Vinyl & steering wheel painting

["Vath, Michael J." <mjvath@xxxx>]

Had some questions e-mailed to me. Thought I'd forward my silly, low-budget amateur method... it works really well and saves big dough over pro restorer$ and even over use of special vinyl dyes, etc:
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My newest favorite tool is RustOleum sandable (spraycan) primer. It'll stick to anything! Even plastics, pvc, the wifes windshield, etc.
Surface prep is a sparing & quick wipe with Acetone (Home Depot) and a paper towel (then blow-off the dust). The first coat is a mist...just a "fog" coat. Once the fog coat has gotten its bite (self-etching primer does actually seem to melt the plastic) then spray a heavier-light coat 'til covered.

Sand, smooth & repeat if necessary.

Once completely dry, a nice pearlescent paint would make a fair substitute for the clear portions. Plastic model paints may be easy, but for price & color selection variety, turn to your local DupliColor (etc) rack at PepBoys (etc). My dad used a Mitsubishi pearl color for the clear part of his '62 Grand Prix wheel. Looked real nice. For my 300C I used the gloss black (rust oleum spray) on the lower half and then the beige dashboard paint (plasticote 1566 I think) for the upper half.

3 notes (from my oh-so-limited experience): 

1. Mask carefully & only when fully dry! 
2. Try not to overlap different brand paints as they might fight each other & wrinkle.
3. When your smooting & painting is done, use many coats of clearcoat finish. I did my clearcoat (cheap plasticote clear) like the primer: fog coat 2 or 3 times very lightly, then regular coats 3 or 4 times. This gave my amateur job a reallllly nice shine and will help prevent scratches. Plus, your clearcoat will wrinkle the paint (if its a different brand) if you spray the first coat heavy.
4. Buy the expensive "light stick" masking tape so as not to peel-up new paint.

PS. I used the above primer method successfully to paint the vinyl interior/door panels & my exterior PVC house shutters using regular spraypaint. The key seems to be the fogcoats that are so sparse that they dry before causing surface wrinkling - yet somehow stop the spotting caused by a little spot of old armour-all. Allow each fog coat to dry before increasing coverage. You'll be able to paint damn near ANYTHING!



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From: D