $75 a wheel.

Jinn

I don't see why you think black would look better. Maybe it's the same reason people have ghetto black rims on cars, but I think it looks terrible. Those wheels look fine silver, in my opinion.

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petre

won't black with a white outline on the rims look nice?

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Zooksport2

Photoshop time!

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telekinetic

For something like cheap stock wheels, I'd just spray pain them. You don't even have to de-mount the tire. Tape paper to most of the tire, and then tuck aluminum foil around to mask the tire under the bead.


To do a proper (well, as proper as rattle can can be) job, sand the whole wheel to take off the clear coat and give it a rough surface to bond to. Then do a couple super thin layers of a dark primer. If you're covering in one layer, you're using too much.

Then, apply the paint. If you're using spray, I'd do thin coats. If you want a glossy finish, top it with a couple thin coats of spray. If you can find a good brush on enamel, that will probably be more durable...there was some 2-part paint with an activator I bought to paint my calipers yellow with that worked great.

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ngdawg

Depends on the finish of the wheels. If they're clearcoated, they will need to be sanded down.
Years ago I painted the silver wheels of my VW with gold flake paint from the auto store. I first wet-sanded them, then primed them and put a few layers of the gold, then some clear over that. Lasted quite a while and I did one wheel a weekend start to finish.

MSD

On a related note that doesn't deserve its own thread, what price range would I be looking at to chrome the receiver, bolt, and barrel of a bolt-action rifle?

MiSo

on one the car forums i am on...

this is copy and paste since you need to be a member to view.

Materials needed:
* 1 - 2 cans of Primer (preferabley a white color, see below)
* 1 - 4 cans of Paint (depending on how many coats. For reference I used a 12oz can to coat the stock Spec wheels 2 times. THe type of paint I used is calls "Dupli-Color High performance wheel coating")
* Clear coat. ( I suggest duplicolor high performance clear coat for wheels. Like the wheel coating, its made for coating wheels)
* 150 grit Sand paper
* 800 grit sand paper
* 2000grit automotive sand paper
* Soap and water



1. Wash off the wheels then sand the wheels down to the metal or just scuff the surface up really really well.
2. After sanding properly clean off all dirt and what not thats left over with soap and water. DRY THOUROGHLY!
3. Mask off anything that you don't want painted, i.e. the tires and what ever you want to add as a pattern.
4. I used 2 coats of primer. Now my friend didn't use primer when he coated his rims, but I suggest it. Its there so the paint can stick to it. A good tip is to buy a white colored primer since grey won't work as well because the wheels are going to be sanded down to the metal.
5. Use 2-5 coats of paint. Add more if needed to make a deep rich color. Let the paint settle about an hour to 2 hours between each coat. Wet sand with sand paper(800 grit) after each coat of paint. Dry thouroghly.
6. Put on at least 2 coats of clear coat. Thats just there to protect the rims. Again like the paint, let each coat set at least an hour to 2 hours. Wet sand after each coat, but do not wet sand the last coat. again, dry thoughoughly.
7. Wait overnight before putting the rims back on. This will give the paint and everything a chance to settle.
8. You can go ahead and wet sand with the 2000 grit after you let everything dry off. after the wet sanding wax the wheels to get rid of the hazing. this will give the wheels a nice shine and cleaner look.

More tips:
Depending on where you live, do not paint at night. In my area it gets really cool and damp. Temperatures like that won't allow the paint to stick very well. Paint in temperatures above 60* and with low humidity Exclamation . If possible let the rims dry and cure in the hot sun.

these pix below aren't from this write up but its similar to what you can expect it to look like.

Bear Cub

I'd think a reasonable place could do it for under $200. Some places through a fit with parts that have intricate nooks and crannies.

On a sort of side note, there is an Anschutz rifle at the Olympic Training Center that has all the metal parts gold plated. Talk about a neat piece of work.

petre

ah, dont bother guys. A few days ago i was involved in an accident. The bikes a total wreck but i'm uninjured. I thought about taking pictures of my wrecked bike, but the angry taxi driver i collided with had other ideas. My parents had to pay him 1600 bucks for the damages and as for myself, got a real scathing from my mum. Weird, can't believe i would've gotten involved in any accidents before, and this one was plain stupid.Must have been the freaking hot weather...it impaired my judgements maybe.

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thingstodo

Probably could have avoided that accident with black wheels...

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petre

Hi there, just thought i could update y'all with the bike news. As u may already know, the accident was almost over a month a ago. Yesterday, 20th feb that is, the guy from the workshop called and told me that repair works was just about to start that day. According to him, it was something due to insurance claiming, Just an out-of-topic question, how long does it take for someone to claim insurance for a accident anyway? I can't believe it, i sent the bike to him the same day as the accident.

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biznatch

This thread WINS.

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Check it out: The Open Source/Freeware/Gratis Software Thread

petre

what was that supposed to mean, biznatch?

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