Advice needed for coating wheels

[CarolinasFinestDetailing]

Airbrush is ideal for wheels. Saves a ton of time and makes even application in intricate areas a breeze. They can be had for cheap at Harbor Freight.

If you don't want to mess with spraying, then simply wrapping a microfiber suede cloth around your (gloved) finger can be a simple and effective way to get into tighter areas by hand.

Very simple... practice with some water to determine the ideal settings to produce a nice flow of product without overdoing it.

It has been a while since I have sprayed wheels, but I believe we were typically around 25 PSI.

As always, Zach hit the head of the nail perfectly. Airbrushing wheels is absolutely amazing once you get used to it. I started practicing with water, then moved to Opti Seal years ago before spraying coatings. Airbrush is also great for honeycomb sale grilles, wheel wells, and many other areas.

[evo77]

Very simple... practice with some water to determine the ideal settings to produce a nice flow of product without overdoing it.

It has been a while since I have sprayed wheels, but I believe we were typically around 25 PSI.

Thanks Zach. Is there any issues with a lot of overspray?

[Desertnate]

Thank you all for the input.

The sponge I used aren't quite as dense as the applicators discussed here, but I have a feeling I'd run into the same problems with absorption. My next attempt will probably include wrapping the sponge in a glove or sandwich bag and then encasing that with the suede cloth. Simply folding the suede cloths isn't a bad idea either. I might go to a fabric store to see if they sell the material and I'll cut up larger squares that could be custom sized to my needs.

The paint sprayer is a novel idea, but how does it work when using only a few ml's or product? I think I used abour 7~8ml's total including what was absorbed into the applicator.

[RaskyR1]

Thanks Zach. Is there any issues with a lot of overspray?

IMO, yes.

I would suggest spraying them in a different area or bagging off the car. IME coatings don't produce over spray quite like painting, but I have seen overspray on the glass when I was pulling the vehicle out at night. This was on a job where the wheels were off the car, sprayed (DLUX) in the same closed room (25' x 25'), but spraying was away from the vehicle. The surface still felt smooth to the touch but there was a visible film on the glass surface, so I would assume the paint on the car had it as well. I know a few other detailers have started noticing this now too. I know I've seen some people spraying wheels on the car, outdoors, with noticeable wind, so I can only imagine what those cars were like. I've limited my spraying of coatings now and choose to do hand application whenever possible. When spraying is require things are masked off and car is bagged.

My applicators will vary depending on the coating used, but foam, or MF covered foam work well IMO.


Just my $.02

[evo77]

IMO, yes.

I would suggest spraying them in a different area or bagging off the car. IME coatings don't produce over spray quite like painting, but I have seen overspray on the glass when I was pulling the vehicle out at night. This was on a job where the wheels were off the car, sprayed (DLUX) in the same closed room (25' x 25'), but spraying was away from the vehicle. The surface still felt smooth to the touch but there was a visible film on the glass surface, so I would assume the paint on the car had it as well. I know a few other detailers have started noticing this now too. I know I've seen some people spraying wheels on the car, outdoors, with noticeable wind, so I can only imagine what those cars were like. I've limited my spraying of coatings now and choose to do hand application whenever possible. When spraying is require things are masked off and car is bagged.

My applicators will vary depending on the coating used, but foam, or MF covered foam work well IMO.


Just my $.02

Great info, thank you.

Luckily the set of wheels on both of our vehicles don't have intricate designs so application of the CQUK with the suede applicator folded up worked good. Some spokes were tight but manageable. I suppose applying by airbrush in those tight areas would make easier/quicker work but overspray would something to consider.

[BudgetPlan1]

Things like foam tip cleaning swabs for inkjet printers work well too.