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So when I bought my EM2 a while back, the wheels needed touching up. 17" aftermarket wheels, I don't know the brand. They were black with red trim. I didn't like the red much at all, so when I gathering supplies to touch up the paint I went to Advance Auto and bought what I thought was the glossiest paint in the store--Duplicolor Black Acrylic Enamel- In gloss black. So I go home and take the wheels off the car, clean them very extensively, and paint a few coats on them, taking time to do a great job. I even coated the wheels with Duplicolor clear coat in an effort to make them even shinier.

Well, to make a long story short, the paint went on glossy black and wet, and dried flat black--like most paints I've used.

So my question to y'all is-- Is there a black paint for wheels that is truly glossy when dry?

I would love to get pics of my EM2 uploaded, but my work schedule has gotten in the way-- plus the rain here in NC. I'll get pics soon. But I don't think they're necessary for this thread.

I hope I can get some informative replies soon.

Thanks for reading!

 
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The gloss will come from the clearcoat. Apply a few more layers of clearcoat and you'll notice a difference.

 
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Alright man, maybe I messed up on that part. I'll just start over completely I think. I may just sand the wheels down and repaint them, and just lay the clear coat on them. Maybe it'll help? I'll try to get pics soon once the rain goes away and I manage to wash the car.

Thanks for the quick reply.

 
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did you shake the can enough and keep shaking it every 30 seconds.

 
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you need to apply a medium wet coat as the final coat of paint otherwise any paint will dry flat. same goes for clear coat. you also need to wetsand or polish with rubbing compound (meguiars ultimate is good) to bring out the shine.

 
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Dude, where in NC are you?

 
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The Hickory region.

As for the other posts, yes I shook the can for a full minute, and then shook it intermittently while painting. However, I did not apply a heavy wet coat the last time, all coats were mostly just dustings/light coats. I did not polish the wheels after clear coating, but I did wax them with car wax. They aren't necesarily flat black, more of an eggshell or satin. I just want them to be as glossy as the body of the car

 
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I've used the dupli color gloss black spray to spray rims before, and they stayed glossy

But most of your gloss is going to come from clear coat

 
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You might want to practice on a different surface that is flat and easier to work with. It sounds like the problem is how you sprayed. Paint has to run together to form a coating that levels out. If you used a gloss paint and the finish is not glossy then the paint was drying too much as you sprayed and did not flow out to a smooth layer. Wet sanding and polishing should smooth it out and give you a gloss.

Painting wheels is hard. Because of all the angles and surfaces it is difficult to get a smooth finish and wet sanding or polishing without taking too much paint off the edges is almost impossible. Since you waxed the wheels be sure to strip it off before painting. Gloss black paint should be glossy by itself, the clear coat gives it depth and gloss.

As I said, practice on something else until you have the finish you want.