hi guys. i have seen people on the site that have painted the frount bumpers and wheal well trim on there trucks. ive notice that the sun has faded the plastic on my truck as well. my question is what kind of paint do u use and will it chip or crack away.

There are the textured plastic bumpers and flares that came on the XLTs, then the EDGE and Sport models came with painted bumpers and flares.

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Sold:2004 XLT 4x2 Ext. Cab. 3.0 Mods: 3" spindle, AAL, shackle, 32x11.5 on 15x8s, billet grille, clear corners, flow 40 dumped, line-x, CB/PA, traction bars, lil sound system, auto up down windows
Sold:2005 XLT 4x4 Ext. Cab. 4.0 Mods: ProComp lights w/ HID swap on tabs, 32x11.5 on 15x8s, CB/PA, black out heads/corners, lil sound system, cranked t-bars, flow 40 dumped, line-x, shell, bed rug, 06+ tails, metal tail gate handle since plastic one shattered, OHC, Mustang Dome.

either can be painted with a variety of things,
Dupli color bumper coating w/ adhesion promoter
Krylon Fusion
Dupli color bedliner
Body match w/ adhesion promoter

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1997 Ranger XLT GREEN SOLD.
Sony HU: Infinity 6X8's: painted interior vinyl: reupholstered and painted door panels: new vinyl floor: fo-diamond plate behind seats: Suede headliner: Two tone black/tan interior: fiberglass OHC: Black Explorer visors w/ upgraded mirrors: painted grill w/ mesh in grill: locking tonneau: 10" kicker sub: pioneer amp: racing stripes: blacked out tailights: custom paint on rims and hubcaps: Painted bumpers: rocker stripes: More mods that won't fit

Mine were textured grey plastic and I've always thought grey plastic looks horrible. So....after toying with paints on a couple flares, I've come to what I like to think as the best option.

Scuffing the trim with some 220 grit. Spraying on adhesion promotor(couple of coats). This sticks to the plastic and acts as a primer. Then DupliColor Truck Bed Coating in a can. Takes a little getting used to with how it sprays....it's not like regular paint that spits out smooth. I also removed all the parts from the truck to paint them. Some mask the truck and leave 'em on....but I prefer to not half ass. No offense to anyone who paints 'em on their truck of course...your method works.

End outcome is black black black and isn't really grippy like the roll-on bedliner stuff....that stuff tends to take pieces of your washmit with it.

before:


after:


direct comparison....Duplicolor Bedliner bumper, stock grey valence...







Other people just use Krylon Fusion rattle can and call it good. I tried Fusion Satin Black...was way too shiny/glossy. I tried Fusion Flat Black...it worked, but looked too grey at times. I tried Krylon Matte Finish clear on top of both blacks and it did look pretty decent. While trying to get away chips from previous botched and non-prepped sprayjobs, I sanded the flare too smooth and wanted that textured finish. Sprayed on the bedliner only to add the texture back...but...what came from it was awesome!! When properly prepped, there shouldn't be any chipping. In the hard to cover areas, I do have some chipping probably caused by lack of prep. One mark on the bumper is from my finger before the bumper coating finally cured. I ran my chrome bumper painted iwth Duplicolor bedliner for 2 years and noticed no fading. Then recoated everything(bumper, valence, flares) and for 2 years havn't noticed any fading.

Another option is using dedicated trim paint/bumper paint. Usually found right there at your local auto parts store next to the color-matched rattle cans. Buddy of mine used it on his flares and valence on his '98 and it looked really good...made me wish I went that route. I suggest if you go this route, use a high quality paint like SEM brand paint.

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'01 XLT disguised as a '03 Fx4 Level II.

looks awesome, i might actually do that to mine too.

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1998 XLT V6 4.0 4x4 ext. cab
-dual exhaust
-spray on bed liner
-smoked lights
-tinted windows
-Kobalt Tool Box
-Pioneer Headunit & Kenwood Speakers

wow. nice job, looks great!

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2002 Ranger XLT stepside
4x4
4.0L V6 SOHC
245/75R16 on stock 16x7 rims
L/S 8.8" 4.10 gears
Torreador Red
Painted Grill

can you post a close up pics of the texture? I have been looking at roll on and spray on beliners to do the exact same thing as you have, but most of them come out too shinny for my taste or not textures enough... I also don't want to spend $500 on line-x.... thanks! also, how many cans did it take?

Rafal

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For the bed as a bedliner, only thing I suggest is Spray-in professional job like Line-X or Rhinoliner. If that's too much $$, just do a bedmat. I get tired of seeing people roll their own on and after a couple uses, turns to shit. You can never go wrong with a proper spray in.

For valence, bumper, and flares, I want to say I used 5 cans at about $10 a can. It's been some time and I've had to coat a replacement flare after I lost one on a trail last year.



But for the flares and valence and such....here's the best I can do for texture pics...

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'01 XLT disguised as a '03 Fx4 Level II.

I think I'm going to do this within the next week or so.... I like it!

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You're one of the lucky ones....you actually started out with factory black plastics!! Darn Fx4 dudes. haha.

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'01 XLT disguised as a '03 Fx4 Level II.

but it's fading and the back 2 flares have some major scratches in them... they don't look bad with plastic dressing on them, but once the dressing wears off you can really tell. Plus I think I'm one of the few people that is not a fan of chrome on trucks, hence why I wanted to paint my front/rear bumper as well...

Rafal

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DAMNIT!!! Why are you so damn far away!?!?!?!?11?!??ONE!?!? I'd trade you straight up! I WANT CHROME AGAIN!!!

hahaha.

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'01 XLT disguised as a '03 Fx4 Level II.

lol, you are a drive, road trip?

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LOL...I could buy brand new OEM's with the gas money I'd be spending. lol.

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'01 XLT disguised as a '03 Fx4 Level II.

yeah but the chrome on your truck looks so BA, id leave it alone!

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