CLintheSTL

OK, well yes, first off, i have replica wheels. I didnt exactly wanna drop a bunch of money on wheels due to the roads around here, which can either be perfect or completely horrid, you never know. But anyway...I had one of my wheels bent last fall, and I just got around to getting it fixed at the local wheel store this week. Ive had the wheels off for the winter, and now I'm bout to put them back on for the spring/summer. Except theyre hyperblack with the polished lip, lookin like a light shade of gunmetal. I want them to be a lot darker...glossy black with the polished lip are my absolutely favorite wheels (Klepto-esque).

Soo, while i was down at the shop getting the bent lip fixed, I asked one of the guys if they powdercoated wheels and if it was possible to do mine a glossy black, keeping the polished lip, and get an idea for pricing. Well, the guy told me my wheels may not be able to be powdercoated because of the finish/quality of them...? Is that possible? I didnt think it should matter about what kind of wheels you have. I mean, after all...I'd think that people would be more likely to powdercoat replica wheels, over expensive authentics, since they dont cost as much to risk messing around by powdercoating them. Does this guy just not really know what hes talking about, or could that really be possible? The wheels are far from poor quality...theyre in great condition, and they look just as any other aftermarket wheels would look. I was pissed that he gave me that answer, cuz i REALLY wanna get them coated before I put them back on, which is gonna be soon!

So what do all of you guys think? Isnt it possible to powdercoat just about any wheels? I see people on these boards changing the color of their wheels like its nothing, then all the sudden this guy surprised me with this response. Hopefully the guy was wrong... Thanks for any feedback, fellas.

klepto

i think you can pretty much powercoat any wheel, i dont see what not, maybe he just dosent want to spend the time prepping them

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

teh CL

iTrader: (1)

what wheels do u have

CLintheSTL

Alright, good...that makes me feel better, haha. Seems like im not the only one who found that weird. I thought for a sec there were actually only select wheels that could be powdercoated...whew. I think im gonna try callin the place up and talkin to someone who KNOWS about that type of thing...Either that or try other shops around the area.

Thanks for the responses, guys! Always a great help on these boards..

kspekCLS

you can powdercoat your ass if you wanted to....yea it's possible i've seen it done to all kinds of wheel...im thinking about powdercoating mines too..any shops in the Bayarea besides the one in Hayward..anyone from the BAY ???

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

[QUOTE=kspekCLS]you can powdercoat your ass if you wanted to....yea it's possible i've seen it done QUOTE]




:gheylaugh:

BlueCLRycR

well considering you have to bake the object in a big kiln i seriously doubt you could powdercoat your ass. in order to prep a wheel for powdercoat they have to sand the old finish off and then put it in an acid bath to remove any dirt/grime/imperfections. then they put some kind of electolytic primer. its kind of a greenish tint. then they spray it with a magnetically charged metallic powder. the powder itself is very dull looking until they bake it in a very high temperature kiln. then the powder melts into a solid lustrouse finish.

now the reason i tell you all this is: some cheap wheels are made of impure/weak materials. lead melts at a fairly low temperature and some other metals are very weak against acid. most people think that all wheels are made from the same alloys which is SOO far from true. the reason some wheels cost more than others is bc they are made from better stronger alloys. you might not be able to powdercoat them but you can have a body shop paint them with a couple coats of clearcoat and itll be very close in quality to powdercoating. now some people will say that powdercoated wheels will not chip but thats a bunch of BS. the only difference b/w the 2 is when a wheel expands/contracts with extreme temperatures, paint will crack while powdercoat will expand with the wheel bc powdercoat is also made of metal. if you are absolutely sure that your wheel would hold up in the process, go somewhere that will do it.

CLintheSTL

^^ Thank you...very informative post. Well, the reason you gave me actually sounds similar to what the guy was saying. I wonder if my wheels are some of the few that may not hold up to the powdercoating process...ehh. How good do wheels look painted? I just want that basic glossy black look, but of course, i need it to be that smooth professional look with a nice amount of glossiness.

You said the only difference between painting and powdercoating was the chance of the paint cracking in extreme temperature changes....does that mean like extreme changes over a few hours...or like a gradual season change into winter? Cuz if theyd hold up fine as the weather got gradually colder for the fall and winter, then id just go with the painting process. And anyways...i dont keep my wheels on for the winter, so I doubt that theyd really suffer any extreme temp. changes.

Any approx price estimates for just painting wheels?

klepto

steven, look into wheels america, i think theyre in union city. PM NSX-TUNER, he bent his volks and got them fixed there

http://fixrim.com/

h2o-pr00f

i met a guy @ a mall parking lot w/ 24's painted to match his escalade.. turns out he was an editor 4 RPM magazine.. gave me a few ppl he said for 18's would be like 150-200each to do a gloss black finish on em.. ask around though

kspekCLS

figure of speech..i was just kidding...thanks Justin i will look into that..gotta get my shit ready for jdmtheory may22nd! woowoooo

lnsyone

i was going to have someone powdercoat or paint my stock rims but i figured with the money spent towards that, that money couldve gone to a set of rims i like. so ive decided that im going to pick up some rims.