Painting Rims

[Timmerflyer]

Hi, I wanted to paint my rims the same color as my 69 beetle. What do I have to do before i paint it? Do I have sand of the paint that is on it now?
Thanks Timmerflyer

[Guest]

To do a really nice job you should dismount the tires. You should degrease them .Something like 409 or Simple Green will work pretty decent. Then wash with warm soapy water and rinse well. Let them dry Very good, like overnight or blowing them with compressed air and wiping with a clean,dry rag as you go, to get all the water out of the seams. You may not have to remove all the old paint. It depends on its condition. If its cracked, chipped alot, or peeling then I would suggest stripping (chemically) or sanding/media blasting most of it off. If you have to go this far, use an etching primer (not totally necessary, but longer lasting results) , then a urethane primer/filler , let that dry and sand with 320 or 400 dry and a scrubby pad(for the hard to reach areas and corners) and topcoat with paint. If they are decent shape then skip the stripping and etching primer, and sand with 180dry and go on with the primer/filler.

Or you could just butcher 'em and knock the dust off and bombcan 'em!