lhsguy721

hey all, im pretty new to the site and gettin used to everything so bare with me.... I am thinking about painting my mazda 3 17in. rims black. What process should i got about this... wetsand? sandblast? primer? etc???? any help is nice, thanx!

Roddimus Prime

I hate to kinda push this but I do powdercoating and I powdercoated a set of rims in gloss black for another forum member. I think you'll find he's pretty happy with them and it'll hold up a lot longer than paint.


to paint them properly you'll want to:

1. remove wheels from car
2. remove tires from wheels
3. sandblast wheels to bare metal
4. beadblast wheels to shotpeen the surface and harden the aluminum
5. primer coat the whole wheel
6. 2-3 complete coats of paint allowing hours to dry between coats in a dust free room
7. mount tires carefully
8. mount wheels carefully
9. drive carefully around curbs!

eggynatey

No need to "push" powdercoating. It'll look better, last longer and you've got a hook=up right here.

p/c em!

lhsguy721

Honestly i have no idea how to sandblast wheels or beadblast them, are there certain body shops that will do this...such as universal car shops??? thanx for the directions though, ill look into doing this!!

Jackelope

^ would probably come out cheaper to get matty to do it... just my 2 cents


https://www.mazda3club.com/photo-video-gallery-29/powdercoated-stockies-40103/
https://www.mazda3club.com/wheel-tires-67/kargoboys-new-rims-40045/

Roddimus Prime

actually unless he has shipping connections like Gary then it will probably be more. Shipping isn't cheap both ways.

Jackelope

didnt think about shipp'n.

lhsguy721

i can't exactly send my rims to anyone because i live at college and need my car

Roddimus Prime

I understand...i was there once myself. Iwill say this though...I don't know you so don't take offense..

there's a right way to do something and a wrong way....all the ricer cars you see with mismtached body panels and crummy cosmetics....that's the wrong way.

Roddimus Prime

p.s. it's always cheaper and faster to just do it right the first time. If you can't do it right now just hold off until its an oppurtune moment.

lhsguy721

of course, i totally understand!! I was just thinking of saving and getting actually racing rims anyways...so i donno! thanx for the input though

Roddimus Prime

the 17 stockers on the 3 are HEAVY...finding a nice ultra lightweight 15" rim and some grippy low profile tires will do you well. Look for a set of 93-99 RX7 rims...they are 16" rims that weigh in about 14lbs a piece.

lhsguy721

are 16's a better performer? i was thinkin 17's ???

Jackelope

I still got my eye on something like this.... whenever i have the Xtra money.

https://www.mazda3club.com/showpost....16&postcount=5

Roddimus Prime

lhsguy, what is most important is wheel width, wheel weight and sidewall height.

I would MUCH rather have a 15-16" wheel that weighed 14lbs with a high quality 7" wide 35 series tire on it than a standard 17" X 7" wheel that weighs 23lbs with dunlops... the weight difference and wheel height alone will be a DRAMATIC change in how the car accelerates. when it comes to lateral grip the wheel width and sidewall height are all that matters.