Can bumper be painted??

[alphabets13]

i'm getting the X fixed after the accident, and all along i wanted to paint the grille and bumper all black to match the truck. i had a 99 xlt bumper on with the chrome housings. just wondering if i get another bumper, and it's not smooth like the EB, limited, or sport ones i think, can i paint that bumpy type of bumper? like for an xlt or whatever other model they came on?

 

[Hartman]

A MUCH better solution would be to get one that is meant to be painted. A professional can paint the textured bumper fairly well, but the paintable ones are still a much better option.

 

[Stephen]

When they order it, just have them order a paintable one.

 

[hydroxy]

If you still get a textured one, you *can* do it yourself. I painted the plastic pieces of my rear bumper (kinda the same texture). It is smooth, but textured if that makes sense. I'm sure with enough sanding you could make a textured one very smooth. It just wasn't an option for me to sand it b/c of all the ridges, it would have taken years to d.

Here is what my rear bumper looks like. The plastic pieces used to be grey...

 

[alphabets13]

that looks good hydroxy. thats what i'm gonna do with the back. i know what you mean abot the ridges...screw that. did your rear have the chrome also? i have chrome and then the pads, ut i want the chrome painted too. just wonderin if you did that too.

 

[Alec]

sandpaper, patience, primer and spraypaint can do amazingly decent work on most surfaces

 

[james t]

i have de-grained all of my bumper trim. basically, you scuff it first, then hit it with a thin layer of filler primer. sand smooth, then filler prime again. do this about 6-10 times, and it will come out smooth.

 

[hydroxy]

Originally posted by james t
i have de-grained all of my bumper trim. basically, you scuff it first, then hit it with a thin layer of filler primer. sand smooth, then filler prime again. do this about 6-10 times, and it will come out smooth.

Hopefully he can get one that is ready to be painted. I know after I did my bumpers, I was sick of sanding, never want to do it again...


And no, I didn't have chrome. Here is the thread of my bumper paintings.
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=96845

 

[X~FACTOR]

Prepping stage:

Filler stage:

Primer stage:

 

[hydroxy]

I'm surprised you didn't get overspray on your radiator.

 

[Ak LTD Xplorer]

he did look close..lol

 

[X~FACTOR]

Hehe... a little over spray... no big deal...

 

[mdriggan]

Originally posted by hydroxy
If you still get a textured one, you *can* do it yourself. I painted the plastic pieces of my rear bumper (kinda the same texture). It is smooth, but textured if that makes sense. I'm sure with enough sanding you could make a textured one very smooth. It just wasn't an option for me to sand it b/c of all the ridges, it would have taken years to d.

Here is what my rear bumper looks like. The plastic pieces used to be grey...

Hydroxy,

Where did you get those taillight covers?

Michael

 

[hydroxy]

expo5.0 made them custom for me.

If you just get the black covers that have the bars going across and cut out the middle bars, that is pretty much what he did I believe.