Keep bare steel rear bumper?

[RMGulchin1]

I recently got an aftermarket bumper in bare steel and I like the look of it as is. My question is are there major downsides to not painting it?

I'm guessing rust might be one, but I live in a very dry climate in CO. Wondering if the rust is a major issue from your experience or if it's okay to leave the bare metal look.

 

[phattyduck]

It won't stay bare for long - soon it will be a nice uneven orange... How about a hot dip galvanize finish? You can also do a clear coat directly on the bare steel.

-Charlie

 

[Bad Luck]

I recently got an aftermarket bumper in bare steel and I like the look of it as is. My question is are there major downsides to not painting it?

I'm guessing rust might be one, but I live in a very dry climate in CO. Wondering if the rust is a major issue from your experience or if it's okay to leave the bare metal look.

You're going to get surface rust soon. Especially once it rains. You could try clear coat, hot dip galvanizing, or coating it with Steel-It. My vote between the 3 would be Steel-It.

 

[Brian.]

And that surface rust (yes, it *will* happen in CO) will come off on any and everything that touches it... so, your pants/legs, hands dogs, etc...

 

[Devbot]

I would get a clear powdercoating or the like, but it'll be hell to try and touch up if you ever scratch it
Yes, it will rust if you live anywhere above like 10% humidity
When you get it finished, leave a piece of bare steel outside and come back to it after a few months to see what it would've looked like

 

[brillo_76]

All great ideas. I would use a bed liner material to coat it. Something like raptor liner in either Black or tinted to match your rig. But that is just my opinion.

In my area it would be really rusty extremely quickly like a few weeks..

 

[D'arce]

You could do a cold zinc etching and then spray it clear. I use Eastwoods version before painting fresh bare metal. You just spray it on and keep it wet for 30 minutes or so.

 

[RMGulchin1]

Thanks for the good recs. I ended up just biting the bullet and going for powder coat. Got as close to a steel color as I could and it is looking sharp.

 

[spartacus]

Thanks for the good recs. I ended up just biting the bullet and going for powder coat. Got as close to a steel color as I could and it is looking sharp.

post a pic if you can.

 

[Endlessblockades]

Thanks for the good recs. I ended up just biting the bullet and going for powder coat. Got as close to a steel color as I could and it is looking sharp.

Pics or it didn't happen......