Plastidip help
 

I bought the wheel kit (matte black) from dipyourcar.com to do a set of wheels to use for Autocross. The 18" base wheels I bought were used and had some rash and I wanted them black. When I received the wheels I sanded the rash areas, cleaned and dried the wheel with water. Then used the prep/cleaner supplied in the wheel kit then dried the wheels. I then applied one coat of Plastidip, allowed that to dry for 30 min and then put on another coat. By this time it was getting dark so I put the wheels up for the night. The next afternoon when I got home from work I checked the wheels and the look good, but they feel soft and rubbery. I was planning on stopping at 2 coats, but this just doesn't seem right. With much pressure I can leave finger prints, it's that soft.

1) will it cure over time?

2) do I just need to apply more coats?

Any suggestions would be very helpful. I've got my first Autocross event on Sunday, so I've got to get these finished.

It is basically "rubber". It is supposed to feel rubbery. That's what makes it so easy to peel off if you want to change it to something else.

I probably applied 6 or 7 coats to my emblems including the glossifier.

If I'm not mistaken, more coats will also aid in removal later.

I think I may have put to much on in the first 2 coats. I'm going to put a couple of thinner coats on and see what happens. I haven't started the fronts yes, but I'll start with thin coats on them this evening.


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I put 2 more coats on the rears and got 3 coats on the front. I going to put 2 more coats on the fronts in the morning and then mount the wheels tomorrow evening and go racing Sunday morning.

They look great but the do feel softer than I thought they would. This being my first Plastidip experience I guess I was expecting it to feel more like paint.

Never heard of that. Coats should be light then thick. 3-4 works best. What you might be describing though is like a fuzzy coat? That means you're to far away. Laying thick is ok/better long as it doesn't run.

And PS coats only take 10 minutes. If you use a hair dryer they take about 20 seconds!

What should the finished product feel like? I've been in the paint finishing (not automotive) industry for 30 years and got a good idea of how to apply coatings. It's not dry sprayed, I applied even wet coats. I guess I was expecting a hard slick finish. I can't imagine anyone using this on body parts, unless the glossifier gives it a slick finish, I would think this rubbery feel would be hard to keep clean.

I'm going to spray something else this morning while finishing up the front wheels to see if I get a different result. I'll use coats so thin that they are transparent and build up.

It is supposed to be rubbery.
This is not paint, it is basically a coating. If you spray your wheels black and get sick of the color, you can peel it right off and switch to something else. That is the whole point with PlastiDip.
Check out the videos on their site.

If you lay it thick and wet at the end and its warm out it will be pretty smooth. Normally it has a slight textured finish like 2000 grit sand paper. I've heard if you spray napthlene after you're done if it has texture it will melt the surface and be smooth as glass. Some people even take a rubber glove and rub the whole wheel to smooth it out. Its not paint though so I'll give you that. But it's very strong, resilient, doesn't chip and a good protector.

No see that's where you're doing it wrong. You want them thick! You want to lay them heavy which will give a smooth finish. Laying light will have texture. If you spray the wheel flat side down you can spray a lot and be ok. More liquidy the smoother the finish. Just be carefull of running.

Got the final 2 coats of the front wheels and let them dry for 5 hours, the rears had be finished the day before. They were done off the car and yesterday afternoon when I put the wheels on, being very careful, just about every lug nut hole the Plastidip got damaged. Probably just hadn't had time to really cure. Since these are my race wheels after today's race I'll remove the wheels and touch up the areas that are damaged. The the wheels will have 3 weeks to cure before my next event.

Hopefully they will do better then.

id get the duplicolor wheel paint and just do the black or graphite.