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--My 71 Cutlass has 76-77 SSIII snap on center wheels. When I first put them on back in '94 or so I had them painted by a shop with acrylic enamel automotive paint. Since then 2 got bent ( don't ask) so I replaced them with 2 other wheels that I painted quickly with a brush, using left over paint from the original paint job- no hardener, etc. Of course those 2 hand painted wheels look like crap and paint has chipped off, etc. Since then I've had car painted with basecoat/clearcoat. Car is Nordic Blue Code #24.
--Now I am doing some brake work on car and have wheels off- decided to do something about lousy looking wheels this winter. I still have left over single stage paint from wheel job, and another can of left over basecoat that car was painted with. I do have a cheap harbor freight spray gun but I am not good with it. I wanted to just go and buy a couple aerosol cans of Duplicolor and paint the wheels, but that isn't as easy as it used to be.
--Looks like I can buy aerosol BC/CC online.
--SO.. looks like my choices are-- 1) use left over single stage and buy reducer and hardener- spray with paint gun. 2) use left over basecoat and buy reducer/ hardener and clearcoat, use paint gun , 3) Buy "touch up" paint BC/CC (paint with separate cans of BC/CC), 4) go to big box or hardware store and buy a blue color that is close enuff to body color and paint them.
--I really hate to do the job with my paint gun as I will have to get all the stuff I need including lacquer thinner for cleaning, etc etc.
--OK sorry so long of a read... I use this car quite a lot in summer and occasionally go slowly down gravel roads. I would like something that is hard and will stand up. I am thinking that the BC/CC aerosol might be the best way to go, though it is kinda pricey..
--What you guys recommend? Thanks Greg.
Since you didn't mention buying new Single Stage paint mixed in the OE color by SEM I @$$ume you don't consider your Oldsmobile a concours restoration.
That being said, I suggest going with option #4. Get a color that matches close enough and spray your wheels.
4) go to big box or hardware store and buy a blue color that is close enuff to body color and paint them.
--I really hate to do the job with my paint gun as I will have to get all the stuff I need including lacquer thinner for cleaning, etc etc.
Greg, the guy that I bought my 75 Hurst from never quite got to the wheels before his health failed. So I am going to repaint them when the weather gets better. I have several spray guns including a turbine gun which is what I will probably use. I bought single stage and hardener. I bought some Scotch Brite pads to scuff them up with before I paint them. I wish they were bead blasted but I am not going to unmount the tires to do that. They actually used a gold color on the Hurst wheels that became a color choice in 1976. It is one of those jobs that is just kind of a PIA. Good luck with yours.
I had leftover acrylic enamel paint so I got reducer, hardener, and aerosol spray cans of primer from the local automotive paint supply store, then used Preval sprayers to apply the paint. I did a set of 14" wheels back in the late 90s then a set of 15" wheels around 5 years ago. Both sets came out very well.
IMO, if your old paint is still “ok” and you can buy support chemicals for your old paint, I would go that route, but can you be sure that paint is actually still good? Use Preval sprayer(s) or paint gun. If that is not attractive, I would go with the catalyzed aerosol kit so you get a convenient to apply, decent finish that will have good longevity and toughness. Put those two wheels on one side of the car so they match each other.
Greg, go to a local automotive paint supply store and have them use a spectrometer on the paint of the body of your car. They will then be able to mix up the paint for you in aerosol cans. I would suggest between three or four cans. Ask for a good etching primer to shoot on the wheels before painting. Clean and sand the wheels before hand. if you have access to a media blaster, use it. Sand blasting will leave it too rough.
--Thanks for all your suggestions guys. I was really tempted to just paint with hardware store aerosol but that type paint isn't very tough. I have red rustoliem paint on my truck wheels and it's pretty beat up after 3 years. I took the single stage paint over to my paint store guy and we checked it out- still seems good. It is Centari acrylic enamel. He sold me hardener and reducer for it, so I guess I will go with that. Smallest quantity of those still cost a hundred bucks! Automotive paint stuff isn't cheap! I like what you did Ken and was thinking about that Preval system. But I think I will just paint them with my gun and deal with clean up.
--Glenn, looks like you and I will be going down the same path.
--Now a question for you old school paint guys, Anyone remember what ratio to mix Centari? My paint guy did paint Centari back in the day, but he cant remember ratio. It isn't on the can. It appears Centari manufacturer was Dupont which is out of business. Most I have found on line sz 8 paint/ 2 reducer/ 1 hardener. But some guys- (on the Hamb) say to do 8 paint/ 4 reducer/ 1 hardener. Hope you can help if you used to paint this stuff. Thanks again, Greg.
I had four wheels blasted for my daily about 4 years ago and painted them with 4 coats primer, 4 coats Duplicolor Universal Silver. They still shine, but there is some rust coming through. This is a car that sits outside in the rain and snow. This is rattle can paint. It's good enough for my daily driver. Might be ok for show car that is kept inside.
My paint was Centari as well so I may have the mixing instructions on either the paint can or the reducer can. Don't know if I actually used those, though. From what I recall, I mixed the paint fairly thin (more reducer) and sprayed a lot of light coats so it didn't run. I also dribbled paint into the seam at the center of the wheel and used a small brush to ensure there was paint inside the seam gap to prevent any future rust. Spraying didn't seem to get enough paint into that gap.
Thanks again all. I got some thoughts from the old paint guys on the Hamb also. Looks like I will mix it as recommended (8/2/1) then try it on a piece of scrap painting vertical if needs I will add more reducer. I guess it's gonna be real cold here for next week or so, so I won't paint the color for awhile yet.
Well thanks for all the advice and info on the paint mixing. I got wheels painted today. It did not go well. I did use the almost 30 year old Centari paint with new reducer and hardener. I mixed it 8 paint/2 reducer/ 1 hardener as directed by a data sheet and others experience. One guy on the Hamb recommended to start with that mixture and add more reducer until mixture is the consistency of whole milk. I did that to what I thought was milk but it would only splatter out of gun. So added more and more reducer until it would spray. Then got some sort of reaction on 2 of the wheels- making fisheyes!!! Then I got runs,,, then after all done I didn't cover it all- just absolutely a miserable experience!! These pics don't look too bad but it is much worse in person!! Starting stripping wheels. 2 of them were really bad and 2 were pretty good- I thought. I stripped the bad ones to bare metal and left paint on the "good" ones, only sanding down to steel where there was a chip. This prolly was what caused the fisheyes. 1 0f 2 that were stripped completely. Primed. Terrible job. looks worse in person. Runs, fisheyes very dissapointing!!! Well it is done. Luckily the trim rings will cover a bunch of it!
Sorry about your experience. Fisheyes are typically a result of contaminates on the surface. Did you wipe with prep-all solvent to remove any residual oils? You can contaminate a surface with just the oil off your skin. Splattering paint sounds concerning. Did you filter the paint through a paint strainer as you put it in the gun? Over thinning paint is not a good practice, especially starting off. I have done this however on a final coat after there is sufficient tacked material to hold the new paint.
It is usually best to shoot some paint on some cardboard or masking paper to adjust the pattern and make sure everything is kosher before you start. I know the disappointment and hassle involved in a do-over but you will be much happier if you scuff the surface and try another coat. Scotchbrite pads work pretty good for this.
January 24th, 2023, 04:08 AM
