Article: Plasti Dip you wheels DIY Guide with TONS of pics!

[dtmcnamara]

Ok guys, so we decided to Plasti Dip the BRZ wheels and made sure to take lots of picture to document it in order to help anyone interested in doing it themselves:

Obviously first things first, get the car off the ground in order to get the wheels off of it.


Next thing we take put the wheels to the side and start to get them ready for a good old hand cleaning.


First we use a light de-greaser to take off any road debris and dirt.


After letting the de-greaser sit for a few minutes we rise with water.


Next we used clean towels to dry the wheels completely.


Use an air compressor to help get rid of any excess water in the nooks and crannies


After drying we decided to use micro-fiber clothes ensure everything was off the rims


After the wheels are completely dry we started to tape the tires off


When taping the wheels make sure to use 2"-3" pieces of tape to ensure a nice clean masking


Now its time to start to spray. We made sure to do MANY light coats at first. Here is what the wheel looks like after the first coat


Up close of the first coat


We proceeded to do light coats on all 4 wheels until the first can was out. After the first can was completely finished this is what the wheels looked like


Another close up of the wheels after 1 can was used on all four wheels


TO BE CONTINUED IN AN HOUR AFTER WE ARE FINISHED!

Well after I started to post this, and while we were waiting for coats to dry it started to rain so we had to move the wheels into the shed and I forgot to take more pictures.

After the first can was empty we used the second can on the wheels and started to lay on heavier coats, or as they say on the website "wet coats". Wet coats are just enough that the wheels looks glossy, but not enough to make the paint run. I hily recommend testing out a few times on something other than the wheel because if the paint starts to run its a pain to get flat again. This stuff is not like regular paint where you can just sand down a little if you have a run.

After 2 heavier coats, and 2 cans completely empty we moved onto the 4th can of paint. This can I decided to lay on light layers again. When laying the lighter layers, and letting the Plasti Dip paint fall onto the wheel, you get an more unified look and it looks more professional. Also with the heavier coats already on the wheels the paint has had time to create its pealable coat so from here on out you just want to work on making the wheels look as good as possible. I know the site says to stop with the wet coats, but honestly the wheels look 100 times better with a mist at the last few coats on the wheels.

All in all we had:
2-3 light coats to start
2 heavy coats (wet coats)
3-4 extremely light coats

With this procedure the wheel paint looks as good as an OEM powercoat would on a set of wheels.

Running into problems?
While doing some of the heavy coats we did have some trouble where too much paint was sprayed in some spots. Per the site the biggest thing is to make sure the paint is flat. To fix this let the area dry for 20-30 minutes and with rubber gloves on slightly put pressure on the area trying to flatten the paint out. DO NOT RUB the stuff and really try not to tear it either. With many layers you will slowly see the mistake work its way out and become nearly, if not completely, hidden.

If you have any questions about this stuff feel free to shoot me a PM. I will hopefully be getting the entire spray system to do a few cars. Once I get the equipment I will post another writeup.

Also I will update everyone with how well the paint is holding up in the near future