Silver Rim Paint

[1990C4S]

I am cleaning up my twenty year old Volvo rims. It's a lot of cleaning, sanding, priming, etc., but nothing terrible.

Until it comes to color...the 'silvers' seem so tacky (like fake chrome, the darker silver-greys seem way too dark. I'm 95% done, new rubber sitting here, ready to be installed, and I'm stuck.

Has anyone found a good quality paint that's a good rim color? Dupli-Color silver (so bright), and graphite (really dark) don't do it for me.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

I would check out Eastwoods' 2K paints.

https://www.eastwood.com/eastwood-2k-aerospray-rally-silver-wheel-paint.html

[Zeke]

There is a Testors model paint at the hobby shop that is dead on for Porsche silver twist rims.

Over a base coat one little can might do one wheel. Just FYI. That's all I have to add.

[porsche tech]

Wurth has good paint.

[Tobra]

Shoot some clear after you paint

[Scott Douglas]

My brother found a powder coater in Paramount that had a nice silver that he had put on quite a few sets of rims. It was called Hi Oh Silver. Don't know who the mfg'r of it was.

[Brian 162]

I went to an auto body supply store. They stocked aerosol primers and paint that was superior to the big box store paints. I painted my winter rims 2 years ago. They’re still holding up.

[1990C4S]

Originally Posted by Brian 162

I went to an auto body supply store. They stocked aerosol primers and paint that was superior to the big box store paints. I painted my winter rims 2 years ago. They’re still holding up.

That's where I started, but the guy was a jerk. There aren't too many near me, I'm trying another one today.

[stealthn]

Originally Posted by porsche tech

Wurth has good paint.

This, I did my Fuchs years ago, very happy with the results

[speeder]

Funny because I'm going through this right now with my old MGB wire wheels that are painted silver. I had them media blasted and primed them, now comes the silver paint. Moss, (the Pelican of British parts), sells a spray can for way too much $$ that is supposedly the correct silver. I don't care about being 100% correct on the color, just somewhat close and a color I like the best.

I experimented with a couple of silvers I had in my spray can collection yesterday, one was a Rustoleum called "Aluminum" which is a beautiful silver but way too light and shiny, looks basically like chrome, (or fresh raw aluminum). The other was Duplicolor which I think is right on the money. I've used it before on rims with clear coat over it but the old MG wires did not have clear coating, it just doesn't look right.

Here are some photos of the one painted with DC and a picture of the can, this is no clear coat. The white ones under it are in primer:

[Shaun @ Tru6]

How much did it cost to have your wheels media blasted?

[speeder]

Originally Posted by 1990C4S

I am cleaning up my twenty year old Volvo rims. It's a lot of cleaning, sanding, priming, etc., but nothing terrible.

Until it comes to color...the 'silvers' seem so tacky (like fake chrome, the darker silver-greys seem way too dark. I'm 95% done, new rubber sitting here, ready to be installed, and I'm stuck.

Has anyone found a good quality paint that's a good rim color? Dupli-Color silver (so bright), and graphite (really dark) don't do it for me.

If you're dead set on getting them factory correct, most vehicles have a paint code for the rims. A data base at the paint store should have it.

[1990C4S]

Originally Posted by speeder

If you're dead set on getting them factory correct, most vehicles have a paint code for the rims. A data base at the paint store should have it.

I'm more deadset on getting them painted and back on the car.

I am starting to think the Duplicolor silver is fine. It's a 21 year old car...as my friend said 'it's not that it's too much silver, it's that all the rims on your other cars are caked in brake dust'. He might be right...

[speeder]

Originally Posted by 1990C4S

I'm more deadset on getting them painted and back on the car.

I am starting to think the Duplicolor silver is fine. It's a 21 year old car...as my friend said 'it's not that it's too much silver, it's that all the rims on your other cars are caked in brake dust'. He might be right...

Just make sure to get them 100% clean before refinishing. There might be somewhere you can get them dipped local to you.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by Shaun @ Tru6

How much did it cost to have your wheels media blasted?

Cost me $35 per rim times 5, so $175 total. They were pretty rusty, (especially the spare for some reason), and they did a fantastic job including the part where the sun don't shine. I was stoked when I picked them up...ready for primer.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

That's a very good price for a spoked wheel, what I thought it would be for a basic dish/4/5/6 spoke; thanks for letting me know.

[speeder]

They were blasted by a hard working, honest as the day is long immigrant. Here is how they looked when I picked them up:

[Shaun @ Tru6]

Really nice work.

[Brian 162]

Here’s the paint/primer I used.



As an option have you considered getting the wheels powder coated. Carcone’s in Aurora did an excellent job on a set of aluminum rims I left them last year. Quick turnaround time.

[1990C4S]

Originally Posted by Brian 162

Here’s the paint/primer I used.



As an option have you considered getting the wheels powder coated. Carcone’s in Aurora did an excellent job on a set of aluminum rims I left them last year. Quick turnaround time.

Thanks, I'm headed to the store today...

Stripping and powder coating aren't worth the cost for this car. It's got 250,000 miles, I paid $3,500 for it four years ago, and I'm thinking of moving up to a Cayenne...

I did look into, but it was close to $200 per rim (CDN) all said and done.

The silver I bought is the same thing Speeder used, unless I find something better this morning, that's what I'll be using.