Paint - enamel or urethane?

[godlyone]

Hey guys I am thinking of refinishing my rims (sanding down, priming and re-painting). I wanted to go with a nice metallic silver. A pearl/candy silver would be awesome, but no idea where to get it.

I found this one site:

http://www.paintforcars.com

They have acrylic enamel and acrylic urethane. The urethane is a bit more expensive, but I was wondering if anybody had experience with either this paint or urethane vs. enamel?

btw, I am going to be using a spray gun to apply the paint.



The enamel is 68, urethane is 72 and clear coat is 39 (these prices are for a gallon) I'm assuming I'll use a lot less.

How does it look^ ?

Thanks

[DanNY]

hmmmm...wasn't sure they did enamel anymore.

i shoot urethane. if you're doing the rims then get a BC/CC system and shoot urethane. that is what's on most if not all production cars now.

that's IMHO...you can do what you want.

[godlyone]

sorry, but umm whats bc/cc?

also any experience with that brand of paint or can you recommend another [specifically something metallic/pearl silver]?

[djfrestyl]

Base coat/clear coat.

[DanNY]

Originally Posted by godlyone

sorry, but umm whats bc/cc?

also any experience with that brand of paint or can you recommend another [specifically something metallic/pearl silver]?

any decent paint company will have pearls or metallic colors. just need to give the paint shop a code and they will mix a can for you.

I personally spray PPG....i like their deltron line. they do have the cheaper omni.

Others like Dupont, BASF, glasurit, etc etc...so it's the painter's personal preference what they like to spray and what they are used to. they are all decent paint as long as you don't get the lowest line.

i'm not a fan of these home brand or house branded paints. who knows...they might sell the good stuff w/ their own label...but it's a hit/miss.

[rfeeser]

base coat clear coat is the way to go. You might want to check with a local body shop to see how much they would charge to paint the rims for you. By the time you buy the paint and clear and a paint gun you may be money ahead. I am getting ready to paint mine in the next couple of weeks, but I work in a body shop so I have access to the equipment.

[godlyone]

ok cool I'm going to be picking up some base coat/clear coat in silver

and I am going to get some metal flakes to put in the clear coat.

Do you guys have any tips for a first timer (specifically danny.. you look like you know what you're doing)

I am guessing spray from about 2ft away and do very light coats?

[DanNY]

Originally Posted by godlyone

ok cool I'm going to be picking up some base coat/clear coat in silver

and I am going to get some metal flakes to put in the clear coat.

Do you guys have any tips for a first timer (specifically danny.. you look like you know what you're doing)

I am guessing spray from about 2ft away and do very light coats?

like another poster mention...you might be better off going to a shop and having them do it on the side for you.

if you don't have a gun then get a HVLP gun.
if you don't have a compressor get a 30gal or bigger compressor.
paint...get whatever paint you want to get and the reducers and etc. make sure you read the tech sheets and follow them to the exact detail.
sand/wet sand the wheels. clean clean clean. you think it's clean enough do it again.
use tack cloth prior to shooting.
wear respirator and protective clothing (shoot suit).
if you're painting in a garage then set up some kind of forced air (draft) so the cloud of paint will flow one direction.
one light tack coat. one heavy wet coat or until correct color/coverage is achieved.
same for clear coat....clean your gun very very well in between.

2 feet away? that's 24 inches away...you're not spraying with a super soaker. last i checked it's about 6-12 inches max depending on gun and setting. don't put flakes in the clear...total waste of time. add flakes or whatever is in the base. keep the clear...clear. it'll be easier to wet sand and polish out w/o flakes or pearls in it.

for any reason you have no idea what i'm talking about please do not attempt this w/o tons of research.

[godlyone]

I have a gun w. 1.7mm nozzle... the compressor is a craftsman 7gall

I am probably going to be painting in garage - will probably setup fans to blow air out

everyone else recommends putting the flakes into the clear coat? Why did you say base coat?

Also how much time between base coats? how many coats?

How much time between base and clear?

How much time btwn clear coats? How many coats of clear?

Also I am going to borrow a friend's pressure reducer (since it has the water trap)

[DanNY]

Originally Posted by godlyone

I have a gun w. 1.7mm nozzle... the compressor is a craftsman 7gall

I am probably going to be painting in garage - will probably setup fans to blow air out

everyone else recommends putting the flakes into the clear coat? Why did you say base coat?

Also how much time between base coats? how many coats?

How much time between base and clear?

How much time btwn clear coats? How many coats of clear?

Also I am going to borrow a friend's pressure reducer (since it has the water trap)

7 gal is a little low..but might work for a wheel.

if you want the flakes then put it in a mid coat...then spray clear over that. clear coat is supposed to be...clear. if you ever need to wet sand or buff a clear it will always buff out the same. now if you have some kind of flakes or texture then what you're doing is shaving the flakes or whatever you put in to the paint. then you'll have something that looks a little different since you shaved some of the flakes off.

it's your car...your wheel...you can add flakes to the top...no one said you can't but i just don't recommend it...but what do i know right? i'm sure all the OEM companies use flakes in the clear..(they do not).

dry time depends on paint, temp, how wet the coat.

i gave you how many coats in a previous post.

pressure reducer? you mean a regulator?

[godlyone]

yea i meant a regulator w. the water trap

also do you have any tips on cleaning the gun between the switch from base to clear?

Any videos to help me learn the technique?

Thanks

[DanNY]

Originally Posted by godlyone

yea i meant a regulator w. the water trap

also do you have any tips on cleaning the gun between the switch from base to clear?

Any videos to help me learn the technique?

Thanks

if you have one by the compressor then add a regulator and an inline filter at the gun.

best thing to do is take it apart and clean it. otherwise run a lot of reducer through it and take the air cap off to clean that separately.

hmmmm....gotta look on line. the paintucation series is pretty good IMO.

[Jeff92se]

I'm all for the diy thing and learning but for one, you're going to have a ton left if you buy in the gallon size. And I hope you have a good mask for urethanes + catalysts + reducers.

But IMHO, you could get your wheels powder coated for about the same ($ and effort) as your diy project. Once you add up all the stuff you'll need.

But I've painted alot of wheels years ago. But I was painting at a semi-regular basis so my supplies could be used more than once. ie.. reducers, clears etc..

[asand1]

We used a one-step urethane when we painted the race car. Looks real good, no runs. we did the prep but had it squirted by a body shop.

[godlyone]

Front ones are done!

Here are some pics:


Before (notice oxidation everywhere especially on lip):


After sanding + Bondo curb rash:


Finished (has water on it from washing)

[DanNY]

did you add the flakes in the clear?

[godlyone]

put them in the basecoat like you said

[DanNY]

LOL
nice job...looks good.