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If I go with the RAC wheel (extensively discussed here in the forum in its own thread). My plan is to anodize the wheel. Anodizing is far more durable than paint or powder coat. It is ceramic - Al2O3. As a Mechanical Engineer I speced anodization on both cosmetic and structural parts.
The other cool thing about anodization is the variety of looks you can get based on surface prep, from a coarse brush, to fine brush to light or full polish, all look different when anodized. You can also combine various levels of polish with various acid etching before anodizing. Lots of cool combinations.
Some more details on anodizing: Hard anodizing is black or brown, never clear. Only regular anodize is clear (or a variety of colors). Regular anodize is very thin and more or less cosmetic with some wear protection. Hard anodize actually builds up a few mils (1/1000th of in inch) of thickness and is considerably harder and more wear resistance than regular anodize. In industry lingo regular is Type I (Chromic acid) or Type II (Sulfuric acid). Hard is Type III which is also Chromic.
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