I have a simple, easy and cheap method for masking wheels and tires when painting a car. I take a 32 gallon trash bag, open it up and cut a slit from 3/4 of the way down the middle on one side up to the opening in the bag(cut in the middle of the bag, not at the seam). Then with the slit facing inward, slide the bag down over the tire. The slit will clear the axle/suspension so you can pull the bag down to cover the whole tire. When you're done, just pull the bags off and throw them away, or if you're a broke-ass cheap skate like me, save them for future use. The bags are big enough that I'm even able to cover the big 16 inchers on my pick up. Yeah, I know, this ain't exactly rocket science, but it is a cheap time saver.
first time I painted a car I did that and when the laquer paint was almost dry I moved one of the bags and the already dry paint flaked off the plastic and the static electricity in the body sucked all those little flakes right into the paint. next time I grounded the body and used cloth to cover the wheels. Paul
That's happened to us too,Paul....To avoid it,we use any heavy-type plastic wrap that will cling to itself....just before removing wrap with overspray,layer one more thin skin over it and that traps the flakes that peel off and attract to paint tack....works!
It's not flakes from masking the wheels that gets me. It's the damned moth that flopped around before he died stuck to the center of the hood that pisses me off.
I mask the wheel openings completely off, along with all the jambs. Less dirt in your paint that way.
you can also do it with a piece of thin cardboard about 6-8" wide and long enought to go around the circumference of the rim. just hold it around the edge of the wheel taped in a circle. then paint the wheel. then you can move it to the next one and do it again. take the tape off and hang it on the wall for the next set that needs paint.
The Jalopy Journal
