Painting without removing bumpers?

[shootme5150]

I'm having a whore of a time trying to get these bumper covers off... They're going to be painted the same as the car, which will remain black (sans the red stripe), so I was contemplating just leaving them on when I shoot it. Has anyone done this? Did you add anything to the paint to make it more flexible? Have you had any problems with cracking / chipping as a result of not pulling them and painting them seperately?

 

[pricha]

Aren't some of those nuts down below the headlights a real barrel of fun to take off. I think I bashed all my knuckles on that job. Take it off if you want a nicer job.

 

[bsedwebt70-5.0]

I would drop the tail lights and headlamps & loosen the sides and hold them apart from the body with a little wedge of some sort to get in the cracks - clean it really good with prep-solve after a good scuffing with 600 grit wet sand. Some paint manufacturers recommend a "flex agent" for rubber bumpers and others don't. Always remember the extra time spent in making sure the body is prepped is more important than laying down the paint - you can wet sand with 2000 grit and polish the paint out to your hearts content if you lay it thick enough. BLOCK SAND everything flat - avoid using just your hands and you will be much happier - BLACK is the worst color for showing imperfections and white is the most forgiving.... Been there - done that lots of times - good luck

 

[twolo4u2c2]

repainted my car without removing them. Worked out great and as long as you prep them right you should be good. As for using a flex agent....no need. they dont flex that much. Of course I used PPG top of the line base clear system. If you use anything else I'm not sure what will happen. I'm going on two years and no cracks or peeling.

 

[CBZGT50]

I have painted many urethane bumpers and I have never added flex agent. I do use PPGk36 primer and it bonds like plastic. I myself would remove the bumpers because unscratched areas may contain dirt and contamenants that will peel later. But that is the difference between a $4000 looking paint job and an $800 dollar paint job.

I take EVERYTHING off, even the hood. But, not all people paint as perfectionistic as me.


Bumpers are really not that hard to take off once you have the lights off. The two bolts at the corners are the hardest to get. everything else is push pins and rivots.


Just sand and prep as much as you can before removing them. The urethane bumpers are really soft and bend easily.

 

[_jb_]

Pump the money out for a flex agent. I believe I bought mine for like $30, so you might as well use it. You can only use it up to 7 days after you open it though.

 

[gregpro50]

I learned my lesson from previous painting attempts and here is what I learned the hard way.

1. Always use a flex agent when painting the urethane bumpers. If it starts chipping and cracking after it is painted the only thing you can do is to strip the paint off the whole thing and try again. Stripping paint on urethane bumpers is a BITCH.

2. Dont take short-cuts. You will be much happier with the final results if you take the time to actually remove the bumpers and paint them. They arent really all that hard to take off as long as you know where all the bolts are that hold them on.

 

[blkstangman88]

question, about the flex agent, should it be used with primer, base and clear coat?

 

[CBZGT50]

Flex agent is only needed if there is no paint on the bumper (new). I have two body men/painters here that agree. If it is already painted with OEM paint only, and you are repainting it, scuff it real good with a grey scuff pad, wet sand the rock chips, put some good primer on it, scuff after drying, and spray base. Then light clear coat. DO NOT put heavy coats of clear on the bumper. Bumpers only chip if you don't prep right. But others are right, stripping is a biznatch if you have bad paint on it.

I got a Cobra bumper once that had E Scheib paint on it (single stage) and it looked like crap. I had to hand sand the entire bumper by hand. That took at least ten hours. But, it had OEM paint under it so once I got the crap paint off, it sprayed good. So, be sure you spray it right or take it to a shop if you don't know what you are doing. Practice is good, but this is not a fun thing to practice with (bumpers).

 

[_jb_]

I took all the paint off my car. The paint store told me I have to use a flex agent on the bumpers.

My opinion is stop being cheap and get the flex agent. It's not like it's expensive.