Painting Wheels

[AnimeKing]

Hi,

I know I asked this in the Nitro forum under the cars name but maybe I wasn't hitting the right audience...I thought more peopl would have the same car I did.

Anyway, this is the last response I got that I wasn't quite happy with.

Go to the nearest automotive store (walmart has some) and get automotive tuch up spray and after you put a fiew coats of that on put some high gloss spray usually i use spray on pepboys and it should be able to not srach the weeles and if they do well you have tuch up paint. dont forget to sand the rims with a 1000 grit sand paper or it will peel off.... bye

Ok, I don't really want to have to buy special automotive paint to do this. I was hoping for the "get some spray Testors in the color you want and put a couple of coats on. Make sure you use primer or some sand paper on them." Well, can I just do that?

Thanks guys.

[Nairb]

Yeah, you can do that, but it won't look good for long.

[loki]

I don't know if you're talking about on-road or offroad, but the following refers to off-road only.

Painting wheels just ain't worth the effort: I tried spray-painting some old wheels with cheap Krylon paints, and it lasted maybe 10 minutes. The technique described above sounds like it might last longer, but I wouldn't expect too much.

The problem stems from having rocks and debris chipping away at the wheels constantly while you're driving, not to mention rubbing against curbs and flipping the vehicle on its side. Basically, if you drive your RC, painted wheels are gonna get hosed no matter how strong the paint might be.

Sure, you could sand the wheels, throw on some Testors, and call it a day. Just make sure those wheels stay on the shelf when you take the car out to play.

Dying seems to be a much better solution if you want colored wheels. There are several threads on this board that discuss best techniques for using dye, though I've never bothered myself.

regards,

Loki

[loki]

Hey Anime,

Just saw your post in the Nitro forum. I've seen the Saleen body, and it looks sweet. The hi-res image on hpiracing.com gives you a pretty good close-up of the yellow wheel, and it definately looks dyed. If you look closely, there's no paint buildup in the embossed logo, or on any of the flashing.

Since HPI doesn't make yellow 5-spoke wheels, your best bet would be to get a set of white wheels, find the brightest yellow dye you can find, and go at it.

The technique: (haven't dyed rims, but I've had my hand at other plastics. Perhaps others have a better technique)
Use an old pot, or a gallon-sized coffee tin (or something similar) and fill it to within a couple inches from the top. Stick it on the stove, bring to a boil. Add the dye (1/2 bottle for dark bottles, full bottle for light colors) and a handful of salt (helps raise water temp). Boil the wheels for 10-20 minutes, or until they're a bit darker than you want. Take 'em out, let'em dry, and if they're not dark enough, boil them for another 5-10 minutes. Rinse, repeat.

Hope this helps

Loki

[illbreakit]

If you boil the rims, then, while there still damp, spray on a water based paint, such as Parama Faskolor, It seems to be allmost as strong as dying. Has worked well fr me on my gt. I have since boiled the rims 5 times to change tires and the paint is still on!! Have to be very carefull when you glue though, CA changes the apperance if you get a dribble on it.

[KIWIRCGUY]

hey illbreakit....... cool tip, I will have to try that one out.. for 1/10th scale touring. I was just going to buy Hongnor clear rims and paint the inside :D

[AnimeKing]

Thank you guys. I'll probably just try dying since that's what I wanted to do from the begining. I'm not a fan of painting plastic - especially smooth plastic. Usually scratches or gets fingerprints in it...

Thanks for the other suggestions. I'll keep them in mind and possibly try.

[ 05-18-2001: Message edited by: AnimeKing ]