ace of spades
02-29-2012, 09:41 AM
I did this way back in 2008 for something to do, and to alter the way the back of the car looks. the DIY to remove the rear bumper can be found HERE (http://www.ephatch.com/forum/showthread.php?68073-DIY-Rear-Bumper-Removal).
-I created a work station outside of my garage to wash the bumper. it's nice to have 1.5 sets of stockies laying around. painting:
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04971.jpg
-I removed the side markers so no water would get inside them since I washed both the inner and outer sides of the bumper. I figured it would be a good idea.
-after the bumper was clean, I dried what I could with my shammy towel and brought it back inside to fully dry.
-I had time to kill, so I moved the car outside and washed off the unseen parts of the body for gits and shiggles. before I went hose crazy, I placed my dangling bulbs in the vents under the tail lights so no water would creep inside the bulb sockets doing any unwanted damage to my EP.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04977.jpg
-I then set up my work station in the garage with a piece of plywood on top of the wheels so they'd be protected from the paint. put some more cardboard over the plywood, and I tossed two jackstands on top to hold the bumper higher so I wouldn't be bending over as far.
-once it was dry, I began to tape it up with thin masking tape using 2" pieces or so.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04987.jpg
-I followed the line on the bumper with the tape, then covered the whole thing in newspaper because overspray looks like crap. the pics aren't clear enough but the line I made with tape is perfect.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04996.jpg
-after it was all covered and ready, I ran two more lines of masking tape overlapping half of the existing tape line as my edge, then again so I had a fairly thick line of masking tape between the paper and the painting surface. I figured there would be a lot of extra paint hitting that line and I didn't want any to seep through the newspaper to the bumper.
-go into your kitchen and steal the nasty, old scrubbie wash pad that should have been thrown away months ago. you just gave your wife a reason to open a new one. lol
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04981.jpg
-get scrubbing. I scrubbed it for 10 minutes or so.
-after you think you have scrubbed enough, blow off your paint surface and prep your paint can.
-apply the first coat after you have made some attempt at ventilating your work area. I grabbed a fan from the livingroom and had it blowing air out of the mandoor, while I had my baydoor open a few inches to draw fresh air in. wear a dustmask if you can, or paint outside.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04997.jpg
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04998.jpg
-I didn't scuff after the first coat, and it looked really smooth to the touch. don't touch it.
-after coat number one dried, I hit it again and scuffed it using the same scrubbie pad. after the second coat dried, the paint started to look textured. scuffing it removed that textured look. I did one last coat and let it sit for about an hour before I started to peel the tape off.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04999.jpg
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC05001.jpg
perfect line:
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC05008.jpg
-the tape came off the bumper very easily, and there was a few spots that kind of wanted to come with the tape since it was still a little rubbery. this was a good thing because I was able to run my fingernail along the bumper crease to set the paint where it needed to be. now, I am not a perfectionist, if I was I would have paid a body shop to do this for me. I figured if it chips or peels, I will repaint it. and it doesn't need to be perfect since it is really out of the way and hard to see in the first place.
-I let the bumper sit a little while longer, then reinstalled the marker lenses.
-I pulled my car back into the garage after I aired it out and swept everything the floor.
finally time to re install.
-resort back to the rear bumper removal DIY. HERE (http://www.ephatch.com/forum/showthread.php?68073-DIY-Rear-Bumper-Removal)
-I created a work station outside of my garage to wash the bumper. it's nice to have 1.5 sets of stockies laying around. painting:
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04971.jpg
-I removed the side markers so no water would get inside them since I washed both the inner and outer sides of the bumper. I figured it would be a good idea.
-after the bumper was clean, I dried what I could with my shammy towel and brought it back inside to fully dry.
-I had time to kill, so I moved the car outside and washed off the unseen parts of the body for gits and shiggles. before I went hose crazy, I placed my dangling bulbs in the vents under the tail lights so no water would creep inside the bulb sockets doing any unwanted damage to my EP.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04977.jpg
-I then set up my work station in the garage with a piece of plywood on top of the wheels so they'd be protected from the paint. put some more cardboard over the plywood, and I tossed two jackstands on top to hold the bumper higher so I wouldn't be bending over as far.
-once it was dry, I began to tape it up with thin masking tape using 2" pieces or so.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04987.jpg
-I followed the line on the bumper with the tape, then covered the whole thing in newspaper because overspray looks like crap. the pics aren't clear enough but the line I made with tape is perfect.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04996.jpg
-after it was all covered and ready, I ran two more lines of masking tape overlapping half of the existing tape line as my edge, then again so I had a fairly thick line of masking tape between the paper and the painting surface. I figured there would be a lot of extra paint hitting that line and I didn't want any to seep through the newspaper to the bumper.
-go into your kitchen and steal the nasty, old scrubbie wash pad that should have been thrown away months ago. you just gave your wife a reason to open a new one. lol
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04981.jpg
-get scrubbing. I scrubbed it for 10 minutes or so.
-after you think you have scrubbed enough, blow off your paint surface and prep your paint can.
-apply the first coat after you have made some attempt at ventilating your work area. I grabbed a fan from the livingroom and had it blowing air out of the mandoor, while I had my baydoor open a few inches to draw fresh air in. wear a dustmask if you can, or paint outside.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04997.jpg
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04998.jpg
-I didn't scuff after the first coat, and it looked really smooth to the touch. don't touch it.
-after coat number one dried, I hit it again and scuffed it using the same scrubbie pad. after the second coat dried, the paint started to look textured. scuffing it removed that textured look. I did one last coat and let it sit for about an hour before I started to peel the tape off.
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC04999.jpg
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC05001.jpg
perfect line:
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii142/blueEP3piece/DIY/DSC05008.jpg
-the tape came off the bumper very easily, and there was a few spots that kind of wanted to come with the tape since it was still a little rubbery. this was a good thing because I was able to run my fingernail along the bumper crease to set the paint where it needed to be. now, I am not a perfectionist, if I was I would have paid a body shop to do this for me. I figured if it chips or peels, I will repaint it. and it doesn't need to be perfect since it is really out of the way and hard to see in the first place.
-I let the bumper sit a little while longer, then reinstalled the marker lenses.
-I pulled my car back into the garage after I aired it out and swept everything the floor.
finally time to re install.
-resort back to the rear bumper removal DIY. HERE (http://www.ephatch.com/forum/showthread.php?68073-DIY-Rear-Bumper-Removal)