Painting chrome plastic grill ? (2 Viewers)

[aktundra]

Has anybody painted their plastic grill peices ? Have you found a paint that bonds well, and can stand up to the rock chips ?

 

[baldilocks]

I hit mine with sand paper and then coated them in rustoleum bed liner from an aerosol can. It’s been on there 15k miles and is holding up well enough. I did the first touch ups a couple weeks ago. It will chip if impacted hard enough but for what I have into it I’m very pleased and I like the texture it has that regular paint does not. I also did the mirrors, door handles, bumpers and sliders with it. Perhaps one of its best features is its resistance to UV rays.

 

[voodu3]

X2 on the rattle can bed liner. Sand it and clean it well and you should get good results. It’s easy to touch up too if you do get a chip.

 

[cody c]

I would sand and use krylon, a rustoleum product made for plastics and stuff. I've had better luck with krylon than other paints.

 

[bwakeling]

I had painted mine but ended up replacing it after a few years. Didnt hold up. Prep work is key then clear coat it with some 2k aerosol.

 

[Box Rocket]

I've tried regular paint in the past, even with good prep work and it didn't hold up. It would chip easily. A few years ago I tried Plastidip on my Tacoma grill. It worked really well so I've used it on my 80 too. I painted my 80 grill 4 years ago with Plastidip.
blackGrill by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

4 years later it still looks good.
IconWheels and Toyos by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

One nice thing about it is that since it's slightly rubberized it is more resistant to rock chips. It doesn't need a bunch of prep work either. Just clean the grill before you spray. If you don't like it, it peels off like a vinyl sticker.

 

[BILT4ME]

I painted the center part of my grille with Plastidip gray in 9/2017 and it is still holding up well. This is the pic from when I did it. The TEQ badge is really rock chipped now, but the Plastidip part looks almost as good as the day I did it.

But I did LOTS of sanding and prepping to get it to stick and stay stuck.

I like my chrome, so I'm sticking with that part.

 

[Marine7]

Prep.... prep..... then prep some more! Then I sprayed mine with Wally World truck bed liner (no rough texture) and 2 years later it’s still looking good! Prep is KEY with ANY kind of spraying. And for what it’s worth... I will NEVER use plastic Kote or whatever it’s called! It’s easier to sand old paint than it is to try to “peel off” that garbage. P.O. did the rims before I bought it, what a bit&$ to remove!........ JUST MY OPINION

 

[FaronF]

Has anybody painted their plastic grill peices ? Have you found a paint that bonds well, and can stand up to the rock chips ?

I did mine about a year ago, took the plastic pieces off, lightly sanded and sprayed with a couple coats of Fusion satin black, still looks great.

 

[Box Rocket]

Prep.... prep..... then prep some more! Then I sprayed mine with Wally World truck bed liner (no rough texture) and 2 years later it’s still looking good! Prep is KEY with ANY kind of spraying. And for what it’s worth... I will NEVER use plastic Kote or whatever it’s called! It’s easier to sand old paint than it is to try to “peel off” that garbage. P.O. did the rims before I bought it, what a bit&$ to remove!........ JUST MY OPINION

I wonder if something different was used. I've never had that issue. I've recoated my flares with the plastidip 2-3 times now over the past 4 years. It peels off easily. But it's a product that you don't want to sand beforehand. You want a clean smooth surface (it's designed to be sprayed directly over painted surfaces). If the surface is scuffed it will be more difficult to remove. A little trick.....Goo Gone or WD-40 sprayed on a plastidipped surface will liquify the coating (not fully liquid but a runny/sticky consistency) and it can be sprayed off with a power washer. Makes cleaning it from complex surfaces much easier.

To clarify. if you decide to use Plastidip, you don't need to do a bunch of prep (in fact it's better if you don't). Just clean the surface. Mask it off about 2-3" larger than the area you want to spray. For example, if you were spraying emblems you would just mask a large square on the body that was 2-3" bigger than the emblem. Once it dries, you peel the oversprayed area and it will tear a clean line wherever there is a seam. In this example it would be around the edge of the emblem.

When doing the grill, I opened the hood, masked the fenders to allow ~2" of overspray. Same with the corner lights and headlights. Sprayed 2-3 light coats and then 2-3 heavier coats. Once it dried I went back and peeled the fenders and lights and it tore a clean line around all the grill and light trim edges.

 

[Berzerker76]

1. Clean thoroughly with Dawn dish soap and water
2. Dry completely
3. Sand to scuff
4. Hose off with water/dry
5. Wipe down with acetone (wear surgical gloves so you don't transfer skin oils to the surface)
6. Spray with Plastic Adhesion Promoter (important step do not skip)
7. Spray with top coat, I used Rust-Oleum Trim & Bumper Paint

2 years later and looks as good as the day I painted it.

 

[Marine7]

I wonder if something different was used. I've never had that issue. I've recoated my flares with the plastidip 2-3 times now over the past 4 years. It peels off easily. But it's a product that you don't want to sand beforehand. You want a clean smooth surface (it's designed to be sprayed directly over painted surfaces). If the surface is scuffed it will be more difficult to remove. A little trick.....Goo Gone or WD-40 sprayed on a plastidipped surface will liquify the coating (not fully liquid but a runny/sticky consistency) and it can be sprayed off with a power washer. Makes cleaning it from complex surfaces much easier.

To clarify. if you decide to use Plastidip, you don't need to do a bunch of prep (in fact it's better if you don't). Just clean the surface. Mask it off about 2-3" larger than the area you want to spray. For example, if you were spraying emblems you would just mask a large square on the body that was 2-3" bigger than the emblem. Once it dries, you peel the oversprayed area and it will tear a clean line wherever there is a seam. In this example it would be around the edge of the emblem.

When doing the grill, I opened the hood, masked the fenders to allow ~2" of overspray. Same with the corner lights and headlights. Sprayed 2-3 light coats and then 2-3 heavier coats. Once it dried I went back and peeled the fenders and lights and it tore a clean line around all the grill and light trim edges.

Thanks Box Rocket! That MUST be what happened. The Previous Owner painted the rims with it, and i payed hell trying to remove it to re-spray! I appreciate the WD-40 tip as well..... that stuff does everything! lol
So, I guess i shoulkd clarify to the OP then- "plastic kote works great in the hands of an ADULT'! lol
Todays fun? Rebuilding front axle......what fun!