JT95 Posted March 24, 2005 Share Posted March 24, 2005 I had mentioned a bit back that I was consider buying one of those bed liner kits from my local auto paint supplier and spraying my bumpers because I was sick of a chipped/scratched painted bumper. Well, I got cheap and just went to Wally World and bought 3 cans of the generic bed liner spray. I figure I could at least see if I liked the look before I spent the $$$ on the real deal. Anyway, it turned out pretty well--for a $30 investment. Now, I've ruined the "classy" look my LSi was originally supposed to have, but I like the rugged sportiness look better. The bumpers turned out well, as did the rocker panel. For anyone who would like the look of higher ground clearance on your car but don't need it or want to pay for it--painting your rocker panel flat or semi-gloss black will probably help you get the look you want. (These pics aren't lighted the right way to show that.) I masked around the wheel well lips and painted a bit of them to connect the black bumpers to the black rockers, but the rear ones where the door is was a pain, and I'm pretty darn good at masking. I would do it a little differently the second time around. Now, this stuff is more like a hard rubber coating than an actual hard plastic coating like the real bed liner spray, so it is not near as durable/tough. Still, for $7 a can, I can always do touch up spraying. We'll see how well it holds up over the following months... The lighting is bad on this pic--I'll try to replace it with a better one soon... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brus brother Posted March 24, 2005 Share Posted March 24, 2005 Looks great! So what would you do differently next time? Please leave updates on wear resistance of the Wally product. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frag Posted March 24, 2005 Share Posted March 24, 2005 I like it too! Might do the same on my car. Black and green... not too bad. Since I always park on the street, both my bumpers look like they have been attacked by a family of wild cats. What preparation did you do? Could you give some details on how you did the spraying? Not very familliar with spray painting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A DOG Posted March 24, 2005 Share Posted March 24, 2005 Very nice. :cool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtsmiths Posted March 24, 2005 Share Posted March 24, 2005 I've been considering this fix for The Pretty One's '00 Legacy wagon. Forest Mist green (or as she calls it 'sea turtle green'). Her whole front valence is blasted down to the plastic from the sanded roads (at least it's not SALT!). The black seemed like it might be a little extreme for so large an area. Maybe not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottbaru Posted March 24, 2005 Share Posted March 24, 2005 Guys on the Landcruiser board have been doing this as well. It holds up well off-roading, if it's put on right. Rolling it on can give a nice texture, but not as deep as professional bedliner. I think it comes in grey, maybe some other colors. That looks good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JT95 Posted March 24, 2005 Author Share Posted March 24, 2005 Thanks for the feedback. I've had to drive by a lot of big windows the past week. :cool: It took three cans of the stuff to cover what I painted. I'd go ahead and buy 4, as I was cutting it close near the end. I'll have to check at the store to verify the brand name. In regard to doing the wheel well lips differently, I'd either make the sprayed area bigger or not do it. It gets kinda funky taking that line across the crack there on the back door--hard to get a clean look where I ran the tape because of the spray inside the door jamb. It doesn't look that bad, but it could have been better. As far as prep for the spraying, I hit everything I was going to paint with 120 grit sandpaper. Then I sprayed the areas with the air hose and wiped all the sanded parts with mineral spirits on a rag. I laid sheets over the whole upper portion of the car and had my hood popped with a sheet over the engine. Everything else was masked off and covered with newspaper. I did remove the grille. When I started painting, I lightly sprayed all the cracks and edges of things lightly. I mean a light spitting of paint. I put two light coats on these areas, and then hit everything with a very light coat. By the time you get around the car, you can go ahead and start over by hitting a good solid real first coat. Take your time. This stuff dries fairly quickly, so I didn't wait very long between coats. I gave the car three good coats. Let the car bake in the sun and let the paint around the fenders dry a bit before taking off the tape. Peel slowly when you get this area. I had to take my thunb nail and make a few light corrections as I peeled the tape off these areas. For anyone who has never done paint work (and I've not done a whole lot), the key to a good paint job is 80% prep work. Light sand what you are gonna spray, wipe it down, and do an amazing masking job. The actual painting is the fast and easy part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frag Posted March 24, 2005 Share Posted March 24, 2005 Did you use a standard automotive type sprayer (connected to air pressure) or electrical? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Handtool Posted March 24, 2005 Share Posted March 24, 2005 Nice. I'd paint the door trim to tie it all together. Looks good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JT95 Posted March 24, 2005 Author Share Posted March 24, 2005 Did you use a standard automotive type sprayer (connected to air pressure) or electrical? Nope--I went real generic. This was the spray cans I bought. They did have a larger container of the paint you could run through a paint gun, but, to be honest, something like this with the texture it has and the matte finish, a spray can gives the same results with the finished product and you don't have to fool with cleaning anything afterward. For a "real" paint job I'd never dream of doing this, but for this type of job, the actual paint gun wasn't a necessity. If the finish ever gets damaged, all I have to do is whip out a $7 can of spray paint and--presto--all fixed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JT95 Posted March 24, 2005 Author Share Posted March 24, 2005 Did you use a standard automotive type sprayer (connected to air pressure) or electrical? Oh--one more thing to add. If you can jack up your car and set it on 4 jack stands, that extra boost will help you reach the spots better. To do this the "right" way, you should take the bumper covers off and spray them. But, that's a hassle and this is a 10 yr old car. To be honest, this turned out well, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtsmiths Posted March 24, 2005 Share Posted March 24, 2005 Gray would be perfect on The Pretty One's 'Honu'* * Hawaiian for green sea turtle, her car's name and plate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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