Me and the wife really liked how the induction wheels looked but we decided to go for FSD instead. So I was tasked with making painting the Gemini wheels to 'match'. I decided to go for a metallic black with a glossy look. I'm pretty satisfied with how it turned out!
I was as able to achieve this look for under $50. There's enough plasti dip to spare to black out the outer rim + tesla logos(future project).
I can share more details about the plasti dip process if requested!
Here is the quick guide!
The youtube link below is what I used as a guide. It is almost exactly the same as what I did.
Youtube Guide: www
.youtube.com/
watch?v=HWs5xjB0q-U
I added 4 layers of luxury metal coat, plus one even coat of glossifier. I highly recommend the use of a trigger handle if you're doing multiple coats, it just really helps with accuracy, evenness, and most importantly save your fingers. I don't think its possible to do all 4-5 coats without that handle, unless you've been plasti dipping without them for a long time.
Here is the kit I used, it's the cheapest I could find and it ships free + no tax(I'm in TX, idk if it will have tax to other states).
Plasti Dip Kit: www
.awarehousefull.com/
plasti-dip-luxury-color-gloss-rim-kit-choice-of-base-color-with-glossifier/
Prep:
1. Remove them from the wheels, I used a watered down solution of Dawn dishwashing soap to clean it, make sure to rinse out the soap well. The wheels have really narrow crevices that can take some time to dry, make sure that there are NO water droplets before you start(you don't want them in there, trust me).
2. While you wait for your wheels to dry, start shaking two cans to get them ready. I'm not sure as to what the ideal "shake time" is but I do it for at 2-5 mins or more.
3. Use cardboard/plastic bags to cover up the ground where you'll be painting.
if you've never plasti dipped before, try to do practice on something else, don't rush it! Practice with the back/rear emblems, it's easy cleanup and you can retry easily if you mess up. This is not my first time plasti dipping, so I was able to avoid many of my previous mistakes.
Painting:
1. For new cans, do a couple of test sprays. Make sure that it sprays well(nozzle isn't malfunctioning). I had an issue from one of my nozzles and it had large lumps of plasti dip that would splatter after I stop spraying. I swapped it with the nozzle that didn't have the issue and it fixed that. If this happens, DO NOT try to take the plasti dip lump off the wheels. Try to spray a layer on top of it to "flat it out" while it's still wet(carefully).
2. Follow the plasti dip guide I included above.
3. I recommend one even coat of the glossifier. I think it will be too glossy if you do more than one coat...
4. Once you are satisfied, I recommend leaving them to dry overnight before you drive around to be safe.
Tips:
- Don't be afraid to do thick coats, just make sure you're not painting over a wet spot repeatedly(it will drip!). Slow and steady movement is the key. If your coats are too thin for each layer, you will end up with a grainy/rough feeling paint.
- There are pretty narrow spots that is kind of hard to reach, since the wheels are light and easy to move around, rotate it as you paint! It's super convenient compared to a really heavy wheel.
This process took about 2-3 hours(excluding prep time), it was MUCH easier since we can easily remove the covers from the wheels for painting.
I'll update this guide if I come up with anything else! Happy Painting!!
