And by good I mean it doesn't look hideous and it won't get messed up over time.

Is there any way to make that happen? Or will I have to take them to a shop and throw down like $300?

 

i would clean em real good with brake cleaner unless they have a protective coating...then i would use a high temp paint from dupli color or autozone has some high temp paints that i used on my rims and engine when i rebuilt it in my truck. but everybody is different,,,hell powdercoating aint too expensive and they can make it glossy.

 

I have seen some really good results with Duplicolor. Just properly prep the wheels yourself.

 

DO NOT USE DUPLI COLOR! Its junk. Dupli is good for calipers and thats it. I dont have time to tell you exactly how to paint rims but i have done 5 sets. And one was with dupli and it chipped really easy. Ok so you want it cheap and easy. Well hit up car quest and get a one stage paint that has paint and clear in it. Thats easy right. Well now here comes the hard part. Since your not putting a negative charge on these rims, (powder coating) You have to sand these rims down to the metal if you want long lasting results. You could just go through the clear and leave the paint and go over that. But idk i recommend getting to the metal. Once all 4 rims are sanded. Make sure you buy the special cleaner to prep the surface before painting. And you need a paint gun of coarse and then you mix your paint and start shooting. You need to do 5-6 coats. Very LIGHT coats at a time. 5-6 coat needs to be layed pretty heavy to have a glossy look. When your done i'd let them sit for 48hours easy. After that mount them so carefully as if someone had a gun to your head. For the next month you need to be as paranoid as possible about curbs and driving close to others. Paint cures for 30 days. Including duplicolor junk. Also Rims do not get that hot, you dont need a high temp paint.

 

ive painted two sets of rims now and have hardly had any chips or anything.
i used actual rim paint from canadian tire. i forget what brand. just sand the rims lightly but make sure you sand everywhere and sand evenly. tape off the tire and valve stem. then spray LIGHT coats. a lot of light coats are better than a few thick coats. and if your not going matte then id definitely do clear coats for shine and protection. i would use dupli color's (i think) engine enamel. works the best. do your first clear coat pretty thick. but not too thick that it runs, and then do like 2 more light coats.

 

Before you paint them make sure you prep them good

 

So how many hours and how much money would it cost me total to do this myself?

 

cost: $50. not even

time: if you keep on it and dont take long breaks to watch tv like i did, probably 4 hours

 

Do you have pics of yours?

 

I used PlastiDip on mine and they turned out real good. Make sure you clean them good and used light even coats. I bought some cans from Lowes. They're fairly cheap.