I've been reading tons of threads on who did what, and what works best. I decided to give it a go tonight and see what all the fuss is about. I stopped by Autozone on the way home from work this evening to see what they had for supplies. I picked up a can of Duplicolor Adhesion Promoter, Duplicolor Bumper Coating, and Rustoleum Spray in Bedliner.
A lot of folks recommended the Blackout RE-DO thread, with the build up of paint was bedliner, then bumper paint, but I decided to skip the bedliner just to see the initial result with only the bumper paint.
I decided to first start with my bezel, since it is so easy to remove. I popped it off and took it to the shed, removed the grill insert and started on the surround. First I thoroughly wiped it down with a rag with a small amount of mineral spirits. I then sanded with a 320 grit 3M automotive sanding sponge. I wiped it down again after sanding and let it dry for a few minutes.
I hung the bezel from a cable attached to the ceiling so I could get to all the spots I needed in one position, instead of lying flat on a surface. Next I hit it with 2 light coats of adhesion promoter. Probably more than I needed, but it was hard to tell how much was on there since it's so light and clear. I let that dry for about 30 minutes. Keep in mind, I'm in Central FL so the humidity tonight is about 80% or more.
Then came the bumper spray, this took probably 4 solid coats, and a lot of touch up in places that were missed. I waited about 10-15 minutes between each coat, it seemed to dry rather quickly. After I had a lot of paint on, I let it sit for about 30 minutes to settle.
During this time, I gave the same treatment to the TOYOTA letters on the grill. Instead of masking off the grill, I washed everything with mineral spirits, sanded the surface of the grill, and all visible spots of the letters and applied the same treatment as above. I figured a little paint in the honeycomb areas won't hurt anything.
After I went back to the bezel, I started seeing spots that were missed. This finish can be deceiving, since it reflects a light silver color, which is the same color you're painting over, so make sure you look at it in different light and angles.
I had a two run spots where I got too close to the surface with the nozzle, they are in inconspicuous spots though. Also, at the end of the can, the nozzle started spitting out big dots of paint, some of which splattered right on my beautiful paint job directly under the lettering. :flame:
The end result leaves me about 95% happy, I'll know tomorrow in full sunlight.
This weekend I'm going to try and get to the wings, bumper insert, rear bumper and mirrors. I'll have more time, daylight and patience, and hopefully less humidity. I still haven't decided if I'm going to use the bedliner or not. I think that will significantly extend the project time due to extra drying time, sanding between bedliner and bumper paint, and drive the cost up more. I'd like to hear from some members to see if they think it's worth it? I'm willing to put in some extra time up front if it will be worth it over time.
Here are some crappy pics from my iPhone. Notice how my black seems blacker than stock under a flash. Not sure how it will look in the daytime.
A lot of folks recommended the Blackout RE-DO thread, with the build up of paint was bedliner, then bumper paint, but I decided to skip the bedliner just to see the initial result with only the bumper paint.
I decided to first start with my bezel, since it is so easy to remove. I popped it off and took it to the shed, removed the grill insert and started on the surround. First I thoroughly wiped it down with a rag with a small amount of mineral spirits. I then sanded with a 320 grit 3M automotive sanding sponge. I wiped it down again after sanding and let it dry for a few minutes.
I hung the bezel from a cable attached to the ceiling so I could get to all the spots I needed in one position, instead of lying flat on a surface. Next I hit it with 2 light coats of adhesion promoter. Probably more than I needed, but it was hard to tell how much was on there since it's so light and clear. I let that dry for about 30 minutes. Keep in mind, I'm in Central FL so the humidity tonight is about 80% or more.
Then came the bumper spray, this took probably 4 solid coats, and a lot of touch up in places that were missed. I waited about 10-15 minutes between each coat, it seemed to dry rather quickly. After I had a lot of paint on, I let it sit for about 30 minutes to settle.
During this time, I gave the same treatment to the TOYOTA letters on the grill. Instead of masking off the grill, I washed everything with mineral spirits, sanded the surface of the grill, and all visible spots of the letters and applied the same treatment as above. I figured a little paint in the honeycomb areas won't hurt anything.
After I went back to the bezel, I started seeing spots that were missed. This finish can be deceiving, since it reflects a light silver color, which is the same color you're painting over, so make sure you look at it in different light and angles.
I had a two run spots where I got too close to the surface with the nozzle, they are in inconspicuous spots though. Also, at the end of the can, the nozzle started spitting out big dots of paint, some of which splattered right on my beautiful paint job directly under the lettering. :flame:
The end result leaves me about 95% happy, I'll know tomorrow in full sunlight.
This weekend I'm going to try and get to the wings, bumper insert, rear bumper and mirrors. I'll have more time, daylight and patience, and hopefully less humidity. I still haven't decided if I'm going to use the bedliner or not. I think that will significantly extend the project time due to extra drying time, sanding between bedliner and bumper paint, and drive the cost up more. I'd like to hear from some members to see if they think it's worth it? I'm willing to put in some extra time up front if it will be worth it over time.
Here are some crappy pics from my iPhone. Notice how my black seems blacker than stock under a flash. Not sure how it will look in the daytime.



