Paint for brake drums

[JDUB]

Can anyone reccomend a decent paint to use on brake drums ?
The drums are new and I want to paint them before fitting. I painted them allready with Halfords High temperature paint but it was rubbish so I stripped it all off again. The finish was powdery and soft and the paint could be scratched off with a finger nail !

[MacColl]

The originals I believe were not painted.

If they are too smooth they might need keying with say 600 grit or a scotch pad. Importantly if they are bare metal you should etch primer them and then use something like a satin black. They get scratched up anyway but it is good to paint them so you don't see the rust through your wheels.

Another option is simply black hammerite, smooth stuff in a can is easy to apply and touch up as you go or the paint I have is Rustoleum. Big can of black goes a long way for various parts. These paints actually like more pitted surfaces so the primer and satin on new drums might be your option.

[mark1gls]

I used some hammerite on my Golf drums (had some left paint left over from other stuff I painted), they dont really get that hot and the paint has lasted on them for about 7 years. As with all hammerite paint it does chip off if you hit it with the wheel when removing them, just have to be a bit careful.

I did use some Halfords brake paint on the Scirocco and that also chips off if hit but I got a nice shine when I painted mine and it does not rub off with a finger nail, did you sand and clean the surface before putting the paint on?
I expect there is some other better paint out there but have not found any yet.

[JDUB]

Thanks for that, I'm happy to use the Hammerite if it'll take the temperature. I did prep the surfaces properly but perhaps there was something wrong with the batch of paint I had ? It was a rattle can but it sprayed out more like powder than paint anyway.

[mark1gls]

The halfords paint I used was on the drums was brake caliper paint, it came in a tin and was put on with a brush. I did get some Halfords high temperature paint (rattle can) but used that on the exhaust manifold, that paint needs to cure at a high heat before it goes off, that might be stuff you used and why you are getting this problem.

Paint I used on the drums and front calipers, it does chip off if hit by mnistake but I still have 1/2 tin left to touch up.
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... 65495#tab3

Paint used for exhaust mainfold. The rust has come back throught the paint after a couple of years
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165495

[Nate]

When I've done them in the past, I've just used a good quality machine paint such as rustoleum. I would suggest not painting the part of the drum that the wheel sits against though. A very light smear of copper grease ove the unpainted area will keep any rust from forming so you won't get rust stains on the paint