I'm building a rear bumper (build thread soon) and am about ready to paint it. I'm going to prime it with epoxy primer and want a paint that is tough and matte black. I'm thinking about Duplicolor truck bedliner. Anybody painted their bumper with bedliner? How did it look, hold up, etc.? Thanks.

I have sprayed bedliner over rattle can paint and it reacted with the paint, bubbled up and pealed off. I would refer to the bedliner can for prep info. Bedliner can look kinda grimey after a while. You don't want to try to get it off latter if you hate it. Be sure before you paint it.

I like to use basic rattle can so I can re-shoot it after I drag it down the rocks.

I sprayed my painted rear bumper, rocker panels, grill and fender flairs with the Rust-oleum spray-on truck bed coating. It has held-up well through trail use and repeated pressure washings (reasonable PSI). If the textured surface gets grimy, I use a soapy sponge or just recently I started using Black Magic foaming tire & wheel cleaner with no ill effects, the grim just washes off. BTW if car wax gets on the bed liner surface it dries white and is a pain to clean off. I actually mask the areas off when waxing.

Paint prep: scuff the surface with 220 grit, clean with alcohol, 2 coats of Rust-oleum black primer, allow the primer to dry for 4 hours, then 2 coats of bed liner. I do allow a couple days for the bed liner to cure.


Outdoor Logic offers a "crinkle finish" coating on thier bumpers that matches up nicely with spray can coating.

I have rock sliders with a spray on rubber coating. I love how they look and they seem to be very durable. If they get scratched I can just respray whatever got taken of. I will say it is pretty hard to clean if it gets muddy. I have to use a pressure washer from a gas station car wash. When i got ready to prep them i scratched them up, sprayed a few coats of primer, sprayed a few coats of rustoleum protective enamel, then sprayed a few coats of the rubber liner.

Off topic alert!
Nice looking rig.
I really like the black flares. They tie everything together.

I've done my front and rear bumpers with the rattle can duplicolor bed liner.. I would NOT use it again. It hasn't held up well at all. I've gone about 3 weeks at a time before it needs to be touched up again, and that's under normal driving conditions. It looks good I will say that. If I had to do it again I would get a gallon of the stuff the shops use and spray that on with a gun.

Here is my 2 cents again coming from a painter.... Rattle can rubber coat is really best for unseen, non-weather conditions if you really didnt like the look or want the spray on stuff to come off all you need is laquer thinner and paper towels it comes right off... its not ment for the elements its really ment for hidden areas thats hard to get with a pro gun... It doesnt cost much to goto your local paint store and get a spray in bed liner and do it yourself (it even comes with instructions) i know here a kit (will do a standerd 6ft bed) is $125 and the gun is $10-15 and the only other things you will need is an air comp. , regulator, 80 or 180 grit sand paper and cleaner... I have tested a number of products and compaired to rattle can and NOTHING compairs to the spray on that shops use its UV protected its WAY more durable and it lasts 1000x longer.... even if you get the cheapest spray on kit its still better than the most expensive rattle can...



So for a summary .......... Rattle can = Crappy product due to no hardner in product and not durable

Spray on = Exelent product due to using a hardener, UV protectant and is very durable

I think you should consider getting it powder coated. I had my rims done and was very impressed with the quality. I bet you could get the bumper done for $150 and it will last 20x longer than rattle can.

Just to clarify, I used the truck bed coating and not the Plasti-dip. The truck bed coating dries to a tough textured finish much like a Rhino-lined truck bed and the Plasti-dip dries to a flat rubbery coating that can be scratched or peeled with a fingernail.

I heard that one spray-on bedliner product was better then the other, the Rust-olium product has held up well for me.

Thanks for the replies. I was thinking of using the Duplicolor roll on (or spray on) bedliner in the gallon can (brushing it on). I used Herculiner for the floor boards on my Mustang and it works well but it's too shiny. I'd like something tougher than regular auto paint since I'll be standing on it from time to time. I'd have it powder coated but phase 2 is adding a tire carrier so I'd have to grind off some of the powder coating (unless I did the smart thing and planned it all out before painting ).

Unless the Duplicolor bedliner is just poor quality, I don't think I'd have adhesion problems if I paint it over the epoxy during the 'window' before the epoxy cures, unless there's a chemical mismatch between the epoxy and the bedliner.

Any recommendations for a tough matte black paint? I've painted a lot on my car (lots of primer, engine bay, undercarriage, left the finish to the pros, but did finish paint some parts) and have the equipment to spray auto paint. How about tractor paint? (but not John Deere green, though I like Deeres). That stuff's tough and thick.

I also have used VHT Chassis and Rollbar paint. Only comes in black but does come in a gloss and a satin.

Not to be an ass but you cant get duplicolor or hercliner at an auto paint store thats autozone or orielly quallity so i would take the 2 min and google auto paint store in your area... and if you use paint its just that paint it will chip/flake off over time/use....

true

I have bought lots of paint and supplies at the local auto paint store (restored a 65 Mustang over 3 years). I was hoping someone would have a recommendation on paint they had used that held up well.

I'm afraid the do-it-yourself bedliner (that doesn't have an isocyanate hardener) won't last like a professionally-applied product. I like the Rhino or LineX liners, and they look very tough, but don't want to spend that kind of money to have it sprayed or my budget bumper won't be budget any more. I'm giving the tractor industrial paint a try.

If you end up actually using your bumper you will just scrape the bed liner off. Nothing is easier to touch up than spray paint