thoughts on powder coating the stock wheels?

[v1k0d3n]

did some more searches...yeah, the dark hyper black is absolutely what i'm shooting for (so it still looks darker in full sun, but not black):

[Prince Recon]

Originally Posted by mikewills

Justin.

How would the durability of the flat color (tsw wheel for example) holdup versus the clear coated wheel (hyper black for example).

Mike

Flat finishes are still durable, but because they are flat you can never buff out light scratches or scuffs. If you tried, it would turn the area that was buffed into a gloss or at least semi-gloss look. Here is an example of a single stage flat color. Ugly I know, but these were the customer's road race wheels and he chose the color because he wanted his Porsche to stand out from the others on the track for his friends/crew).

Justin

[Red Bread]

Just for reference, this is Morton's Black Chrome, which is darker than the factory Black Shadow of my M Coupe wheels.

[Prince Recon]

Another style wheel with a darker chrome shadow color...

Justin

[Prince Recon]

Originally Posted by Red Bread

Just for reference, this is Morton's Black Chrome, which is darker than the factory Black Shadow of my M Coupe wheels.

Yes, those older coupe wheels originally are what I would call hyper silver. They do not have the black base coat under the chrome shadow coat, it was a light grey base.

Justin

[Red Bread]

Originally Posted by Prince Recon

Yes, those older coupe wheels originally are what I would call hyper silver. They do not have the black base coat under the chrome shadow coat, it was a light grey base.

Justin

Correct, the 1999 and 2000 wheels were the Hyper Silver finish, and the 2001 and 2002 were the same Chrome Shadow finish of the E39 M5 and E46 M3 18" wheels. Are the pics above also Morton Black Chrome? They look very similar.

[Prince Recon]

Originally Posted by Red Bread

Correct, the 1999 and 2000 wheels were the Hyper Silver finish, and the 2001 and 2002 were the same Chrome Shadow finish of the E39 M5 and E46 M3 18" wheels. Are the pics above also Morton Black Chrome? They look very similar.

The last photo I posted of the two 5 spoke wheels are still with our process only after the black base was sprayed, we used only light coats of the chrome shadow paint over the base. This is what I refer to when I say we can alter the lightness or darkness of the wheels by changing how heavy the chrome shadow coat is applied.

Justin

[Prince Recon]

Here is another wheel from a BMW set that was recently done. After this post I will be gone the rest of the day, but will check back tomorrow and (assuming my account is still valid) answer any additonal questions that come up.

Justin

[tkbr0wn]

I think that is it.... That is exactly what I am looking for.

[v1k0d3n]

Post #26 is probably my favorite. From what I understand the process can be somewhat difficult (and it was even for BMW). Below will show a picture of two identical OEM wheels. There's a very slight color variation.

I would like to have a darker, more subtle look (like the hyper black) with a little less chrome. The original pictures are amazing. If you can get it close to that, I am ALL over it!

[M3 Adjuster]

thanks for coming on and joining this thread. Another forum member had posted a note about powdercoating and got the very common internet forum " powdercoating leads to cracked wheels" rabble.

I have had wheels powdercoated in the past and used them for street and track usage with no issues. One set of wheels was done in a shadow chrome and they looked fantastic.

TK.. I also went with a hyper black wheel. I went with the Apex ARC-8. I think hyper black looks good on black cars... So does original silver but too hard to keep clean.

For white cars, then possibly black wheels or a flat bronze.

With VO, I love the idea of a gloss black wheel.

[v1k0d3n]

M3...you're right...the hyper black looks amazing on that wheel. this is exactly what i want on my stock 1M wheels!

[M3 Adjuster]

don't make me open my boxes... there sitting in the garage.. waiting quietly!

[mikewills]

Now this is a useful thread! The Apex style fits the 1M. Oh man, I can't wait to see hyper black on VO.

Hmmm....anthracite on AW.

[bvez3ro]

I would like to see a AW 1M with golden rims. Saw a White Porsche with the colour combination.

[bmw13]

Man! I wanted to do Matte black on BSM, but I am really considering the Shadow Chrome! Here is Ben Goh's 1M with Matte black wheels vs flat black. Matte black has about 30% gloss in it, so it is not entirely flat, like flat black. I do have black kidneys, black side indicator gills, black edition m3 tips(in possesssion but yet to be installed) Did not want to "murder out" so I will not be blacking out any lenses, tail lamps or head lamps. Now my question, matte black or shadow chrome on BSM!

[v1k0d3n]

Originally Posted by bmw13

Did not want to "murder out" so I will not be blacking out any lenses, tail lamps or head lamps. Now my question, matte black or shadow chrome on BSM!

i really like a clean (not over-done) blacked out look, but that may be a bit much for my taste. after seeing those pictures again, i'm definitely digging the the darker hyper-black or shadow chrome!! not to mention, it would be the easiest to keep clean (compared to stock and total black).

Originally Posted by bvez3ro

I would like to see a AW 1M with golden rims. Saw a White Porsche with the colour combination.

i really hope that someone does this (metak perhaps??). you see this on STi's a lot too, and white is the only color that can pull it off nicely. it's one of my favorite looks for a white car.

[bmw13]

Originally Posted by v1k0d3n

i really like a clean (not over-done) blacked out look, but that may be a bit much for my taste. after seeing those pictures again, i'm definitely digging the the darker hyper-black or shadow chrome!! not to mention, it would be the easiest to keep clean (compared to stock and total black).

Does anyone know if the M3 stock 18" wheels are Shadow Chrome? They do look a tad bit darker than Shadow Chrome. I personally am aiming for the M3 18" stock wheel finish/ color. Does anyone know that paint code, or paint ID??

[Aussie_in_London]

Originally Posted by bmw13

Does anyone know if the M3 stock 18" wheels are Shadow Chrome? They do look a tad bit darker than Shadow Chrome. I personally am aiming for the M3 18" stock wheel finish/ color. Does anyone know that paint code, or paint ID??

they appear to be more bordering on a gunmetal grey rather than a chrome finish

[Tuned1M]

I was going to go with a gloss black until I realized how prone I am to curb rashing my wheels. Don't get me wrong, I'm extremely careful when parallel parking but even the best of us can sometimes make a mistake. I already have a 2" light scratch from curbing the passenger rear wheel. I can live with the silver wheel being scratched as it blends in a bit but a black wheel with the same scratch is going to stick out more.

[bmw13]

Originally Posted by Aussie_in_London

they appear to be more bordering on a gunmetal grey rather than a chrome finish

agreed. anyone powder-coat this color before? Is there a way to find out BMW exact color/ paint used?

[v1k0d3n]

Originally Posted by Tuned1

I was going to go with a gloss black until I realized how prone I am to curb rashing my wheels. Don't get me wrong, I'm extremely careful when parallel parking but even the best of us can sometimes make a mistake. I already have a 2" light scratch from curbing the passenger rear wheel. I can live with the silver wheel being scratched as it blends in a bit but a black wheel with the same scratch is going to stick out more.

this happens even with aftermarket wheels though (it would be no different). i don't think that you'd tell that much of a difference between rashing a hyper-black or shadow chrome wheel, compared to the stock silver finished wheel. plus, you can have curb rash repaired pretty reasonably. i understand exactly what you're saying though.