Stripping off old paint
 

Anyone have suggestions on stripping the old paint of of rims to prep them for painting? I was thinking of using a variety of wire brushes and the 3M Drill Mount Paint & Rust Stripper.

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

I stripped stock rims with Tal-Strip II Aircraft Coating Remover. It is amazing stuff, I sprayed it on and let it sit for a few minutes then just scraped it off with a piece of cardboard. Most came off with the 1st coat. No sanding or tools required, takes the paint off down to the metal and leaves you with a shiny aluminum wheel. I was amazed at how easy it was.

http://www.amazon.com/3M-3711-Mar-Hy.../dp/B000GTILYW

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

Yea, aircraft coating remover is some serious stuff. Don't get it on anything you don't want annihilated.

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

I agree.

This remover is some really serious stuff. Use with plenty of ventilation and rubber gloves are a must. It will eat through just about any paint.

The stuff I use is HERE.

Getting it in either a quart or gallon container and brushing it on offers more control and less waste. Made by the same company and is available HERE

I have found it in WalMart and Autozone also


http://www.multitechproducts.com/pro...94482_zoom.jpg






A true horror story about my first introduction to this stuff about 30 years ago.

One of the women who lived in my apartment complex had a 78 corvette. She must have really p1ssed somebody off, because she knocked on my door early one morning and asked for my help.

She was going to work and when she went out to her car, someone had opened a gallon can of this remover, laid it on its side on her roof and walked away sometime during the night. Once I saw the car, I knew it was all over

Totally destroyed her paint. You couldn't wipe it off or even use a hose without doing more damage.

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Re: Stripping off old paint
 

i was thinking about painting my rims too...

do you have to strip them? and do you have to take the tires off to paint and/or strip them? or can you leave them on? cus i only have 1 set of wheels

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

for some reason you cant buy the stuff in canada.

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

Is your paint bubbling at all on the wheels, if it is I would strip them. If not you can sand them and repaint them. You can paint them with the tires on, it just makes it harder, because you have to spend time masking them off.

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

If you're planning on stripping them with the aircraft remover, I would take the tires off, because I'm sure that a little bit of that stuff on a tire would be bad news. If you're just sanding them then I'd leave the tires on. But if you were to take the tires off, you could have them powdercoated, which might hold up better than paint.

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

Only 1 of them is real bad it looks like it has acne its pretty bad but the other 3 dont seem to bad...i was gonna paint cus it is cheeper and I can do that myself :)

What would I use to sand them with regular sand paper?

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

Guys, I don't want to scare anyone, but "Aircraft Remover" and other solvents are EXTREMELY toxic. I'd advise anyone to look up the Manufacturer's Safety Data Sheet on aircraft remover or any other stripper you might be planning to use and ask yourself if it's worth the risk, or at least be sure you take every precaution including a respirator AND gloves.

I'm facing some fairly serious health challenges (I'm 43) now after a lifetime of solvent and paint use (not abuse) in my hobbies starting with model glue when I was about 5. Toluene is another under-rated toxin found in a lot of this stuff. Just because you can buy this stuff off the shelf at Wal-Mart doesn't mean it's safe to use casually, and nerve and brain cells don't grow back.

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

Good advice. I was going to stick with mechanical means unless it just isn't working out. I won't even spread weed killer on my lawn. There is no sense adding more toxins into your system than already get in.

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

I did wheel 1 yesterday with the 3M product and some wire brush wheels. Based on how long it took, I think the original powdercoat is still pretty well bonded to the base metal. By the time I got down to the base metal I began to realize that the base metal is not very smooth. It looks like there are ripples from the casting process. It is going to take a lot of paint to fill in and smooth out those ripples. I think I will go with the sanding process on the next rim and see how that goes.

Can anyone suggest a primer to help fill in those ripples prior to painting?

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

Tony,

In the past I have used the following:

If I am down to bare metal, I always start with a light coat of SELF-ETCHING PRIMER

To hide surface imperfections you can then follow with FILLER PRIMER

And if you're as anal as I am, finish off with a coat of SEALER PRIMER, prior to your paint coat.


When the lettering in my center caps were filled with epoxy and sanded, it was the filler primer and primer sealer that got rid of every imperfection and edge. Followed by automotive lacquer and clearcoat.

Ten years ago and still perfect.

.


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Re: Stripping off old paint
 

Is there a reason why you wouldn't simply have them powdercoated? Around here based on other things I've done you'd be looking at $200 or so. Since the wheels themselves get quite warm I wouldn't use any fillers that aren't rated for at least 200 degrees.

Re: Stripping off old paint
 

You can probably get a single stage powdercoating for that price. The problem with metallics is that the metallic particles melt and settle during the baking process. On silver wheels, the sparkle seems to disappear and the wheels come out more of a gray.

This happened to the refinished RX-8 wheels on Mike 621's claret. They were powder coated gold, but in the baking the metallic disappeared and he was left with a shiny "peanut butter" look (affectionately known as the "Peter Pan Edition")

http://www.subaru-svx.net/forum/atta...1&d=1312144670



On my wheels, I had the factory color duplicated in lacquer and sprayed. Everything was sealed under a thick clear powdercoat, to give the shine and preserve the sparkle.

http://www.subaru-svx.net/forum/atta...1&d=1312145339



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