Painting wheel rims - need advice

"Bob-tx" wrote in news:4f06f4ac$0$13642$ snipped-for-privacy@news.suddenlink.net:

It would be.

Nope. That's really what you should do. You'll have a hard time removing all the rust, and getting paint onto all of the areas that need paint, while the tires are still mounted on the wheels.

Doug is correct pull the tires. You can do it yourself with two big prybars. The hardest part is breaking the bead which gets harder as your rims/tires get bigger. Should be no problem on a utility trailer.

If you want to exclude the only really good way to do the job.... then, buy wide masking tape and put on the tires.

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Obviously, I don't want to get paint on the tires. I thought about putting oil on the tires so any paint that got on them wouldn't stick and could be wiped off. But I don't know if the oil would be bad for the tires.

Any suggestions on a better way to do this, other than taking them to a tire shop and having the tires removed and then remounted after painting?

Thanks, Bob-tx

...and you get older.

Should be no problem on a utility

Check this guy out...Looks like a truck tire. 49 seconds. No air in or out but still pretty darn quick.

I painted the 2 wagon wheels on my Haulmark 5 x 8 enclosed trailer a year ago October. Tipped a local service station laborer a few bucks to pull the tires for me. His hourly rate for the job was huge! ;-) Saved me a lot of work..well worth it.

I used Hammerite Rust Cap paint, but as you can see by the thread I've linked to, I was not able to get a smooth paint job because the product is so thick and drys so quickly.

I just used some more on a flat panel last month and ran into the same application issues. I'll admit as I did in the thread below, maybe it's just me.

Anyway, as far as longevity, I'm quite satisfied. I painted the rims over a year ago and they're still rust-free. If I ever need a quality finish on something, I'll probably try the much more expensive spray version of the product.

A good vid - I have seen people do that years ago, but I'm nearly 80 years old, and the old bod just can't do that kind of stuff anymore. But, I appreciate the idea. Bob-tx

I too have used electrolytic rust removal but I am not convinced of its use. I did an old hand plane and the rust was definitely gone but even with a quick hand dry and heating it seemed to rust again quickly.

I have read other complaints of rapid re-rusting after using this method.

On 1/6/2012 2:16 PM, Bob-tx wrote: ...

Hell, in that case don't worry about the rims, they'll outlast you as they are--go do something fun instead! :)

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Looks like he already broke the bead and lubed it up then refilled it with air before the video. Something shiny shows up now and then on the video, I think it's lube of some sort. Still fast but misleading.

I can't imagine getting a good finish brushing on Hammerite paint. The spray cans always worked well for me but it does take a little practice to get a nice even hammered looking finish. (other manufacturers call it "Hammertone") I sprayed the wheels on my van a couple years ago and the paint does hold up well to rust.

Tire removal is the best, but to do a quick job without a lot of cost and work, just put masking tape and newspaper on the tire. Since most rims are painted black and tires are black, a little pain on the tire wont hurt anything if you dont get the tape precisely around the rim. Another thing would be to use brush on paint and a paintbrush. Anyone who can paint with a brush should be able to stay on the rim and off the tire...... use a 1/4" or 1/2" brush for accuracy around the tire, if needed. Use larger brush for the rest of it.

I'd be more worried about removing the rust and using abrasives against the tire than I'd worry about a little paint on the tire.

I should mention that I painted the rims on my farm tractor tires and was not going to pay $70 each to have the tires removed and put back on. That rim is silver. Rather than fuss with tape, I just took some cardboard from a the back of a notebook, cut it a little round along one edge to match the contour of the rim, and held the cardboard while spraying the paint. I moved the cardboard as I sprayed. It turned out real well. That tiny bit of paint on the tire did not hurt anything. It's not like I'm trying to impress anyone with the appearance or enter it in a show. If a little overspray did get on the tire, a rag with some gasoline took it off quickly as long as I wiped it immediately.

Vaseline is a common solution - used for decades. A synthetic grease might , theoretically, be better - but if you wipe the vaseline off as soon as the paint dries it won't hurt anything.

Like I said - it's been done, commonly, for decades.

Although greasing the tire will work, you will not get the rust between the rim and the bead - which is what really matters - and the rust will just come back. So much BETTER - long term - to remove the tires (or just deflate - break the bead, and clean up as much as you can reach - then paint and let dry before re-inflating).

This avoids the likelihood of damaging the new paint when re-installing the tires -- and it WILL happen.

I used to do tire changes - remove from car, dismount old, remount new, and reinstall, in 6 minutes flat (24 minutes to change 4 tires). I was a younger man then.

Put the can of Hammerite in hot water for 10 minutes before spraying. About 125 F - and you'll be AMAZED at how much better it sprays!!! It thins out so it sprays a finer spray - and it flows better when it hits. And yes - it dries a wee bit faster - but the other advantages outweigh the faster dry time.

Powder coat still looks good, on the surface, untill it is all rusty in behind and it all comes off in one sheet.

That is true of ANY de-rusting process. Rust CONVERSION processes do no generally allow the metal to re-rust as quickly. Even after sand-blasting or sanding to remove rust, rust re-occurs quickly. Just a wipe with Kerosene or WD40 will protect it against "flash rust".

Boesheild is better yet