I bought the acetone washed 3D-printed flare caps from D-Farms a couple months ago and have been slowly getting them prepped to put on my truck. I wanted to do a write-up to help others that are trying to decide whether or not to purchase them.
THE GOOD: these caps are a solution to the problem that SR5 owners face when removing their running boards. The caps are shaped well, and line up nicely with the curves of the stock plastic fender flares. I ended up painting them with SEM texture coating spray, then topping that with SEM bumper paint. The texture doesn't match the stock flares perfectly, but it's pretty close. Unless you're examining them up close, you'll never notice.
THE BAD: the acetone washed caps are being sold as "ready for paint" but I don't agree with that. While I would definitely recommend spending the extra money to have them acetone washed (because it adds significant strength to the caps), I wouldn't expect to receive a part that only needs paint. My caps had a lot of unevenness in the finish that required a lot of sanding, and this uncovered some small pitting as well, which needed to be filled with bondo and sanded back down.
I was disappointed with the caps at first, but ultimately I think my expectations were too high. Considering these are home-made parts, they are pretty nicely done. They fit well, and solve the problem. So for those reasons, I recommend getting a set if you have an SR5 with the awful fender flare gap.
MISC: I tried using zip ties to connect the flare cap with the flare, but I wanted a more secure fit between the two. Instead, I used nuts and bolts, with rubber washers between the two parts and under the heads of the bolts. I was able to tighten them securely and didn't have any problem with the parts cracking.
I am somewhat concerned with long-term durability, as the plastic does seem more brittle than other plastics used on the outside of vehicles. And over time they may become more brittle, due to the aging characteristics of plastic. But I did accidentally drop them a couple times, and they were fine, so time will tell.
Onto the pics:
After some sanding:
Painted:
On the truck:
THE GOOD: these caps are a solution to the problem that SR5 owners face when removing their running boards. The caps are shaped well, and line up nicely with the curves of the stock plastic fender flares. I ended up painting them with SEM texture coating spray, then topping that with SEM bumper paint. The texture doesn't match the stock flares perfectly, but it's pretty close. Unless you're examining them up close, you'll never notice.
THE BAD: the acetone washed caps are being sold as "ready for paint" but I don't agree with that. While I would definitely recommend spending the extra money to have them acetone washed (because it adds significant strength to the caps), I wouldn't expect to receive a part that only needs paint. My caps had a lot of unevenness in the finish that required a lot of sanding, and this uncovered some small pitting as well, which needed to be filled with bondo and sanded back down.
I was disappointed with the caps at first, but ultimately I think my expectations were too high. Considering these are home-made parts, they are pretty nicely done. They fit well, and solve the problem. So for those reasons, I recommend getting a set if you have an SR5 with the awful fender flare gap.
MISC: I tried using zip ties to connect the flare cap with the flare, but I wanted a more secure fit between the two. Instead, I used nuts and bolts, with rubber washers between the two parts and under the heads of the bolts. I was able to tighten them securely and didn't have any problem with the parts cracking.
I am somewhat concerned with long-term durability, as the plastic does seem more brittle than other plastics used on the outside of vehicles. And over time they may become more brittle, due to the aging characteristics of plastic. But I did accidentally drop them a couple times, and they were fine, so time will tell.
Onto the pics:
After some sanding:
Painted:
On the truck:
