So this is the deal. My integra is milano red and i currently have a silver front bumper on it which looks terrible. The reason why i have the silver front bumper is because i let my brother drive my car and he hit it, so the only bumper i could find was silver.

So anyways i want to paint the front bumper milano red with the duplicolor OEM match paint. I dont have enough money to get the bumper professionally painted because im in college, and i cant stand looking at the silver. So i need some tips on painting the bumper so it will look pretty good.

I already know the basics but i dont know everything is should do. First off sand, then primer, couple coats of paint, then clear coat. But i want to know exactly what grit sand paper, and exactly what clear coat will make it shiny...and i know i am probably missing a couple of steps. Any help is appreciated...

 

anyone???

 

wet sand it w/ 600 grit sand paper and try not to break throught the paint. plastic primer works well on fenders; it gives it room to stretch without cracking. hit it with a layer of medium wet paint and wait a few minutes for it to dry (read the can). hit it again w/ a wet coat and let that dry. you can sand the paint if you have any bad areas w/ 1500-2000 grit. clear and buff.

 

so i should wet sand it before i put the primer on?? i always thought that you were suppose to dry sand it then prime and then the base coats???

 

no, don't wetsand before priming. sand with 320 before priming, then wetsand the primer with 600.

 

ok, thanks. so these are the steps i have so far:

1. Sand bumper with 320 before priming
2. Wetsand primer with 600

After wetsanding the primer how many base coats should i put on, also anyone know a good primer for bumpers???

 

heres a flexible rattle can primer:

http://www.ketone.com/proddetail.php?prod=SEM39133

as for your other question on basecoats, i've had good experience using one light coat (let it flash dry) followed by a heavier coat. Try to paint in low humidity if you can. Watch out for runs or sagging. If you mess up, its easy to let it dry and try again later.

 

thanks man, does anyone know a nice shiny clearcoat i could put on top?? my friend just painted his rear bumper and when he put a clearcoat on it, it got a little duller instead of shiny...and i dont want that to happen to me

 

I've never found a good rattle can clear. maybe someone else has an idea.

 

I used clear from automotivetouchup.com - gets a little hazy about a year, but just needs a good buff once in a while.