Part Painting Detail Projects / Brian Mikami
Save your neglected parts from a life of boredom
Painting calipers and drums.
I used VHT caliper and drum spray. Others have used engine enamel
(high heat) with good results too. Remove your tires. Use any Brand X
degreaser (Simple Green is OK), scrub with a stiff brush (or hard
toothbrush) and rinse with water. When dry, scrub with lacquer thinner and a
rag. Wear gloves. This will flash dry and you're ready to paint. Aluminum
(tin) foil is the best for masking. It clings and shapes and is a breeze to
remove unlike masking tape and paper. Wrap the foil on the rotor exposing
the caliper. Old rags can be used behind on the strut/shock to prevent
overspray. Put the rags where you feel overspray may reach. The VHT is very
thin compared to enamel. Spray light coats and slowly build color, giving a
minute between coats to flash off. The rear drums can be prepped the same way. Using tiny pieces of
foil, wrap the 6 studs to prevent the paint from gumming up the threads.
Masking tape can be used on the plate edge behind the drum. Throw some rags
behind to mask from overspray. Spray lightly in a circular pattern, building
up coats. Remove the rags and foil and you're done. Use care when puting
your tire back on.
If you hit the caliper or drum, you'll chip the paint.
(additional picture courtesy of YotaTech member philly)
Since your rear tires are off, you may want to paint your rear links.
A nice color match detail. Prep the same way except use some medium steel
wool to degloss the painted links. Wipe off with a thinner rag and you're
set to spray. Here is where the foil masking makes it easy. Mask everything
wrapping with the foil. It clings and shapes well. The better job you do,
the less clean up or respraying black to hide your booboo's. It does take
some time, but it's faster and less work than taking apart the links to
paint...hardcore wrenchheads may disagree...go for it!
Yeah, you hardly see it,
but I still smile when I do.
My fender wells
and suspension parts still look new. I have not repainted them. I just use
degreaser, scrub, rinse and spray BrandX tire gloss (the clear shine stuff).
I don't off road but it still gets grimey and dirty. I have over 80K and I
try hard to maintain that new look. Anal? Yeah. I like taking care of my
stuff.
A small 'detail' I did was
to color match my center caps.
Clean the embossed
logo with a Qtip and alcohol. Using the factory color touch-up with the
'nail polish' brush, paint the logo. It's OK to get a little sloppy. You
need to 'fill' the logo coloring the edges too. When dry, (after all 4 caps
are done) wrap a small rag tightly around a flat stick (I used a popsicle
stick). Put some lacquer thinner on the rag/stick and lightly 'float' the
soaked rag/stick over the logo. Keep the rag tight, you want the thinner
only to touch the sloppy parts painted over the edges. Don't let the stick
go into the logo. It should leave only the paint in the recessed logo. These
caps are painted. Don't rub too hard or you'll remove silver. You're only
trying to remove the color you just put in. It should clean up nicely. You
can wax it after a week.
I like the Toyota logo..
all the intersecting ovals spell Toyota.
Now
how many of ya knew that? As for the grille emblem, it was boring. I got
this idea from some friends who's grilles caught my eye. Their's was red and
white...Japan's colors. You have to remove the grille to get to the emblem.
2 screws hold it on. The chrome part will separate from the grey backing.
Using 'sign shop' vinyl (non fading and weather proof) I put the blue on
first. Using a sharp Exacto knife, trace the shape and push in the vinyl. Oh
yeah, clean it with alcohol and a Qtip first. Make sure no specs of dirt are
there or it will telegraph right through the vinyl sticker. I placed the
white right over the 'half point' of the blue and trimmed. Put the chrome
trim on and presto. The vinyl sticker shown is over 2 years old and is still
shiney. An occasional cleaning with alcohol and Qtip keeps it fresh.
These things don't cost much, are simple to do and make my Runner look a
little different from the ton of Runners here. I enjoy keeping it clean (had
a detail business) been painting almost my whole life and don't keep
anything stock. Hope I gave ya some good ideas, or at least a good
laugh...oh yeah, use a spray mask (paint respirator) even when using rattle
cans. I figure I've been playing with paints over 35 years now, so now, even
spray paint really hurts my chest. Have fun.