Stripping off old paint

Huskymaniac · #1 07-22-2011, 08:31 PM

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.

Sean486 · #2 07-22-2011, 08:56 PM

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

icingdeath88 · #3 07-22-2011, 11:04 PM

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

svxcess · #4 07-23-2011, 08:53 AM

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

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.

.

LastSVXintheChi · #5 07-23-2011, 09:19 AM

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

Gamesy · #6 07-23-2011, 11:58 AM

for some reason you cant buy the stuff in canada.

Sean486 · #7 07-23-2011, 12:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LastSVXintheChi

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

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.

Hocrest · #8 07-31-2011, 07:57 PM

Since it was mentioned earlier in the thread.

If you try to paint the wheels with the tires mounted. Instead of using short pieces of masking tape to make a circle, instead use a strip of poster-board and roll it up to create a ring that will set on the outside edge of the rim.

92snowmachine · #9 08-01-2011, 04:08 PM

easiest way i've painted wheels with the tires on is to spread vasoline around the edges of the tires, put it on anything you don't want to paint (like the valve stem and bead area). paint the tires as if they were masked off, when the paint is dry you will be able to wipe the vasoline with paint on it off with a rag because it won't dry. takes considerably less time than taping and gives better results than using a stencil made of cardboard.

SVX_MY_BABY · #10 08-02-2011, 09:18 AM

I've masked around the edge with tape then cut a circle out of the side of a garbage bag. and taped it to the first tapeline. Works well.

+1 for self etching primer if you are down to bare metal.

Only problem I had once was the paint getting a crackle of lines under the clear coat. Not sure if it was heat from the wheels or because I applied the clear coat the next day.

Soda Blasting is good way to strip the wheels if there is a shop locally. Here stripping and clear coating a set of 16 in wheels is about $375.00 plus tax.