Refinshing Rostyles

I'm getting ready to refinish my Rostyles. Mine are in basically good condition, just faded with the silver generally wearing off. I dug around the archieves for awhile and still had a few unanswered questions.

1) I'll need to hire out the paint removal. I'm concerned about sandblasting leaving a textured finish. Would a chemical stripping be better or a different type of blasting media? If I go the chem strip route, what kind of surface prep would they need to get the paint to adhere?

2) For $ reasons, I plan to paint them myself. It seems to make sense to spray the black first, mask and spray the silver. Are there any secrets to prevent the paint from lifting when removing the tape afterwards?

3) Can a person with reasonable skill and patience do a respectable, long lasting job with rattle can spray cans, or would I be better off giving them to a pro? I got an estimate from a body shop to paint and clear coat them. His estimate was $3-400 (hence question 2). I almost bought a set someone else had refinished but one of them had some curb damage.

Thanks - I've learned alot from you folks.

Paul, we refinished my Rostyles and they came out great. I love them and think they are a great looking wheel. I went to the store and got two can of Red Devil lye. We soaked them in a small drum for a day and got most of the paint off. I finished them in the bead blast cabinet. I don't see why you couldn't use a good quality paint stripper and get the same results. Messy, but it should work.
I painted the rims with Platikote bright silver and Plastikote low gloss black engine enamel. Black first then the silver. We used the plastic mask. The masks aren't the best way, it's hard to avoid a little overspray. But, they came out nice and have held up well.

Victoria British or Moss sells a paint mask.

I did mine, and they came out very well. I did the silver first, then black. From what I've heard the Moss paint mask isn't very good, so I masked the areas to be black with painters tape. Check out this website for more info:

http://mg.entech.com/paint%20wheels.htm

Mine were in very poor condition, inside and outside. Someone had used fixa-flat at some time. I had mine sandblasted and did the rattle can spray myself with masking tape. I taped and painted fast, so that I could remove the tape right away. Had no problems and I couldn’t believe how good they turned out with the new rings and center caps. They probably not show quality but they do look good.

I wouldn't spend a dollar on the masks. Tape works better, and it's far cheaper. I've heard... don't quote me on this... that it's better to paint the silver first, then mask it, then the black, cause you can get a better, smoother masking job.

You may be able to heat clean them. They can clean engine blocks that way, but not sure about a set of rims.

This is actually a fun project, which I've done many times with VG results. Unless you're going for concours results, I would simply make sure that the wheels are COMPLETELY free of grease, dirt etc. and spray them with thin coats. The wheel mask is great but I have had to "tack" it down in places using small rolled masking tape on the back. As for the silver, I don't use it because I've never had it come out exactly right. Recommend an appropriate shade of light gray, but this is a taste thing. I'm sure there is a close color choice listed somehwere if you dig, but I just estimate on this part. A slight overspray is barely noticeable and even looks OK! Have fun!

I used the mask, but if I was doing it again I wouldn't bother with it. It seemed to be more trouble than it was worth as it did not fit exactly right. I spent more time fine tuning it with masking tape than it would have taken to use just the tape.

This is one of those projects that you can do yourself and really see some good results if you take your time and are careful.

For the silver... I've had good luck with "wheel silver" paint available at yer local chain place... it's got more gray in it, and it's tough.

A while back, I saw an add from the MGOC in England for a set of paint masks for the rostyle wheels. The stuff was a peel and stick, single use product. FWIW

I have refinished many wheels both rostyle, and wires. I do it two ways . One is to have them bead blasted, primer with Dupont Vari Prime, paint with 3 part enamel, and clear coat. On that job I use masking tape. The finish will last for years. My Midget has been done over 15 years now and they still look like new. That job cost $400. The other way is to leave the tires on, wire brush them with a body grinder, paint them with rattle can using the mask. That job last a year or maybe two, cost $100. The point is you can waist your time and money and go the rattle can rought, or do it right and be done with it. I can assure you if you drive your car the rattle can will not hold up. I paint the whole wheel silver then mask off the silver and paint the black. As soon as I'm finished putting the black on I take the tape off.

The proper MG sells those adhesive masks but in a kit which is pricey (paint and everything). I do not know if they will just sell the masks.

Paul: I had good success with paint removal using commercially available oven cleaner from the grocery store. It takes off grease and paint in one fell swoop. Before repainting, you may wish to rinse them with a vinegar solution to neutralize the remover. AL Bradley

I had mine sand-blasted, cleaned them up really good then put about 3 coats of Krylon sandable primer. I used a product called "Hammerite," it's a subdued sliver-grey, for the finish color. I didn't mess with the black part, I like the way they look and I'm not a purist. If you sand-blast, make sure you smooth off the bead part of the wheel to avoid leaks.