Chrome (1 Viewer)

[kwatty]

As I've gathered from this forum, no one seems to appreciate the chrome accents. I ordered some 3m wrap and touched up the chrome under the tail lights extending up to the center piece with lettering. Mind you, I've never done anything like this before. I basically cleaned it, stuck it on, and used a hair dryer. Then I moved to the trim under the windows which I guess is new from 2016. I have to say it looks pretty damn good with the wrap. So my question is, what do you all recommend for the grill? I would worry that vinyl wrap and plastidip wouldn't hold up well in this location but I have searched the forum and noticed some of you have used wrap for the grill. How much life expectancy do you expect out of this?

Thanks

 

[Mogwai]

I took the grill apart the plasti-dipped all the individual horizontal in-lays (not sure what to call them - but they are the chrome pieces on a 2013). Worked out well and was very easy, looks to be holding up well too (@ 6 months). That said, I've plasti dipped my wheels twice now, and only get about 6 months out of them before they are too ugly for my eyes. Admittedly I've never been great w/ a can of spray paint so the poor performance of plati-dip on my wheels could be user error. Just make sure if you use the plasti-dip that you end with a very thick application of it, as it wears it seems to thin out. When it's too thin it won't peel easily.

Let us know how you're making out, I was just thinking about re-doing my grill and making it monotone (all black). I used the matte gray color plasti-dip last time to match the wheel and sides but plan to go back to black as I prefer the look on silver. Don't mind all the bug crap in the photo, had just gotten back from a trip when I snapped it.

Gray plastidip front grill - Sept. 2016

• Mogwai
• Sep 6, 2016

 

[kwatty]

That looks great by the way. I may just go with the plastidip for the grill (and maybe the rear center land cruiser logo) if you seem to be getting decent life out of it there. Mine is black so I went with matte black for the chrome trim bits described above. Thanks.

 

[RS6tofj80]

Plastidip holds up well and is easy to remove if not assuming you get at least 4-5 coats on ...

I did shoose to 3M my side door trim as I wanted more of a satin ....

E

 

[Mogwai]

Interested in how it all turns out! Please share pics...

Here's my rear in gray

Rear plasti-dipped gray

• Mogwai
• Jan 13, 2017

Here's a current... right now I'm in transition of going back to black. Decided to skip the plasti-dip on the wheels this time and go a more permanent route and used spray paint. The rims had some pretty good curb rash and trail rash so I cleaned them up, but now need to keep them covered since they aren't too perty w/out. Anywho, I'm stuck with the wheels for a while so I sprayed them black and used a dark red shade of Testor's enamel to highlight the sombrero, and then gloss clear coated the cap and wheels. And you'll notice I'm in transition (actually only have two of the wheels done so the other side is still gray), side panels grill, and rear are gray so I'm contemplating what to do with them.

Stock wheels painted black red enameled logo

• Mogwai
• Jan 13, 2017

I tried black and then gray plasti-dip wheels. Decided to go back to black and make it more...

 

[kwatty]

Looks good. So my understanding is you apply a coat, wait 20 minutes and repeat x 4. Is that right? And does it truly peel easily around edges? I would guess getting the emblem so perfect would be a bit tedious.

 

[jetstream23]

There are a few threads around here where others have talked about doing an actual paint job on the chrome pieces or parts of the grill. I'd be curious as to the differences, pros and cons, appearance and durability of both approaches. Not sure if anyone has actually done both paint and plasti-dip (either on different grills or the same one) and could give a true comparison but that would be great.

 

[Mogwai]

As far as plati-dipping, yes for the most part apply, wait, apply, etc... though I'm not sure 4 coats is enough. For the logos, or really anytime you go along an edge you want to tape off on the other side, and then overspray a good inch or so, that way you can peel that part off and what's left is just the logo part. It was really a lot easier than I had expected and peeled off easily. What you dont want to do is try and tape off everything except for what you want sprayed (like you would using spraypaint).

 

[RickC5]

I just finished Plasti-Dipping my front grill, the side moldings & the chrome trim on the tailgates yesterday. Sorry, but no photos at this time. This was required due to the damage done to all the chrome by the Magnesium Chloride used by the state highway dept. on the roads in the winter. The chrome looked awful--like rust spots, but was actually the silvery surface eaten away by the mag chloride, exposing the copper coat underneath. My dealer told me that painting was the only fix, as replacing the chrome was costly & the damage would just occur again.

My experiences are: 1) You need at least 5 THICK coats or it's difficult to peel properly; 2) Be careful of runs/sags as you spray on those thick coats; 3) The Plasti-Dip needs to look glossy as you spray--a speckly-looking coat will be very grainy/textured when dry and too thin; 4) There's not much overspray, but removing the front grill is easy and prevents a bunch of masking; 5) Drying time per coat is only about 15 minutes; 6) A filter mask is highly recommended; 7) When dry, the Plasti-dip has a very rubbery feel to it, almost tacky--but it's been less than 24 hours so it may get less rubbery as it ages: 8) Any overspray that gets on the paint can be easily rubbed off with a micro-towel.

I used 4 coats of dark grey, then 3 light coats of Metallizer (gives a metallic look) and finally a heavy coat of Glossifier, which has a "Fade Protector" (UV blocker). All available from Plasti-Dip Your Car.

I'm reasonably pleased with the results as it only took a day, cost was relatively cheap (compared to having a body shop paint everything) and the look is unique. My 200 looks a lot like Mogwai's, just glossier and metallic. Time will tell how well it ages/performs.

 

[luke27617]

One more tip with plastic dip. The warmer the bottle content the more fine spray will be without big particles. Recommend to have a bucket with hot water to hold bottles right before you spray. Trick I have learned from a pro.

Personally I am not a big fan of plastic dip because of texture and have removed it from my car, but it made my boat trailer wheels look great again. My cruiser's new wheels went for proper treatment of powder coating ($125/rim in Raleigh, NC)

 

[dnh1]

A few thoughts. First, I have spent a large number of hours in my life "customizing" my cars. If any of you have enough money to buy a Land Cruiser, you have enough money to pay a shop to get rid of the chrome and make it look way better than you will be able to do.

LC 200 window trim was all black at least in 2008-2009. Same with door handles (matched color of vehicle). So you can just order from a VIN from that year and swap.

Rims can be painted professionally for about $100.00 a rim around here, and look way better than "plasti-dip" or krylon. I assume that is the case anywhere.

As far as the grill, emblems, etc, a shop can paint these for you. Or, you could have Beno find a part number for a black grill from Australia and order that.

I have posted this truck a few times (my 2009 LX) but don't know how to link to other posts. I apologize. Anyway, here is the most blacked out blacked out truck you are gonna see.

One thing to keep in mind, as much as the "I gotta have my truck blacked out so bad it it killing me" bug can bite, keep in mind that it changes the whole look of the truck. I went from the blacked out LX to a blacked out (from the factory) supercharged RR. I got so sick of riding around like a gangster that I am not about to take any of the chrome off of my new 2016 LC. I actually enjoy blending in a bit.

 

[citadel]

anyone have the part number for the black grill mentioned?

 

[dnh1]

anyone have the part number for the black grill mentioned?

Ask Beno

 

[Outdoorfunguy]

As I've gathered from this forum, no one seems to appreciate the chrome accents. I ordered some 3m wrap and touched up the chrome under the tail lights extending up to the center piece with lettering. Mind you, I've never done anything like this before. I basically cleaned it, stuck it on, and used a hair dryer. Then I moved to the trim under the windows which I guess is new from 2016. I have to say it looks pretty damn good with the wrap. So my question is, what do you all recommend for the grill? I would worry that vinyl wrap and plastidip wouldn't hold up well in this location but I have searched the forum and noticed some of you have used wrap for the grill. How much life expectancy do you expect out of this?

Thanks

Why don't you visit Gatorwraps and Gatorprints. Professionals there will be able to address all you concerns.