how do you take off the hub cap thingy cover on the stock ram rim????

 

I assume you mean the chrome clad cover... I believe it's glued on. It might come off with force, but you never know what it will look like under there.

 

Ugly. I saw a Ram with one that was cracked. Leave them on, unless you are replacing them.

 

Do you think that underneath the clad cover would clean up and smooth out or is it something that is beyond a polishing?

 

If nothing else, bead blast it and clear it or paint it.

 

reason i ask is because i want to paint them but dont know if paint will hold on the plastic clad that is smooth chrome

 

Underneath is rough, far away from a polishing. It's a rough cast that has some lines through out. The paint will stick much better to the properly prepared plastic than to the wheel itself.
Also, the plastic cap doesn't heat up like the wheel itself does from heavy braking, therefore the paint won't get soft and prone to chips or peeling like if it were on the actual rim itself.

 

dog would you say painting the clads is a easy job that will come out nice??

 

Rule of thumb - If it's easy to do, it won't come out nice!!!

 

Has any one tried to remove a clad cover yet? I would also like to remove them to paint them and try to reinstall them. I was bummed out to find out they are plastic and not a solid aluminum rim.