Plasti dip is undeniably the most popular temporary car coating. It can be used on wheels and bumpers. Don’t be surprised when you come across an entire car finished with plasti dip. It’s a sprayable formula that dries into rubber.
Plasti dip is available in many colors and is easy to install/uninstall. If you are working on your wheels, it’s usually a good idea to enhance the finish of the lug nuts. Plasti dip holds up well on wheels. But will it work on lug nuts?
It’s possible to plasti dip lug nuts, but the coating will not last. The reason plasti dip will not hold up on lug nuts is that when removing or installing wheels, you have to tighten or loosen the lug nuts.
As you torque the lug nuts, the pressure exerted is often more than the plasti dip can withstand. It, therefore, results in the peeling or scratching of the plasti dip.
How Can I Make Plasti Dip Last on Lug Nuts?
Plasti dip can’t hold up on lug nuts unless you will never remove the wheels from your car, which is also impractical because tires have to be rotated every six months.
If you are interested in making plasti dip last on lug nuts, you can buy a can of plasti dip and spray them every time you tighten the lug nuts. This means that you will have to spray the lug nuts when they are on the wheels.
You can cover the surrounding area with a piece of paper shaped like a cone. This method will ensure your lug nuts are always covered in plasti dip. However, it’s a bit hectic because it’s a procedure that has to be done regularly.
How to Plasti Dip Lug Nuts?
As mentioned earlier, plasti dip is one of the few coatings that’s easy to apply, even if you don’t have any professional painting skills or experience.
When plasti dipping lug nuts, you only need to clean the top surface of the lug nuts and spray the plasti dip. Ensure you don’t get the coating inside the nuts since that can lead to fitting issues when tightening.
The above option entails plasti dipping lug nuts that have been removed from the wheels. The other option is to cover the surrounding areas and spray the lug nuts when they have already been tightened.
This is the most practical method because when you plasti dip lug nuts before installation, the coating can be peeled off when you are torquing the lug nuts. It’s better to do it after. That’s the only way it will last.
Plasti Dipping Lug Nuts Alternatives
Because of the conditions, lug nuts are exposed to, plasti dip isn’t the ideal coating to use on such a component. If you are interested in coloring your lug nuts, there is one excellent alternative: get a lug nut cover.
Painting, powder-coating, and vinyl wrapping will also be exposed to the same effects as plasti dip. Any coating applied over a lug nut will be damaged when the nuts are tightened. This is unavoidable.
To get long-term results, you should invest in lug nut covers. These days, lug nut covers are available in various colors and designs.
You can find covers that match your car’s wheels or other parts. Lug nut covers are cheap, and they are an easy way for you to transform the look of your wheels. Instead of spraying plasti dip every time you remove the lug nuts, invest in a set of nut caps/covers.
Should You Plasti Dip Wheels and Lug Nuts?
If you are spraying plasti dip on your wheels, you may also consider spraying the lug nuts to get a uniform finish on the entire wheel.
However, spraying plasti dip on lug nuts is not a good idea because the finish will be scraped off when you put a socket on them.
If you are dipping the wheels, it’s best to leave the lug nuts in their initial color, whether chrome or black. If you need to improve the aesthetics of the lug nuts, you can buy covers for them. In such a scenario, only plasti dip the wheels and find another solution for the lugs.
What If You Hand-Tighten the Plasti Dipped Lug Nuts?
You will need an impact gun or a wrench to torque lug nuts. Though handy, these tools are the main culprits that will scrape the plasti dip.
The other option that car owners may consider is to hand-tighten the lug nuts, so they don’t apply too much pressure to the plasti dip. This is not recommended. Aesthetics shouldn’t be prioritized over safety.
When you tighten lug nuts by hand, you can preserve the finish of the plasti dip. But the lug nuts may be loose, and that’s a significant risk.
Loose lug nuts can cause the wheel to come off when driving. As tempting as it may be, you are better off scratching the lug nuts but ensuring they are properly torqued.
Is Plasti Dipping Lug Nuts a Good Idea?
Absolutely not. Plasti dipping wheels or a bumper is okay. But when it comes to lug nuts, a torque wrench will peel all the plasti dip on the surface. From a professional point of view, plasti dipping lug nuts isn’t such a brilliant idea. It’s a waste of time.
Because when you dip the lug nuts, the first time you will be tightening them on the wheels, they will scratch. You can touch them up after. But this is the same thing you will be doing whenever you remove the wheels.
If you don’t remove the wheels regularly, plasti dip can serve you for a while. But in the long run, you are better off using your regular lug nuts, whether they are chromed or not. You can buy black lug nuts or get some lug nut covers. These will offer a long-term solution.
What If the Plasti Dip is Applied by a Professional?
Unlike paint or powder coat which can fail when applied incorrectly, plasti dip on lug nuts will come off even if the manufacturers themselves apply it. This issue isn’t affected by technique.
If the lug nuts were to be tightened through another method that doesn’t require force and pressure, the plasti dip would last.
But since pressure ought to be exerted for the wheels to be tightened, it doesn’t matter the level of expertise used in applying the plasti dip.
Don’t waste your money paying someone to dip your lug nuts. It will not hold up. It’s better to spray and touch them yourself whenever it gets scratched.
Will Plasti Dip Make It Difficult for a Wrench to Fit In?
Plasti dip is just like paint. It doesn’t add a lot of thickness to the walls of lug nuts to the point that it won’t fit a typical wrench.
However, when you spray thick coats of plasti dip, it can be thicker for a wrench to fit. Three or four coats would be enough when spraying plasti dip on lug nuts.
Which Color Plasti Dip Should I Spray on Lug Nuts?
Plasti dip is available in a wide range of colors. That makes it easy for you to choose a suitable finish that blends or complements the color of the wheels.
For most people, black is the go-to choice since it’s a universal color for wheels. However, if you prefer a showy color, you can choose white, blue, or red.
With plasti dip, you can be as creative as you want with the colors. Also, since plasti dip is very easy to peel off, you can always experiment until you find a suitable color.
Plasti dip would be an excellent finish for lug nuts if it could withstand the torque from a wrench or an impact gun.
Will Plasti Dip Peel Off Lug Nuts?
When torqued, plasti dip will peel off from lug nuts. And unfortunately, there is nothing that can be done about this. There are much better solutions, such as buying colored lug nuts or purchasing lug nut covers.
If the stock finish on your lug nuts no longer looks great, the above are some options you could consider instead of plasti dip.
Will Plasti Dip Last on Wheels?
When it comes to wheels, it’s a different story. Car wheels may be exposed to elements such as mud, sand, debris, and even rain. But plasti dip can withstand all these elements.
Wheels may suffer the usual curb rash, which can be touched up with plasti dip. But there is no excess force or pressure that is directly projected onto the wheels.
On wheels, plasti dip can last for a significantly longer duration. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for lug nuts. If you have a plasti dip project, focus on the wheels and look for another solution for the lug nuts.