Originally Posted by Twofer

I recently painted my phone dials, and I'm really happy I did. There was always something about my car that looked odd. (Aside from the previous owner's poorly repaired dents and body damage.) I'd look at other FC's and think that they looked a lot slicker, but really couldn't figure out what it was. After painting my phone dials Graphite Gray, I realized the silver-ish rims were making the car look taller. My friends commented that it makes the phone dials look "less old".

I originally went with black, but ran low after 2 wheels. I went to the local auto parts shops and they were sold out of Black, so I took a chance on Graphite Gray. (Dupicolor wheel paint.) With one side of my car on black rims, and the other on graphite, it gave me a chance to compare them. (Also, I didn't think anyone else would notice they were different colors since you only see on side of the car at the time.) The next week I stripped the black wheels and went Graphite all around.

For prep work, I removed the old clear coat / paint with KleenStrip Aircraft Remover from Autozone, which works great as long as you slather it on like BBQ sauce. (Use chem gloves and glasses, it burns like a mother.) After that, rough sand with 100 grit, then smooth with 220 grit, then one coat of primer, and one coat of paint. (As heavy as possible without getting runs.) I did the black rims without primer and following the directions on the can and it didn't come out as well.

Before:



After:



Original w/ flaking clear coat:



Graphite vs Black:

Originally Posted by 87_rocket

I was admiring your phone dial paint job, and since I have been thinking of doing something similar I figured I'd ask you how difficult it was. Also, how long did the project take for you? I would really like to finish the project in one weekend, do you think that it is feasible? Thanks.