My new black bullets..
#1
09-05-2006, 12:37 PM
My new black bullets..
well, I decided to get some used bullet rims and make them black bullets. I read a write up that was already done and decided to take it a step further. The method I used way more intense. the steps taken are as follows:
1. strip everything off
2. grind down road/curb rash
3. tape off outer part of rim and prime
4. wet sand primer (360 grit)
5. paint black
6. wet sand paint (1500 grit)
7. clear painted part only
8. wet sand clear (2000 grit)
9. use polishing compound to make the clear really pop
10. sealer/ glaze over clear.
I stripped the clear off the outer part of the rim because I wanted everything to look good together, i tried to re-clear that part but it just looked yellow-ish and i didn't like it. I included some picks of one of the rims after the final coat of clear and also the paints i used. more pics to come as i get closer to the finish.
1. strip everything off
2. grind down road/curb rash
3. tape off outer part of rim and prime
4. wet sand primer (360 grit)
5. paint black
6. wet sand paint (1500 grit)
7. clear painted part only
8. wet sand clear (2000 grit)
9. use polishing compound to make the clear really pop
10. sealer/ glaze over clear.
I stripped the clear off the outer part of the rim because I wanted everything to look good together, i tried to re-clear that part but it just looked yellow-ish and i didn't like it. I included some picks of one of the rims after the final coat of clear and also the paints i used. more pics to come as i get closer to the finish.
Last edited by 03DSG; 01-06-2008 at 03:47 PM.
#6
09-13-2006, 11:12 AM
ok, ill give you guys the nitty-grity details.
note: i included pics of all products and tools used and the wheels from just after paint, just after wet sand before clear, just after clear, and finished.
note #2: I took out the valve stems, and these rims have no tires on them, make ajustments as needed too your situation.
first, i stripped everything off including the clear coat on the out part of the rim. the product i used is called tal-mar II it comes in a spray can or a liquid, choose your poison on this one. I used both, the liquid works better but is way more messy than the spray. let the product do most of the work. once most of the paint is off you will have to sand the hard to reach spots on the rim. I used a coarse wire brush into a fine wire brush. both are to be used with a corded drill, you would waste a cordless drill in 20 minutes. this part takes to most time, do it right any bumps left on the wheel will really show when you paint.
next, after everything is smoothed out to your satisfaction. tape off the outer rim part. I used blue painters tape. the easiest way i found is to tear small strips and place them over the edge where the paint line will be. do it all the way around, dont try to match up the tape line with the paint line. its a waste of effort. once the tape is all the way around take an x-acto knife and cut the tape right on the edge. dont worry if you take up some metal, you are going to paint right over it anyway. then procede to finish taping the rest of the out edge. make sure you have no gaps in the tape, you dont want any surpises when you take it off.
know your ready or priming, i used a high build formula because i bought these rims used and there were some lite dings in the "lobes" as i call them. it will fill stuff up to 1/16'' of and inch. make sure you put on at least 3 coats of primer, giving 5 minutes between coats.
"side note": always give time between coats of any paint, primer or clear. this helps prevent runs in the product.
once your done priming let it sit for 24 hours before sanding, this ensures the primer to completely dry. now, sand the primer using fine sandpaper, i use 360 grit. this ensures uniform smoothness, make sure you get a tack cloth (your going to use it alot) and clean any dust left behind.
now you're ready for paint, go over your tape to make sure none of it is lifting away from the rim. simply paint the rim, take your time with this remeber to give time between coats. start out with light coats first then progress into medium coats. the exact number is going to depend on how you apply the paint. the key is to make the paint uniform all over the rim. give the paint a least 3 days to cure before doing anything else. remember, you're doing this at home, not at a body shop, you cant cook the paint.
ok, 3 days have gone by..time to wet sand. once agian its more about quality and not qaunity, take your time. I used 1500 grit sandpaper, i found it help to have a pitcher of water near by the wash away and paint the comes up during the wet sanding. make sure the the sandpaper has soaked for 10-20 minutes before starting. after this step go ver your tape to see if any repairs must be made and fix what needs it. ok, clear time. before you can clear the rim, make sure you use the wax and grease remover over the paint followed by a tack coth to get any loose fibers. to use the wax and grease remover simply but some on a clean rag or shop towel and wipe it on. it removes and grease from you hands and prevents fish eyeing and pin holes in the clear. after you have applied the product get another clean rag and wipe it off the best you can and let the rest air dry for 10-15 minutes. make sure you go over it with a tack cloth just before you start too clear the rim.
now you ready to clear, just like with the painttale your time. start out lightly and progress into a heavier coat. make sure you give time betwen coats. now if you see pin holes in the clear in some spots and not in others, its ok, dont panic. let the last coat you applied set up a little, then just work those areas until the pin holes are filled. do not just spray a **** load of clear at it all at once, it'll run and look like crap and take time to fix. now your done with any more cans of anything rip, that tape off (slowly)
after clearing, give the rim 5- 7 days for the clear to set up. this part is important. now, if you have no pin holes, not hazey in any spots and look generally awesome, get them back on your car. now if they dont look as good with them being slightly hazey in spots and its now what you expected, you have a couple more steps.
time to wet sand again, using 2000 grit sandpaper. once again take your time, a mess up here means starting all over and we cant have that. after wet sanding I used 3M polishing compound, but you can use whatever you like. i polished the a deep rish shine into the rim.I have a 6 inch random orbit buffer which made this part go buy way faster. if your dont have a buffer, get ready to work you arms off. I would suggest splitting the rim into sections and only move once a section is complete. after the polishing compound i use mothers sealer glaze(step 2 of the 3 step wax system). this made the paint really pop.
now your are finally finished, go have beer and admire your work. and put those bitches on a snub your nose at the jackass who paid $400+ and u paid around $60 and did it yourself. i dont know about you guys, but I love being able to say, "O I didn't buy those, I did that myself...."
have fun....
-B-
note: i included pics of all products and tools used and the wheels from just after paint, just after wet sand before clear, just after clear, and finished.
note #2: I took out the valve stems, and these rims have no tires on them, make ajustments as needed too your situation.
first, i stripped everything off including the clear coat on the out part of the rim. the product i used is called tal-mar II it comes in a spray can or a liquid, choose your poison on this one. I used both, the liquid works better but is way more messy than the spray. let the product do most of the work. once most of the paint is off you will have to sand the hard to reach spots on the rim. I used a coarse wire brush into a fine wire brush. both are to be used with a corded drill, you would waste a cordless drill in 20 minutes. this part takes to most time, do it right any bumps left on the wheel will really show when you paint.
next, after everything is smoothed out to your satisfaction. tape off the outer rim part. I used blue painters tape. the easiest way i found is to tear small strips and place them over the edge where the paint line will be. do it all the way around, dont try to match up the tape line with the paint line. its a waste of effort. once the tape is all the way around take an x-acto knife and cut the tape right on the edge. dont worry if you take up some metal, you are going to paint right over it anyway. then procede to finish taping the rest of the out edge. make sure you have no gaps in the tape, you dont want any surpises when you take it off.
know your ready or priming, i used a high build formula because i bought these rims used and there were some lite dings in the "lobes" as i call them. it will fill stuff up to 1/16'' of and inch. make sure you put on at least 3 coats of primer, giving 5 minutes between coats.
"side note": always give time between coats of any paint, primer or clear. this helps prevent runs in the product.
once your done priming let it sit for 24 hours before sanding, this ensures the primer to completely dry. now, sand the primer using fine sandpaper, i use 360 grit. this ensures uniform smoothness, make sure you get a tack cloth (your going to use it alot) and clean any dust left behind.
now you're ready for paint, go over your tape to make sure none of it is lifting away from the rim. simply paint the rim, take your time with this remeber to give time between coats. start out with light coats first then progress into medium coats. the exact number is going to depend on how you apply the paint. the key is to make the paint uniform all over the rim. give the paint a least 3 days to cure before doing anything else. remember, you're doing this at home, not at a body shop, you cant cook the paint.
ok, 3 days have gone by..time to wet sand. once agian its more about quality and not qaunity, take your time. I used 1500 grit sandpaper, i found it help to have a pitcher of water near by the wash away and paint the comes up during the wet sanding. make sure the the sandpaper has soaked for 10-20 minutes before starting. after this step go ver your tape to see if any repairs must be made and fix what needs it. ok, clear time. before you can clear the rim, make sure you use the wax and grease remover over the paint followed by a tack coth to get any loose fibers. to use the wax and grease remover simply but some on a clean rag or shop towel and wipe it on. it removes and grease from you hands and prevents fish eyeing and pin holes in the clear. after you have applied the product get another clean rag and wipe it off the best you can and let the rest air dry for 10-15 minutes. make sure you go over it with a tack cloth just before you start too clear the rim.
now you ready to clear, just like with the painttale your time. start out lightly and progress into a heavier coat. make sure you give time betwen coats. now if you see pin holes in the clear in some spots and not in others, its ok, dont panic. let the last coat you applied set up a little, then just work those areas until the pin holes are filled. do not just spray a **** load of clear at it all at once, it'll run and look like crap and take time to fix. now your done with any more cans of anything rip, that tape off (slowly)
after clearing, give the rim 5- 7 days for the clear to set up. this part is important. now, if you have no pin holes, not hazey in any spots and look generally awesome, get them back on your car. now if they dont look as good with them being slightly hazey in spots and its now what you expected, you have a couple more steps.
time to wet sand again, using 2000 grit sandpaper. once again take your time, a mess up here means starting all over and we cant have that. after wet sanding I used 3M polishing compound, but you can use whatever you like. i polished the a deep rish shine into the rim.I have a 6 inch random orbit buffer which made this part go buy way faster. if your dont have a buffer, get ready to work you arms off. I would suggest splitting the rim into sections and only move once a section is complete. after the polishing compound i use mothers sealer glaze(step 2 of the 3 step wax system). this made the paint really pop.
now your are finally finished, go have beer and admire your work. and put those bitches on a snub your nose at the jackass who paid $400+ and u paid around $60 and did it yourself. i dont know about you guys, but I love being able to say, "O I didn't buy those, I did that myself...."
have fun....
-B-
#10
09-13-2006, 02:13 PM
awesome, thanks alot. I will be re-doing my already painted wheels next week along with a spring install. I'll post pics when im done
#13
09-14-2006, 06:53 PM
the clear is the can thats say's high peformance wheel coating( blue can). the paint is the other can(black can). I went with that clear instead of a regular paint clear because it is going on wheels. its prolly the same stuff as regular clear, but better safe than sorry. as far as getting then on the car, i live in michigan and foul weather is within 2 months and these wheels will not see winter at all. so I'm not sure if im going to pop the $80 to get them on the car when ill be putting my snow tires on my other rims so soon.
#15
09-15-2006, 09:31 AM
i work at a murrays auto parts store, thats where i got it all.
fine wire wheel brush (use with power drill)
course wire cup brush (use with power drill)
60 grit sandblaster sand paper
360 grit sand paper
1500 and 2000 grit sandpaper
3 cans duplicolor high build primer
4 cans of duplicolor acrlyic enamel paint- gloss black
4 cans high performance wheel clear coat
tal-mar paint stripper, can or liquid...you choose
tack cloth
blue painters tape
x-atco knife
thats pretty much it. take your time doing it, if you rush and mess up it'll take more time to fix it.
fine wire wheel brush (use with power drill)
course wire cup brush (use with power drill)
60 grit sandblaster sand paper
360 grit sand paper
1500 and 2000 grit sandpaper
3 cans duplicolor high build primer
4 cans of duplicolor acrlyic enamel paint- gloss black
4 cans high performance wheel clear coat
tal-mar paint stripper, can or liquid...you choose
tack cloth
blue painters tape
x-atco knife
thats pretty much it. take your time doing it, if you rush and mess up it'll take more time to fix it.
#25
09-25-2006, 12:42 PM
thanks again man...we will be wet sanding the paint tomorrow! they look so badass!
its too bad my friend wont have them on his car for a while but still...this write-up helped us the whole way through...and this was really easy to do
only thing that was hard was the sanding part...we had an electric sander but ran out of sand paper that would fit on the sander so we had to do the rest by hand...ouch!
its too bad my friend wont have them on his car for a while but still...this write-up helped us the whole way through...and this was really easy to do
only thing that was hard was the sanding part...we had an electric sander but ran out of sand paper that would fit on the sander so we had to do the rest by hand...ouch!
#26
09-25-2006, 02:32 PM
ya, taking of the original paint is a real PIA. that took to longest for me. I glad my info was a big help. to tell you the truth this was the first time I ever did anything like this. I had a guy at my work help me out, he paints cars on the side and he gave a lot of real good tips. so i thought it was only fair to pass this gold mine of info on to everyone else. Im glad to see it working out.
#27
09-25-2006, 03:43 PM
just finished painting 5 mins ago. Looks just like the pics
even before the clear coat. ALOT better than when i did it last time. Thanks for the great writeup!! Clear will be going on in a few days. Will there really be a difference if i dont sand before the clearcoat or is that an important step? I'll post pics in a few days.
even before the clear coat. ALOT better than when i did it last time. Thanks for the great writeup!! Clear will be going on in a few days. Will there really be a difference if i dont sand before the clearcoat or is that an important step? I'll post pics in a few days.
#28
09-25-2006, 06:10 PM
yes, you have to sand before the clear goes on. it wont stick to the paint well and it chips off. i learned that one the hard way, dont make the same mistake i did. also give the paint a couple days to cure before sanding and clearing. and if you choose to sand and polish the clear let it sit for a week before you touch it. I know its hard to resist, but its about doing it right the first time.
#29
09-25-2006, 06:17 PM
Originally Posted by bcassette
yes, you have to sand before the clear goes on. it wont stick to the paint well and it chips off. i learned that one the hard way, dont make the same mistake i did. also give the paint a couple days to cure before sanding and clearing. and if you choose to sand and polish the clear let it sit for a week before you touch it. I know its hard to resist, but its about doing it right the first time.
#30
09-25-2006, 06:37 PM
one more tip, make sure you get some gease remover, i posted a pic of it earlier in the thread. wipe it on with one rag and wipe it off with another. make sure it drys completely before putting the clear on. and make sure you have a tack cloth, this is when you are going to really need it.