I have a set of 996TT wheels that I have had chemically stripped. The original paint was chipped and the lips were mildly road rashed. I have smoothed all the rash and they are now ready for paint. I would like to go back to the original Porsche metalic silver. I went to a body shop a few days ago and was quoted $700 to have them liquid painted! I about crapped in my pants when I heard that quote. They said they had to be acid etched, primered, painted & cleared. Yada yada....I have a quote for $195 to have them powdercoated. The only drawback on powdercoating is when it comes time to repaint...you have to blast or strip them again...and the powdercoatings are more of a bitch to get off than liquid paint and I don't believe it shines as well as liquid paint...unless you clear them. What are your thoughts, experiences and recommendations?

Powder is ready to go right away. Its cured when it comes out of the oven. Paint takes time. Our shop uses paint that takes a month to fully cure. You can handle the parts the day after painting, but they chip easy for the first few weeks. The paint gives you unlimited color choice. They blend what you want.

Then again, the powder coater down the street has a large selection of choices and the prices are very reasonable. I took a pile of parts to him a few months back and he quoted me $100

Uggh!

Even more uggh when it comes to alloy wheels.

But you're talking about 996T wheels. Not classic, so means nothing to me. Do what you like.

damn Pat having a bad day???


do you need a little


Your answer should have been buy This and you will be ing





I say no paint
Click to view attachment


polish







*(wheel type is just an example)

Those are some real shiny Fuchers! I wonder how much it would cost to have mine polished and cleared or rather anodized clear. Any experience or suggestions out there??

I get 300-500 a set to paint PROPERLY in a normal color. Price depends on condition and type. Wheels with lots of crevices take longer and are much easier to F up. 700.00 is pretty damn steep. Yes, those wheels need to be glass beaded, etched with in 30 min, seled and then shot or even better wet sanded for a smoother finish then shot. Powder will look good but no where near as good as cleared paint. Also need to make certain the powder coater masks off the centyer of the hub or you will no longer have a hub centric wheel. The powder WILL close that hole up enough it won't seat properly. Shop around some more and get them painted. One of the few times I advocate paint over powder.

With Scotty

It's also easier to touch up a painted wheel if you get a nick or scratch.

I would think for 700.00 you could have them chromed. Sell them and for 1500.00 you can buy them already chromed. I'll bet you can bead blast them, shoot them with ppg dp90 and shoot them with single stage silver for about 300.00 in paint cost.
Charliew

I've decided to just powdercoat the damn things for $175-195. You don't have to etch, prime, and have them blessed by a Catholic priest before painting them. If they don't shine enough afterwards...I'll have them cleared.

Clear powder is a mistake. It has a pretty severe ( compared to paint ) yellowing to it. You'd be better off to have the powder scuffed and clear painted if you want, but I can't attest to the hold up on that situation.

4 years ago I bead blasted my Mahles then shot them with clear coat. Our winters get down to -48*F and summers have hit + 100*F. The wheels still look good. No ethcing, sealing and the clear just cost about $75. I think I could do the same with a nice silver colour if I wanted to.

Yeah Scotty,
I was planning on an old fashioned spray clear...not a powder clear. You are absolutely right.

Well, you must haver a pretty bad powder coater out there, I have multible sets of wheels that are powder coated & cleared (as well as bikes & other parts) and have never had that problem, of course the coated wheels on my track car were only coated in 1996, so maybe not long enough yet. Plus, powder is much harder to scratch & chip than most paints, chances are if you hit something to chip a coated wheel, it will be dented or bent, but of course, I have onlt heen having wheels & stuff coated (including clear over polished Fuchs) since 1989. Of course, living in FL with the ocean air might help(I don't take my Porsches to the beach, but my Toyota truch with Porsche cup wheels)

Here's an issue you have considered. Hot Metallic Brake dust will embed into the paint on your wheels. Ask me how I know. If you run street brake pads probably not an issue, but I've ridden in your car... Get them podwered.

Very true, and the front wheels of my track car are white and still clean up fine. The rest of my track wheels are black though to hide the dust

[font=Arial] Clear powder coating over polished aluminum is a great way to keep the look of the aluminum without the need for continually hand polishing. This process has to be done with care by the powder coater and the correct type of clear coating needs to be used. Exterior grade clear coatings come in various forms and there are vast differences in them. The use of an OEM approved clear in either polyester or acrylic based formulation is the best choice. The yellowing is an issue of two different sources. Heat will cause coatings to continue to cure. This is why clear coating wheels that are used for track days or for true competition are not recommended. The other issue of yellowing comes from powder coaters not using the correct formulations that are not UV stable. These coatings will yellow due to exposure to the Sun. Street applications of clear over polished aluminum wheels is completely acceptable and if done correctly will last. However, if the clear powder coating is compromised by a chip or scratch it must be touched up immediately. A simple clear nail polish will work for touch up. If not touched up the moisture from washing, road or condensation will get under the coating and with a mirror smooth polished surface the coating will start to peel. This is not the case with traditional powder coated opaque finishes, these are applied typically over a sandblasted surface and surface adhesion is much better. Powder coating are applied at at thickness in the .003"-.005" and they are better adhered to the substrate through cross linking caused from oven curing. As far as cost they should run in the $100-$125 range to do a clear over a previously polished wheel. Liquid spray paints are applied at a thickness of .001"-.002"and while they will work are not nearly as durable as a properly applied and cured powder coating. [font=Arial]

Down side to powder on a car that is driven Hard is that it likes to hide cracks...

Not much of an issue w/ the 996TT wheels on a 914 due to the much lower weight (and theoretically stress) the wheels will see.

Just had to be said.