Busting Chrome off of Clad Wheels

[JMelcher]

Has anyone tried breaking the chrome cladding off of the stock chrome-clad wheels? I've got the factory wheels collecting dust in a barn and was curious if the platic could be broken off and painted black.



I'm curious to see what my truck look like w/ black wheels.

 

[BHanna]

I doubt you could do that without gouging up the metal underneath. If you really want to paint them black, why not just scuff them with some 400 grit sandpaper or a scotchbrite pad?

 

[JMelcher]

You think that the paint would stick alright? I thought about doing that, but wasn't sure if the paint would hold up to rock chips, making a black wheel with chips of chrome showing through.

 

[Nate]

I wonder if you could sandblast them to get them roughed up enough?

 

[JMelcher]

I though about that too, didn't know if sandblasting would make them too rough, I would kind of like them to be glossy black. . .



I do have access to my father-in-laws sandblaster though.

 

[Matt400]

If you want black wheels another idea would be to buy 3 spare wheels to match your spare. Probably can find them now in salvage yards from wrecks.

 

[JMelcher]

. . . or find three guys with chrome clad wheels that want to swap their spare wheel for one of my chrome ones - I'm trying to do this as cheaply as possibly, 'cause if it looks dumb, my Eagle Alloys are going back on.

 

[Turbo Tim 1]

You can get different grades of blasting media to get the required texture. Even if you used a coarse media you could then use a filler primer to smooth things back out.

 

[MickeyMiller]

I also would like a set of black steel wheels. I like the idea of removing the chrome cladding... it looks to me like an add on decorative piece not structural, adds weight, and collects mud. Does anyone know how well the chrome wheels balance? My tire dealer had a hard time balancing a 315/70 on the steel spare, but the spare is narrower than the chrome or aluminum wheels.

 

[Matt400]

. . . or find three guys with chrome clad wheels that want to swap their spare wheel for one of my chrome ones

Thats thinking, who wouldn't want a 5th matching wheel!?