I picked up a set of 16" Z28 wheels a while back and I'm currently in the process of polishing them. The wheels came with grey/silver inserts, but I was contemplating painting them dark grey, like IROC wheels, possibly black. I don't mind the grey/silver inserts and may paint them that color again when I finish up the wheels, but I was curious as to how the polished aluminum would look against a color darker than the grey/silver or white wheels I've seen. With the amount of people on here, I'm sure someone has already refinished their wheels either dark gray or black. anyone got pics...?

 

Here is one of my rims... The black is just photo shop'd so I could get an idea of how they'd look... I'm about 85% done with the polishing, still cant get the shine were i want it... 1.jpg?t=1282191898

 

I always wanted to do mine black... but it was just easier to leave em alone. Oh well. It might look reall good if you went with a more middle-ish color. Like a gunmetal gray. But I have a hard time picturing it.

 

Mine are done in Black, check out my profile pics for more...

 

Hey did you sand the machine marks off the rims they look clean man.

 

They still look 'dead' when on the car. I had my old 91Z wheels done similarly; I have just grown to really hate the 91-92 wheels.

As far as stock 3rdgen wheels, there's nothing sweeter than a 91-92Z28 with 85-87 IROC wheels on it!

 

Almost. You can still see them slightly, but very faint... They're about 90% gone.

To each his own....

 

thank you sir, exactly the pic I was looking for. I was considering satin black since it would contrast the polished aluminum and the photoshop black isn't glossy, so that gives me a real good idea of what it would look like. Plan on painting your gloss or satin? You're obviously not complaining about the polished lip, are the spokes not shining to your liking?

I have thought about a gunmetal grey. It's either a gloss gunmetal, or satin black. I'm having a hard time picturing it myself, but I really like the dark grey inserts on early IROC wheels. I can't see it looking bad though, dark grey or gunmetal looks good on pretty much anything. I've still got time, since I'm polishing these wheels on my limited free time. I've got one wheel almost completly sanded, so hopefully I'll have it polished soon.

 

Most likely flat black.
The lip as well but the spokes more so. I still need to sand the spokes some more to completely get rid of any signs of the machine lines. The shine... as far as that goes, it shines nice but still not getting the mirror finish i want... Plus i dont have a lot of knowledge as far as paint, so im not sure if what i want to do will work.... Since ive polished the aluminum, if not sure if a clear coat would stick to it.

 

Oh, I never meant to say yours didn't look good - For the amount of work in 'em, they look great, the style of wheel just isn't my style. Hope ya didn't think I was doggin' all your work.

 

Nah, its all good. Ive realized that not everyone has the same tastes, nor do i expect them to. Plus, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Most important is that a person likes, and is happy with their own work/ finished product. For my first attempt ever at restoring rims..... I'd say im content.