I'm going to have the face of my 3pc rims powdercoated and I'm trying to find out if taking the rims apart is somthing I would be able to do beacause a local shop wants 100 per wheel to take apart and reassemble. I would have the tires taken off at a shop, but is there any tips or things to look for when taking the rims apart? Besides having the correct torque on the screws? Sealants?

 

I advise against it but:

a. Mark the wheels with tape so you can put them together the same way that they came apart.

b. Use Loctite.

c. Be conservative about torque. You have maybe 20 bolts/wheel so you don't have to get crazy with torque. You can make a judgement call based on the size of the bolt. Just use the same torque all around. The torque pattern is similar to lug nuts: star shaped. Top - bottom - left - right - shift - top - bottom - left - right...

 

Thanks, another thing I dont quite understand is if I unscrew all the screws on the face of the rim to take it off then why would the tire need to come of at all? Is the face secured onto the hub somewhere else besides just the face screws? Or maybe the pressure of the tire on the hub w/o the face support? If it matters I forgot to mention they are racing hart cr's

 

The outer portion of the wheel is not strong enough to support an inflated tire.

 

Thats what I figured. I'm pretty sure these rims can be taken apart and are not welded. But I guess there is only one way to find and have the tires taken off. I think i'll take one in to the shop first just to check so if they are welded at least I didnt have to pay x4

 

Well, I found out they are welded. What kind of options do I have now? Paint?

 

Take em to a wheel shop that knows what they are doing and have them paint/powdercoat whatever you want.

 

Would it work out well if they just taped the lips off? How is painting opposed to the powdercoat? Also, would they just spray over the existing coat?

 

My first sentence was I advise against it.

 

lol, Thanks for the heads up though, B/c if you didnt say anything I would have went and had all the tires taken off, then found out. Now Idk what to do, I dont think taping the lips off to paint will come out as nice as taking them apart.

 

i luv your username

 

lol thanks, I was also iRidesvt back when I had a Lightning.