[evanescent03]

Hey all.

I had a fight with the dealership to get black wheels swapped onto my car but no luck. I ended up with gray painted 5 split spoke wheels. They do look good but more of a clean-cut/classed-up look. .. I'm going for sporty and I think black accents on my hyper blue is my cup of tea.

Alas, I'm getting my wheels powder coated semi-gloss black. The center caps obviously need to be changed. The guy at the powder coat/wheel shop told me I could pick up ceter caps for like $5/each. Sounded legit for a small piece or plastic. I went back to Chevy dealer and was quoted $35 ea..

No way. So I bought some painters tape, rattle can, and some fresh blades. Anyone else DIY with success ? I'm not sure how long this will last and I should probably hit them with a couple clear coats but I think it's a win. Worst case I trash them and get the stupid--expensive versions. I will likely pop them out for track days as I've had center caps deform and pop off before (although those were aftermarket wheels and maybe they were cheaper plastic?)

Here's a cap close up. I don't think this is something many people inspect close-up on the car so I was aiming for a 90% job. I think it'll work.

I'm sure this isn't a novel idea but my phone doesn't search the forum well and my laptop just got fried ...

[Glen e]

Looks good, yeah a coupe coats of gloss clear is a good idea. Best clear in a rattle can I've used is from automotivetouchup.com.

[6LE Designs]

Honestly... that's pretty bad looking. Why not just have vinyl cut to them? That way it would be smooth (ie: without the paint marks it has now) and not have edges around the emblem like you see now...

If you paint again, next time shake the can a lot more and also make sure you are wiping the nozzle after every pass. Only way to get decent look out of a spray can.

Also I found Dupli-Color to have some of the best nozzles on their cans for a DIY project.

Finally, mask just the top part of the bowtie. Paint then clean up the edges of the bowtie with a box cutter/razor blade. Use it to cut the paint right around the bowtie base and then flick up and it will come off.

[evanescent03]

Originally Posted by 6LE Designs

Honestly... that's pretty bad looking. Why not just have vinyl cut to them?

Thanks for the honesty! I'm not a seasoned rattle can guy and my goal was to pass the 10' test. I don't think many people look at center caps close enough to notice the stuff you're pointing out (and I definitely noticed, too).I'm not so sure I could get vinyl to lay perfectly either.. but I haven't messed with vinyl much either.

Thanks for the tips! I'll probably try a little more with this but can always start the project over pretty easily or buy new caps... I just don't like the idea of spending $150 for replacement center caps.

Tha ms again for the constructive criticism!! Rattle canning 101!!