has anyone painted there bezel rings? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

embryoguy@mac.com · 10-11-2009, 01:35 PM

is possible to take off the bezel rings and paint it? has anyone attempted this?

Bob O · 10-11-2009, 02:19 PM

I haven't painted the bezel rings yet but am going to. All the info you need on painting them should be on my earlier post about painting the door pulls...except how to remove the bezel! lol. And THAT I can't tell you yet since I haven't done it. But, afaik, they can be removed and either painted or replaced.

Here's a link to the thread: http://986forum.com/forums/showthread.php?p=193438#post193438

If you're wanting some color other than the alumina look I can't help you with any of that info about paint colors/formulas etc . sorry.

Bob

Wingnut2u · 10-11-2009, 05:44 PM

Here is what I have done with mine

Frodo · 10-11-2009, 05:49 PM

Hey Wingnut2u, you wanna describe your technique on that project? That looks great!

Wingnut2u · 10-11-2009, 06:05 PM

I bought a set of trim rings off eBay and had those painted. They are just an overlay that uses 3m tape to hold them in place. I liked that idea better than trying to dismantle the gauge bezels and it is totally reversible.

The center console is easily removable for painting.

The center dash strips were a PITA to remove. For those you will have to buy replacement pieces as you will damage the original pieces during removal.

I was having some bodywork done on the car so I had the body shop paint all of the pieces at the same time while they were painting my front bumper.

I must say that the pictures do not do it justice. I am very pleased with the outcome and it really gave the car a much more updated appearance

Frodo · 10-11-2009, 06:19 PM

Yeah, cool, but the center windscreen "PORSCHE"...is that a decal or what? If it's a decal, where'd you get it?

Wingnut2u · 10-11-2009, 07:14 PM

decal is an eBay special, it is also reflective show it shows up well at night

djomlas · 10-11-2009, 07:54 PM

i painted mine silver...
check out some pics in my signature..

Frodo · 10-12-2009, 04:54 AM

Hey DJ, if memory serves, you sold your Box, Right?

embryoguy@mac.com · 10-14-2009, 01:36 PM

thanks everyone for the responses. was it difficult to remove the bezel to paint? instead of 100$ for an aluminium one i figure i can do it for the cost of a spray can.

CJ_Boxster · 10-14-2009, 01:55 PM

The OEM rings do not come off, While they do look like they snap on and off, I assure you they are molded on to the housing. I remove the entire gauge cluster, then removed the cover and used masking tape to cover all the areas & clear lenses and painted mine silver.

embryoguy@mac.com · 10-14-2009, 02:03 PM

ok thanks cj for the info. i might just end up buying the upgrade than. i didnt want to spend 100 for it but it seems that its the only way for me. i m not mechanically inclined to take out the cluster.

THANK YOU everyone for the info. !

embryoguy@mac.com · 10-14-2009, 02:12 PM

ok thanks cj for the info. i might just end up buying the upgrade than. i didnt want to spend 100 for it but it seems that its the only way for me. i m not mechanically inclined to take out the cluster.

THANK YOU everyone for the info. !

CJ_Boxster · 10-14-2009, 02:16 PM

Just keep this in mind, you will feel alittle ripped off when they arrive in the mail, as anyone who has paid 100 for them and ask them there first reaction once they opened the box they were shipped in lol. They look nice once they are on the car but man... $100 for 3 stamped rings willl hurt once you see how simple they are.

Wingnut2u · 10-15-2009, 03:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CJ_Boxster

Just keep this in mind, you will feel alittle ripped off when they arrive in the mail, as anyone who has paid 100 for them and ask them there first reaction once they opened the box they were shipped in lol. They look nice once they are on the car but man... $100 for 3 stamped rings willl hurt once you see how simple they are.

^^^^ +1

but I got over it once I installed the painted rings

embryoguy@mac.com · 10-15-2009, 01:36 PM

cj, thats why i posted this thread. i was hoping that there was a cheaper alternative that i could do. maybe i can hand paint it ! haha, if i screw it up than i can suck it up and spend the 100 for the real rings.

Gougoushu · 10-16-2009, 06:01 AM

Looks to me like you can mask very carefully & thoroughly, then spray in place w light coats. You can avoid tedious stretching and taping by pre-making some custom masking tape circles & arcs, by placing wide masking tape onto a cutting surface, then cutting it using soupcans, etc. that are close to the exact diameter of the instrument faces.

Wingnut2u · 10-16-2009, 06:29 AM

This is just my opinion.

First off this is a Porshce not a Miata or a Honda so why would you want a potentially second rate paint job on the trim rings. Leave that for the little kid ricers. Second what are you going to do if your rattle can paint job looks like crap or you get overspray on the instrument panel cover. How are you going to get the paint off and how much time and money is it going to cost you to fix it. Time is money, how much is your time worth? So again, how much time is it going to take to pull the instrument panel, mask it, paint and reinstall and as I mentioned before what happens if you don't like the way that it looks?

$100 is steep for 3 rings but look at it this way, time to paint 5 minutes, time to install 5 minutes, you can probably do it faster than that, and it is fully reversible with no damage to the car. Plus, I can always sell the rings to someone else at a later date if I change my mind. To me the risk/reward wasn't worth it. I ponied up the $$$ and bought the rings and in hindsight I still think it was the right decision.

I am all for minimizing costs whenever possible but I just don't think this is one of those times. Just my $.02

embryoguy@mac.com · 10-16-2009, 10:56 AM

good point wing.