taken19

Did you use and special high temp paint or the standard Duplicolor or Rustoleum wheel paint? My rotors/wheels feel like an oven when I get off the track and the standard wheel paint specifically says less than 200 F.

Any suggestions are welcomed.

Sean

John Shiels

why bother they all turn to crap at the track.

taken19

True, but I think it would be a fun project as I've never done this before and it's extremely cheap. If I paint them black, they will not show brake dust, scratches, etc as much. Also, I'll be able to touch them up quite easily if they get nasty.

No offense, but I'm not asking IF I should paint the wheels, I'm asking what type of paint will work best in terms of durability and still be able to withstand the heat at the track...

SoDiezl350

Eastwood wheel paint is rated up to 250F continuous. This means it can probably withstand higher temps for shorter periods of time.

While I think it's possible that the temperature of the wheels can reach those kind of numbers for very brief periods, it's very unlikely that it will cause the paint to break down.

Considering forged 6000 series aluminum begins to temper at around 300F, I would think you are fine using wheel paint.

If you wanna play it safe use a high temp primer.

taken19

Thanks, I will see if any local stores carry that type. I was thinking an engine paint may work well since its rated to 500 F.

Scooter70

I painted the wheels on my old GTO with the Duplicolor wheel paint and clearcoat. They held up decently over the course of a season but needed a repaint by the end of the year. I didn't do much prep work other than scuffing them with a scotchbrite though. Maybe some primer may have helped but considering that they're just going to get beat up I just wanted them to look decent. This is the graphite color, which looks pretty close to "brake dust gray".

taken19

Thanks for the input. Yeah, I don't expect this to be a one time priject, but I thought it would be worth learning. For the price, I think I'll give it a try.

SouthernSon

Been tracking painted wheels for 3 years now with no touch up required so far. I used a paint prep with scotch brite pad to scuff up the surface, sprayed with flat black caliper paint and baked in the bright sunlight. I was skeptical about not using primer but it really is not necessary.

waddisme

I followed your process from another thread. Over a year of tracking and mine still have look great. The flat black works well. I actually used the airplane stripper for two of them, and just paintprepped/scotchbrited 2 of them. Absolutely zero difference iin wear/durability. I don't think you get anything from the extra work of stripping them, but at least now I know. Only problem with flat black, is you forget they are covered in brake dust until you pick them up. Good luck and post some pics.

shakedown067

I did my ZO6 autocross wheels. Only had them for a year, but the duplicolor wheel paint stood up well, even after the cheapo tire guys put on my 710s. Can't say I ever got them TOO hot, but they did get banged around by me hauling them from the backyard to the driveway to install once a month and I only ever got two very small chips in the paint. Was very impressed with the paint. Oh, and this was over flaking CHROME. I did sand the crap out of them though.

Kubs

Wheel paint sucks for track use. I bought a set of used CCW classics and they were different colors so I painted them a light silver color. this was after ONE 20 min session at Gingerman:





The fronts turned black. Not to mention the brake pad and rotor particles were STUCK in the paint and the wheel now had a very rough finish. The next time I took them apart I used high temp engine paint, but got similar results after several track days. The high temp stuff lasts a little longer thats all.

taken19

So it seems like mixed results, potentially due to prep work or other metallurgical issues. I think I will try caliper paint or high temp engine paint with a couple coats of clearcoat.

Thanks for all the replies! I will be sure to post pics once complete.

VetteDrmr

Painted my autocross wagon wheels with flat black engine paint, no problems over many years of autocross and DEs. No clearcoat or glossy paint. Brake dust is no real issue, and the flatness of the paint keeps things from getting embedded.

HTH, and have a good one,
Mike