wheelhub paint

[markcoc]

Does anyone know what is a good spray can paint to use on wheel hubs?
I tried Dupli-color and VHT wheel paints and both of them just flake off! I used their prep and primers yet it acts like the paint is brittle and not sticking to the primer!!! The primer adheres good but the paint does not seem to adhere to the primmer !! I have emailed VHT but have gotten no response. Apparently they have my money and don't care that their product is JUNK!!!!!

[exeric]

I don't want to sound like an elitist but the only spray can paint I use is high heat spray paint on exhaust parts, and cylinders. If you want a paint finish to hold up, you have to use a quality automotive paint. I bought a gallon of duPont black enamel 2 years ago and still have a half a gallon left and I have painted lots of stuff. I like the basic single stage enamel and use a generic hardener. It looks great, and original, and wears like iron. If you go to an automotive paint store, they will be able to give you what you need. Of course you will also need a compressor, and a spray gun but you can go the cheap route and get a Harbor Frieght jamb gun, or gravity feed gun for less than $20. I don't know how deep you want to go into doing your own painting, but I know you will save a lot of money over the years by doing your own work, and you get the satisfaction of doing it yourself. I will stress, that you should wear a respirator and take common sense precautions when using that stuff. I know this is more than you wanted to hear, but don't go the powder coat route, and if you can spare a few bucks, become your own painter.

[diesel55]

Hello WALMART .99 cent rattle can . bead blast part .spray on until dripping /let dry. the best

[fillibuster]

Hello WALMART .99 cent rattle can . bead blast part .spray on until dripping /let dry. the best

I was flunking out on ANY kind of paint, regardless of what I paid for! Hired jobs were too soft (doesn't anybody use hardener?), and I couldn't even get rattle-can paint to cooperate. Then a friend told me that top coat won't stick well to primer that is more than a day old. Duhh!! .... still don't trust myself!

[portagepan]

I have to admit, that after a similar flaking issue, I went the powdercoat route on mine, and never looked back. If the next owner (after I die) wants to paint 'em, so be it. At least they will be in excellent condition. Mike

[exeric]

I had some rims and hubs black powdercoated and it all looked fine, and held up quite well. However, powdercoating is expensive and for the same money I could have bought a gallon of automotive paint, and all the expendables needed. Like I said, that gallon of paint I did buy has gone a long way and there is still plenty left. People can do whatever they want, or can afford but I can tell you for a fact that H-D, and Indian did not use foofoo can paint on their bikes. When it comes to paint, you get the results you pay for, and the work you do on a part before you paint.

[portagepan]

The powder coating wasn't expensive. But stripping it after the flaking paint was a slow pain in the a$$. Mike

[sirhrmechanic]

Check your local auto parts stores for SEM paints. They make a good self-etching primer and a good classic black enamel. Avoid their "high heat" paint as it's worthless. But the grey or black self-etch is actually good stuff. Trick with rattlecan paint... thin coats!!!! 3-4 thin coats put on over an afternoon way better than glopping it on. For a hub, I tie on several wires, so I can hang in many directions as I paint. Otherwise, you will end up with missed spots. Never fails.

For 'hardware store' paint, Krylon is very good. Rustoleum or hardware store brands are generally useless. Again, all about thin coats.

Cheers,

Sirhr

[kg993]

I use enamel with hardener and like Eric said a gallon goes a long way. If I don't want to mix paint for a small part but want excellent results from a rattle can I use Plastikote brand epoxy paint, then bake it or use a heat lamp. And Sirhr is right about several light coats. With this paint on a warm day I give it 10 to 15 minutes between coats. Practice a little on a piece of sheetmetal or pipe standing straight up to see how much paint,how far away and how long between coats to get a perfect gloss and guarantee no runs. I've used other brands, one(I can't remember now witch one)was just worthless.

[Sidehacker]

Anything black I powder and it's like anything else good preparation is 80% of the battle. The other 20% is deciding how much gloss you should use. If you want your black parts to look the closest to painted frames and brackets typically you want to use between 40 and 60 percent gloss. If I'm painting a Linkert I use a flatter black and use 20% gloss. On a Linkert you really can't tell once the bike has been run except that gasoline will have little or no effect on it. But once again, with something like a Linkert you must take great care with taping and pluging off all the passages and surfaces that you don't want coated. Luckily my best friend owns a professional powdercoating business and he has given me the benefit of all his knowledge he has collected over the years. We have tried the home units that you buy at harbor freight with not as good success .
People who look for a powder coater by how much they charge are not going to have a happy experience. And a lot of people will come in and say do the frame in gloss black, which would be a 80 to 100% gloss which give the part a plastic or fake look that everyone says doesn't look right. Powder has come a long way in the last twenty years and you can definitely get a coating that holds up way better than paint ( for frames and brackets and small parts only, no sheet metal ) and is hard to tell that it isn't paint. It's like anything in life you can't just say something is wrong just cause you had a bad experience. You need to research it and fine out in what circumstances you can use it to come up with a better overall product. There are no paints made today that are exactly like they were made eighty years ago. And who would put a bike together without useing locktite or many of the high tech sealers that we have today . I understand the purest, but I have found that the strictest of purest use modern chemicals on antique bikes . Anyone who want to know of my friends shop and see how they can use powder to the best of its ability in antique settings can contact me in private messages. I don't feel right giving out his name in this post. Then it's like tring to make a buck. And that's not what I want to convey here.
I usually reread these before posting but I am dead tired, so excuse any mistakes. FNA Keith

[Davestune]

I use automotive single stage paint, works great on hubs
I mix my paint for a lower gloss by the way or you could use satin finish

[camsaure]

For small parts that you want to paint with automotive paint or paint/hardener there is always those Preval sprayers. It is a small glass jar and a pressurized rattle can type top you screw on the jar. You do have to thin the paint a bit more then you would with a regular paint sprayer. But they do spray out several jar full of paint before running out of pressure. Saves a lot of cleanup for the really small jobs. You should be able to find them at Napa or paint supply stores.

[RichO]

I have had great results with Rustolum black epoxy refrigerator paint over their heavy duty gray sandable primer for years. I've used it on frames, forks, even on gas tanks among other parts. It is gas resistant when given time to cure. It also comes in Almond and White. Hence some of my two toned tan and black paint schemes. Prep is 90% of a good paint job.

[Rubone]

Hubs were gloss, not satin finish, the same as all the black parts on an H-D.

[exeric]

I've heard many people talk about dulling black paint to look authentic. As Robbie said, Harley-Davidson used gloss black. It may not have always come out glossy due to production factors, but they sure didn't dull it down on purpose.