Painting truck bumper

[koenbro]

My 2001 Tacoma's black bumpers are showing sun damage and are tired from age (black paint is fading). Would love to remove them and apply a fresh coat of paint. What product should I use?

I am mostly a woodworker, have a Fuji 4-stage HVLP turbine with the 3M PPS system, a variety of needles/caps, and have experience spraying. I think this should be a good setup.

 

[kkroger]

Strip em down or have em plasted epoxy prime and use PlastiDip... you can get spray cans or a bucket and a gun... works well they have a gloss and a satin. https://www.dipyourcar.com/?utm_sou...uUN_w9siw1x5GMTool_Dca068JBSSKDBoCbGcQAvD_BwE

 

[shedfullatools]

I did both bumpers on mine with plain ole Hardware store matte black, sanded them nice and smooth and they still look awesome two years later. No serious scratches or rust even after driving through loads of heavy brush, I did mine on the truck and just masked the fog lights, grille and headlights off

 

[sanddan]

SEM Detail Black in spray cans is a perfect match for most OEM black bumpers. A great prep for that would be shooting 2 coats of DP90 black epoxy primer/sealer and then coat with the detail black. The DP90 can be re-coated without sanding if done within a time window, I think up to a week. The DP90 requires a spray gun and respirator as it is catalyzed but will give you a very durable base for the cover coats.

An alternative to the DP90 would be using an etch primer in spray can, you can get that in black also. I used that all the time for smaller jobs, I keep several cans of the detail black and etch primer, both SEM brand, on hand for smaller jobs.

The DP90 is the perfect color for a bumper but it doesn't have the UV protection you need for a top coat.

Sand the bumper with at least 240 to 320 grit dry paper for good adhesion.

 

[Copymutt]

Plastidip is a temporary rubber type of coating. Probably not a good choice for surfaces that come in contact with anything.
On the other hand.

Jim

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... A sheet of 120gr sandpaper, 'n a rattlecan of Rustoeum flat black,....

They'll look great, 'n at worst, ya do it again in 5 or 10 years,.....

 

[kkroger]

Plastidip is a temporary rubber type of coating. Probably not a good choice for surfaces that come in contact with anything.
On the other hand.

Jim

Doesn't Chip, Can't Scratch, if it gets damaged peel it off and re-shoot it...

 

[03ranger]

Rattle can paint won’t last six months here in the valley of the sun. Either use a quality oil base paint for metal or talk with the guys at an auto paint store (not a retail auto parts store) about what paint you should used and what size nozzle to use in the spray gun. Rattle can paint looks good for a couple of months in the summer time, then it starts to fade or burn off.

 

[sberry]

Depends on how fussy and fast. Scuff with Scotchbrite, get some enamel and some gloss hardener, mix up a little and sponge brush it on.

 

[marineman]

I have no experience painting vehicles so I can't help with what to buy but it seems like most guys missed the part that you have the Fuji mini-mite 4 to spray with.

 

[sberry]

I didn't miss that. I can spray too but don't always do it to refresh something like that. I often look for good, cheap and fast with minor clean up, no overspent and no masking along with doing it in place.
Whoops, I missed the part about loving to remove them, it must be a hobby then, carry on.

 

[77thor]

I used PlastiDip on a chrome bumper with no prep.... 2 years later it still looks good.

 

[koenbro]

I removed the bumper, took off the rubber/plastic parts (top plate and bottom half), sanded lightly, then sprayed with a rattle can from Home Depot. Used some black restorer on the plastic as those parts were faded badly. Will need to apply a few more coats of the black restorer, though.

Looks great for a no frills work truck. Also pretty cheap, as I already had the paint.

 

[Bert_]

Depends on how fussy and fast. Scuff with Scotchbrite, get some enamel and some gloss hardener, mix up a little and sponge brush it on.

This is my favorite answer. Did the same thing to the step bumper on a utility box. I didn't use hardener but wish I had. The paint isn't wearing that good where it gets stepped on always, otherwise looks great.

 

[Wrench97]

I did mine with bed liner.