Problems with painting chrome bumpers >:(

[jinos]

Hi guys! After searchin this forum and many others I decided to take a dive on painting the chrome bumpers with duplicolor bed coating in a rattle can. Prep was the key I hear from everyone so here's the problem. I have a 98 limited and sanded down the flares which are plastic. After applying the duplicolor bed spray it holds very well. No primer was used since quite a few people didn't with bed coatings (something about adhesivness with enamel?).

Now for the chrome rear bumper. So I sanded the bumper down with 80 grit sandpaper as much as possible. It scratched the surface a little but still has a soft feel to it. I couldn't sand any deeper. The chrome is dull but you can still see the reflection. After cleaning with water and that green spray I applied the duplicolor. It looked real nice until this morning. It already started chipping!!! The flares are holding well but it seems it will not stick to metal. This sucks because now my bumper looks like Sh*t.

I went to the store and bought 40 grit to resand the whole bumper. Any advise on what I should do? Thanks.

 

[dnbprofessor]

Try priming the bumper first... see if that helps

 

[kregg]

Hate to ruin your day, but it's not gonna hold well on the chrome bumpers. If you can get down to the bare metal, you might have a better chance. Mine chipped constantly, but I just hit it with the rattle can stuff whenever I felt the urge...

 

[steezemcqueen]

try sanding it as much as you can with 100 grit after you get all the old stuff off. then give the primer a shot

 

[Muti007]

Ive decided to just get black bumpers from Certifit when Im ready and have them and my fender flares all painted body color at once, professionally.

 

[Spencer]

I did mine and they held up great, no chipping

definatly use a power sander, the more you sand the better it holds

 

[004Gunner]

Chrome is usually a thin layer so you need to sand until it's gone. You can spend the time now in prep, or spend the time later in touch ups due to lack of prep. The primer will definitely help and it should be a primer for bare metal. It will say self-etching primer and you can pick it up at any auto parts store. Post up pics when you're done! :cheers:

 

[RonMAIDEN]

How about using a larger grit on a grinder and really take the chrome off and then use truck bed liner on them thus eliminating you needing to sand the bumper to a smoother surface for paint.

 

[jinos]

Chrome is usually a thin layer so you need to sand until it's gone. You can spend the time now in prep, or spend the time later in touch ups due to lack of prep. The primer will definitely help and it should be a primer for bare metal. It will say self-etching primer and you can pick it up at any auto parts store. Post up pics when you're done! :cheers:

Alright guys! I bought all the tools (sander, primer, paint, 40 grit) and will finish the project this sunday. I'll post alot of pics for you. Thanks for all the help.

 

[OsKie_78]

any updates on this? I want to paint my bumpers too

 

[jinos]

any updates on this? I want to paint my bumpers too

Yup. It came out well with no chipping. I'll post pics tom with the whole procedure. You HAVE to grind down all the chrome or else it won't stick. Taking off bumpers took 30 min. Prepping took 2-3 hrs. and painting took 1-2 hrs.

 

[OsKie_78]

Yup. It came out well with no chipping. I'll post pics tom with the whole procedure. You HAVE to grind down all the chrome or else it won't stick. Taking off bumpers took 30 min. Prepping took 2-3 hrs. and painting took 1-2 hrs.

Yeah, please post some pictures and procedures, that well help me out. Thanks man.

 

[OsKie_78]

got those pictures bro... I'm want to do this soon and I would like to check yours out 1st before I start

 

[4Runner93]

I too would like pictures. My bumper's look like they have white paint swirled in it (maybe from being in the sun?) and was going to look into this. If you wouldn't mind putting how much it cost too please I'm a poor broke high schooler

 

[maxspeed96ct]

any pics or updates?

Im just trying to see what my options are on ditching my chrome bumpers..


I really dont want to spend the cash on new bumpers, so any tips will help.

 

[Whackmaster]

I did mine about 3 months ago and no chipping...I didn't sand all of the chrome off...

I started with 220 grit, 400 grit, 600 grit on the palm sander...Sprayed 3 coats sealer primer( wet sanded) and sprayed 3 coats black and 2 coats clear....I didn't use the spray can I used a hvlp gun......

I'll try to post pics if it quits raining....

 

[1985taylor1925]

My grill cover in this picture was chrome until I painted it a few weeks ago. I just drove 1000 miles accross country going between 70 and 80 mph, and at one point had a ton of sand/rocks from a dumptruck splash my front end, and yet it chipped very little. Obviously prep is most important. But primer is vital too. I did three layers of self-etching primer, three of paint, and two clear coats. Even in the small paint chips I have, the primer is still there. Only the paint and clear coat chipped off. My grill cover has a layer of chrome, and I sanded it rigorously before painting. But I didnt sand through the chrome, and its sticking pretty well. And I think part of the reason the paint chipped off is because it was about 40 degrees when I painted it. Im thinking once it warms up im gonna sand it down and re-spray with paint to match my color code.

 

[bak3rme]

i plasti dipped the chrome on the rear bumper..its holding up great. and plus its pretty hard to peel off

 

[maxspeed96ct]

My grill cover in this picture was chrome until I painted it a few weeks ago. I just drove 1000 miles accross country going between 70 and 80 mph, and at one point had a ton of sand/rocks from a dumptruck splash my front end, and yet it chipped very little. Obviously prep is most important. But primer is vital too. I did three layers of self-etching primer, three of paint, and two clear coats. Even in the small paint chips I have, the primer is still there. Only the paint and clear coat chipped off. My grill cover has a layer of chrome, and I sanded it rigorously before painting. But I didnt sand through the chrome, and its sticking pretty well. And I think part of the reason the paint chipped off is because it was about 40 degrees when I painted it. Im thinking once it warms up im gonna sand it down and re-spray with paint to match my color code.

View attachment 37770

Looks good, I have some color matched paint for my grill and rear plate bracket.
Just waiting for the spring to put the project in gear..

I dont think ill be lucky enought to get the bumpers to match so I thinking of doing black..
But Ill see how my grill and plate braket come out and plan from there...

 

[GottaBeTRD]

i didn't see if anyone mentioned it here but if you get a nice adhesive promoter it should help it stick a lot better. I think its called bulldog or something you can get from autozone. It's expensive and has some pretty strict warnings on the can with using it LOL but ive hear it works great for this kind of stuff.

I bought some cheap stuff when i painted my emblems and so far its been about 4 to 5 months, tons of driving and its still looks good as new