Rim jobs...paint or powder coat?

**DMNTD:Me** · 13th June 2010, 11:35

I'm about to give one of my bikes a rim job.
Paint or power coat...and why?

**one fast tl1ooo** · 13th June 2010, 11:45

power coat, if done rite it will not chip.. and find a good bike shop to put you'r tyres on the rims..
Have seen paint jobs done on rims, then the tyres go on, and o dear paint chips .

**DMNTD:Me** · 13th June 2010, 11:46

Originally Posted by one fast tl1ooo

Have seen paint jobs done on rims, then the tyres go on, and o dear paint chips .

lol...I'd fire their arse if they chipped my rims!

**boman** · 13th June 2010, 12:23

Originally Posted by one fast tl1ooo

power coat, if done rite it will not chip.. and find a good bike shop to put you'r tyres on the rims..
Have seen paint jobs done on rims, then the tyres go on, and o dear paint chips .

I agree. Paint stays soft for too long, and is easily marked, especially when fitting tyres.

**Flip** · 13th June 2010, 12:26

Originally Posted by DMNTD

lol...I'd fire their arse if they chipped my rims!

This is what I got back from a certan well known tyre shop recently. It took them 3 weeks to get it back from the repairer and it came back the wrong colour it was bronze and came back a bright silver colour. In the end and after a brief conversation with the GM they paid for a new wheel.

Depends what sort of wheel it is. Alloy powder coat, spoke paint.

**DMNTD:Me** · 13th June 2010, 12:58

Originally Posted by boman

I agree. Paint stays soft for too long, and is easily marked, especially when fitting tyres.

Have considered painting the centres and polishing the edges which surely would negate any issues there.

Originally Posted by Flip

This is what I got back from a certain well known tyre shop recently. It took them 3 weeks to get it back from the repairer and it came back the wrong colour it was bronze and came back a bright silver colour. In the end and after a brief conversation with the GM they paid for a new wheel.

Depends what sort of wheel it is. Alloy powder coat, spoke paint.

Jebus! I'd be slightly grumpy

**Laava** · 13th June 2010, 13:49

I have a question regarding this as I am about to do the same. If you polish the edges, should you apply a good coat of clear or just get out the brasso every 2 weeks or so? I love the look of polished but am a lazy coooont when it comes to cleaning time.
BTW I can't believe no-one has made a joke about DMNTD wanting a rim job! Bahahahahahahahaha!

**froggyfrenchman** · 13th June 2010, 14:15

Powdercoat is cured as soon as it cools down. While if done right it can be much stronger than paint there are some catches to look out for....
1. Just like paint, powder comes in many different grades for different uses. Make sure that the company doing your rims has powder that will stand up to UV, water, stone chips, cleaning products.
Most of the bright colours that many PC shops have are decorative powders, designed for indoor use on door handles and coffee tables.
2. While you can repaint with just a quick sand, PC requires a dead clean surface with no trace amounts of paint left. IE: Sandblasting rims is a must before powdercoating. That can add some huge cost to your tart up, with blasting often costing more than the powdercoating.
3. Sometimes your powder will just fall off. This is a sad fact of powdercoat. If there was any contamination on the rim before coating. The powder will not grip the rim. It will still look mint because the powder grips onto itself, but at the first chip, it will start to peel off in big flakes.

My overall opinion on powdercoating rims...
We have a PC plant at work, and I still paid a car painter to do my rims.

**Howie** · 13th June 2010, 14:21

Personally I'd go for a two pot paint system, as it is likely to be tougher than powder coating which is hard but not tough and well chip easier.

or you could go for getting them anodised.

**Laava** · 13th June 2010, 17:24

I like the idea of the anodising. Is it do-able? Sounds like it might be a bit spensy?

**John_H** · 13th June 2010, 17:30

Hmmmm, google rim job and you might be surprised the results you get!

**Howie** · 13th June 2010, 17:36

Originally Posted by Laava

I like the idea of the anodising. Is it do-able? Sounds like it might be a bit spensy?

This Company does rims, and hubs. Not sure if they can do cast wheeels though, you could always contact them.

**Stylo** · 13th June 2010, 18:49

Originally Posted by John_H

Hmmmm, google rim job and you might be surprised the results you get!

Just googled Rim Jobs and you're right, did'nt seem to be too much Bike stuff going on ...interesting though

**Pussy** · 13th June 2010, 19:01

Originally Posted by Howie

Personally I'd go for a two pot paint system, as it is likely to be tougher than powder coating which is hard but not tough and well chip easier.

or you could go for getting them anodised.

Agree 100%.
A properly applied two pack beats powder coating any day. A LOT less prone to chipping

**CookMySock** · 13th June 2010, 19:24

Powdercoat yellows and it does chip. It's not bloody cheap either.

Next rims I'll do will be paint, and I doubt if I'll powdercoat again. At least I can easily re-do them without all the expense and hoopla associated with powdercoat.

Steve