Painting the Cladding Black. All questions answered here.

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Shawn Couture

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This project was done by TOM R. http://www.mysporttrac.com/mysporttrac/

Painting the Cladding Black

By Tom R.



Many people were wondering how I completed this project and I want you all to know how it is done. I agree, I do not like the grey. I went to a local body shop where they do paint work. The cost was 160.00 for the bumpers and the sides with the side steps. The job was done in a day and a half. You will find this under the projects by tom. The neat thing is that if you ever have a problem with it you can easily touch it up completly un noticeable with the products shown under the projects for painting the chadling. Print the project out and bring it to the auto body to have then know what you want. Look it up and I will be happy to help you walk through the necessary steps. Hope this helps. Enjoy!



Remember to print out the project and take it to your local bodyshop. They can do this very cheaply, if not get another estimate. They will have to just remove the rear bumper, side chadling and side steps. This truely is the best thing I have done on my trac and it looks factory with no scraping or scratching. Also if you ever do scrape the bumper you can easily pick up the one can of spray paint listed on the project and it touches up undetectable. I honestly love it. :cool:

 
I have a Silver Birch ST and wanted it to be not like all the rest out there. I originally wanted the Cladding painted the Silver Birch, but now that the 04's are like that, I decided I wanted to do the black. I will attempt to describe the details involved with painting the Cladding.



Materials Used:



1 Container "Simple Green",



1 Greenie Scrub Sponge,



2 Cans of "Dupli-Color" Adhesion promoter (CP199 Adhesion Promoter)



4 Cans of "Dupli-Color" Bumper Coating (FB105, Flexible Black Bumper Paint).



Total cost, about $30.00



First, Proper preparation is an absolute must. I removed the 4 EGR Fender Flares, the 4 Molded Mud flaps, the 4 Lower Body Side Cladding pieces and the Rear Bumper Cover.



Removal procedures for the Lower Side Cladding parts and the Rear Bumper Cover are listed in my library under the Project HTML's folder. The link is... memberlib.asp-view=9711&folder=Project HTML's .



I started off with cleaning and scrubbing down the parts with Simple Green and used a Greenie Scrub pad to make sure I got everything real clean. After washing everything once, went back and washed it all again just to be safe. Last thing you want is the paint to come off because of a poor adhesion.



Let everything dry, and lay it all out in an area where you can work free from dust and bugs. Start by painting one piece at a time with the Adhesion Promoter, this stuff dries really fast, so by the time you get to the last piece, the first piece is ready again. The Adhesion Promoter is actually a Clear Primer. I put the first coat on fairly thin, the other 2 coats were put on nice and wet. I did about 3 coats on each piece.



When it is all dry and ready to be painted, start by applying a half coat of the black and move on to the next piece. I found out on some test pieces that the old adage "many thin coats are better than one thick one" is very true when it comes to durability and adhesion of the black paint. Each piece I painted, the paint was applied very thinly and was done the same way for each subsequent painting. I think it was about 6 or 7 times for each piece, so that should equal at least 2 nice coats.



The Front Lower Bumper Cover was painted in place using the same techniques as above. Mask off the Upper Bumper Cover as well as the front fenders and the front wheels.



After letting everything dry for several hours, install all the pieces.





 
Chad, that is the project TOM R did on his silver birch...



I don't like using simple green, IT is a pain to remove the residue left from it after you wash the parts..



Todd Z
 
Last edited by a moderator:
no clear coat, no shine? Forget that. + you still have all that texture on your bumpers, eww.





To get the same finish and glamor as the rest of your ST, take the rear bumpers and side skirts off, then tape off the front bumper since the whole front is 1 piece and you don't want to accidentally sand the paint



sand the texture off using 180 grit and work your way up to 400 grit. 180 then 320 then 400.



clean off using dish washing detergent, dry off then set on stands ready to primer.



clean again with wax + grease remover.



spray 1 wet coat of adhesion promoter, wait for it to flash then spray 2nd coat. DO NOT LEAVE ADHESION PROMOTER TO SIT ON BUMPER FOR MORE THAN 30 MIN! OR IT WILL BECOME NO USE AND YOU HAVE TO SPRAY AGAIN.



then wait for the 2nd coat to flash and spray your 2k primer. 2 coats is fine, but if you still see a little texture or sand scratches go for a 3rd coat. remember to wait for flash times in between coats.



wait for the 2k to dry about 3hrs, wet sand your pieces using 500grit sand paper, with a wet sanding block.



clean off using dish washing detergent , dry off set on stand to be based. clean again using wax+grease remover



tack cloth the pieces then spray 1st medium wet coat of base, wait 10 min. for it to flash, tack cloth the pieces, spray 2nd coat, alittle heavier than 1st coat, again wait for it to flash off. and again tack cloth the pieces, spray 3rd coat of base. wait for it to flash and tack cloth. make sure everything is covered with the paint. and remember to go easy on the paint, runs are embarrassing!



clean gun and spray 1st coat of clear, medium wet coat don't worry about dry spray. 2nd coat lay on thicker than 1st and try to cover any dry spray. finished, let it dry and attached pieces back to truck.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
KarmaPolice,



I dunno, I kinda like that flat, bumpy look. Lots of cladding on some of the small SUVs these days looks like that darker, flat black. I think it compliments Sean's red ST quite nicely.



To each his own.



But thanks for writing up how to get the smooth look. But hey, if people really want that they should just trade-up for the XLT Premium with monochrome package (see my pics). ;)



TJR



 
But what if they don't have the XLT Premium package and they want the grey textured bumpers gone and have it color matched/2-toned. but don't want to go through the trouble of trading in their whole Trac? A.) Take it to a body shop and have them do it.

B.) Do it yourself using same techniques as body shops but for cheaper. That is if you have all the tools mainly 2 spray guns, one for primer and one for base/clear.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
ok, just a change on the black paint from the body shop..



could u go to the hardware store and buy a set of the do-it-yourself bed liner and do the plastic sides and bumpers in bed liner?



that way u get the great black look and the added protection of the liner.
 
From Chad:

I need to repaint my cladding, it is starting to chip in small areas.
Click to expand...



Did you paint the cladding yourself?

What process did you use?

Do you know why it is chipping off?

Would you do anything different this time?
 
I did the same process as above except, like Todd I dont use simple green. The chips are from rocks, etc. And I would do it again, the same way. All I have to do is clean and prep the cladding and just touch up the areas.
 
Hello All,

I have never had a single chip. I went to a body shop to have my done for 165.00 It is guranteed for 2 yrs. I honstly will have to say that I love it. I can post the phone # of my body painter in MA. He is an honest man.

Don Roy's Auto Body Appearance

(413) 593-5010 Write a Review 1416 Granby Rd

Chicopee, MA Map
 

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