I have a set of niche rims on my 92 camaro third gen fourth gen hybrid, they are aluminum, I would like to have the centers painted black with the outsides still that aluminum color, w/o buying new rims that come that way. What kind of paint should I use that won't flake off and how would I go about gtting the paint to hold to the rim? Any ideas would be cool and if it's too much I'll just leave them alone bc they look good as they are. Thanks

 

I painted my rims about a month ago, and they still look good, not sure how long it will last, but i used touch up paint for the color, adhesion promoter, and Plasicote (or a automotive clear coat). All out of spray cans. Not sure if it helps, but mine didn't turn out too bad.

 

I would buy some good quality paint, I use Dupont at my shop, its good stuff but expensive. PPG makes a good product too, but again, its pricey. Start by cleaning the rims with a good wax and grease remover, (Dupont #3909S) then scuff them with either 320grit (or 500grit) sandpaper or a Red 3M ScotchBrite scuff pad depending on what kind of shape the rims are in. Remember, any imperfections you see now will be magnified immensely once you apply the new basecoat and clearcoat. Use the scuff pad if the rims aren't starting to corrode already. Apply 3 to 5 coats of color, be sure to wait 5 to 10 minutes between each coat and be sure each coat is medium wet, don't spray too dry or too wet as it will cause problems. Let the color dry for 15 minutes (longer if the temperature is cool. 70 degrees is best) then apply 3 to 4 coats of clear, allowing each coat to set up for 10 minutes. Clear coat should be applied wet but not dripping off of the rim.

 

What he said, except that I would also use some sort of an adhesion promoter, and then a good sealer or urethane primer on the parts of the wheels that will be painted black prior to applying the color. Some will say you don't need to do all that, but I always have done it that way, and I have had 100% success rate as far as paint staying on and looking good for many years. Just costs more money for materials, but it's cheap insurance for me to know that I will never have to do the job over. Unless, of course, I want to come back and change the color later. That's just me.
Another option would be having them powder coated. Black is a realatively inexpensive color to have done in powdercoat, and you can pick from many different colors and even effects. I had the front and rear wheels of my ZX9R stripped to bare aluminum and completely coated in Gloss black for ~$180.00 total. Either way will work well, look as good as factory and last a long time. Just depends on your budget, how good you want the finish on your rims to look, and how long you want it to last. Just remember, in this case more is better.....
John C.

 

88PontiacT/A has a point, powder coat would be far more durable than paint. Also less prep work on your part.