I've seen a lot of people requesting pics of 98-01 blades painted gunmetal or other shades, but not many people have done it. Well I did today. Here's my How-To on it.

Here's what you need:



Directions:

1. Use any wheel cleaner you want and clean off all the grime on the wheel first, then dry it.

2. USE AIRCRAFT STRIPPER! cake it all over the wheel, let it sit for 15 min., then spray it off and all the gunk and **** are gone! then dry it off again, or leave it wet so you can wet-sand it.

3. I used 320 grit sandpaper to get it rough, but you should probably use 400 or 600 grit for a finer finish. I wet-sanded the wheels till all the shine was gone and they were nice and scuffed up. Then I washed them off again and dried them.

4. Next, apply primer and let it set for at least 20 minutes or so.



5. Apply thin coats of paint, about 5-6 total. I used 1 bottle of Duplicolor graphite wheel paint and 1 bottle of general purpose primer. That's all I needed.



6. Let the wheels dry for at least a hour, and apply a few coats of clear coat to protect the finish and give it a wet look. I have NOT clearcoated them yet, I'll do that tomorrow after I put my tires on (yokohama avs es100 ).

If you have any more questions, PM me.

 

good post thinkin about doing it to my Si wheels

 

yeah I was debating that as well. I used the aircraft stripper, cleaned it off and stepped back - the wheels looked almost chrome they were so clean! I wanted to keep them polished, but my car is milano red with CTR DIY headlights, 00 Si tails, a CF hood and dark grey leather interior so I figured that polished wheels would stand out too much IMO.

 

i like it better...its different

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by VoLTRoNx916 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i like it better...its different</TD></TR></TABLE>

Thanks, I'll post up pics when I get my tires and get them on the car

 

nice how to

 

 

looks nice

 

full size pic is up

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by branch &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I like 'em better polished... but nice write up.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I agree

 

do you take the rims to a tire shop to get them put back on?

 

bought the wheels used without tires

 

put a coat of clear coat on the gunmetal one.

 

you ruined those wheels imo..

 

i think the one thing i would have dont differently is i would have poped out the center cap and left it silver just my pref.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ophdeheezy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">nice write up but it has a LOT of flaws</TD></TR></TABLE>

 

The write-up or the wheels? I know it's not perfect but oh well good enough for me
This is just a rough outline for those looking to do their own wheels.
Could you list some of the flaws for us?

 

So can you use the aircraft stripper just to clean a set of old GSR rims even if you don't have the intention of painting them?? you made it sound like it really cleans the rims up real well. Where do you get the stripper?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RevHard &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">So can you use the aircraft stripper just to clean a set of old GSR rims even if you don't have the intention of painting them?? you made it sound like it really cleans the rims up real well. Where do you get the stripper?</TD></TR></TABLE>
No, do not use aircraft stripper to clean your wheels. It will strip everything down to the bare metal!!!! Use some kind of degreaser or wheel cleaner to clean the wheels.

 

very good write up. it might be useful fo rme later on. good job.

 

very unique but be careful when u put on the tires...