before and after
 

I painted the rough parts of my SE rims today. Nice improvemnt for $10 and takes away from the dated look of the rims also (especially since some of them looked pretty rough in the "rough" area.

Please post the AFTER pictures. I agree that those have some rough areas.

The left one is one that is a before pic, the right is the after pic. And yep they are still a little rough, but an improvement never the less. They would look better with a full refinish, but that costs a lot more $$$$$$$$

The painted portion is a charcoal so it's not dramatic unless you see the car, especially at night.

Looks good so far, so what are your plans for the rest of the rim? If you plan on painting that part, the corrosion will need to be sanded down and neutralized for the paint to last. I do like the gray in the recesses, sets off the rest of the wheel nicely.

I refurbished a rim recently with lots of various grit sand paper and polish... thinking I may do the same as you did with the insides... before was really pitted and horrible.

http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l4...s/P1010551.jpg

http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l4...s/P1010331.jpg

Wow, very nice job! The black really does set them off, I may consider doing a full refurbish like yours. Sure is a ton of work doing all the masking!!!

I would really like to know what you sued to clear coat the rims. Did you use a stripped to remove the old clear or just sandpaper?? Here's pics of the car.

more pics......

I went to Kragen / Checker and got some aircraft stripper... that stuff is nasty though... don't touch anything with it burns like hell... here is a picture of what it looks like brushed on fully. I am going to paint my rims the same way you did, it looks so much better with the insides painted dark and I've been debating it but wanted to really see how it would look first. After seeing yours I'm convinced that is the only way to go :)

http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l4...s/P1010280.jpg

http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l4...s/P1010279.jpg

I think I'm doing this to mine.

wheels look great

The spray on aerosol can Aircraft Paint Stripper is easier to use. It's a bit more expensive than buying it in the cans, but it's easier to apply an even coat where needed.

Looks pretty good 84stock and jarath. Good job. Nice SE too 84stock

the ironic thing is my current SE came with those parts painted and I'm trying to remove it *L*

Yeah Gary, nice wheels. I've seen this car up close (I bought his '84 GSL last year) and it definitely has restoration potential. As for the aircraft paint stripper I'm very familiar with it --- we restore DeHavilland DHC-6 Twin Otters at work, and paint stripping very much goes with that particular territory.

And yes, it immediately burns like hell if you get it on your skin. Don't even think about getting it in your eyes. On the bright side, it comes in very handy if you ever catch some punk trying to steal your 7 ---- a paint stripper enema comes to mind...