Having had the paint since Christmas, it was nice to finally have the time and weather to get this done!
Before:
Note the rust on the grille guard and the stock grey lower valance:
Without the grille guard, just to see:
Lower valance detached:
After:
80% through painting, still wet:
10 hours later, drove 100 miles, 4 hours later drove another 100 miles:
Can't see the valance too well in those last ones, sorry. Will get it out to a parking lot for some real pictures this weekend perhaps, after a much needed wash n wax.
Procedure:
This freaking SUCKED to do. For me, at least. For those from here and other forums saying they got their lower valance off in 30 seconds or 5 minutes or by popping it off via a curb stop, screw that! Sucker took me a good 45 minutes. Perhaps though it is because there was some built up nastiness and the thing had been sitting still for 11 years. Anyway, I did it the right way, first removing each of the 13 push pins, and then removing the "host" for those push pins, instead of just yanking each pair as a whole (which is much harder and should break the part, considering the mechanism), let alone the whole darn valance.
After that was done, my issue was then my grille guard mounts, bolted to the frame by 2 bolts each. This was tricky because this component is supposed to be installed with the valance off, and uninstalled with it off. However, to get the valance off, these mounts had to be off. Sort of a catch 22.. Anyway, I spent the time making my hands do interesting things and using socket wrenches at hilarious angles to eventually get the right (anatomical) mount off, and then maneuvered the valance in a way that cleanly angled it so the left mount slipped right out. That one stayed in. Rustoleumed both mounts just for kicks and to hide the rust, bolted the other back on.
Started sanding with some low grain stuff, but as you can see in some parts, it scuffed it through the rough, or rather the material, a bit more than it should. Switched to 200, which worked it a bit better. To anyone doing it, I suggest starting at 200, or perhaps an even higher grain. Painted the valance with rattle canned black Krylon Fusion. Perhaps I had a bad can, but even after attempting declogs and shaking like I couldn't shake no more, it still didn't aerosol like the Rustoleum. However, it was fine enough that after a few coats it was looking good. I wasn't very systematic about it, just horizontal sweeps followed by vertical and then repeat, then went over areas that needed more. It's simple paint. Let it out to dry for a few hours, put it on in the evening after a late dinner. No issues, dried fast.
Sanded the grille guard with 50 grain in some spots that had stickers, rips in the powder coat, and rust, as well as an impact site or two or three ANYWAY then covered the whole thing in 200, which for some reason seemed perfect. Sanded because I didn't strip the powder coat because I don't even know how to strip the powder coat with my resources. Rattled canned Gloss Black Rustoleum, went really well. Hit all sides at least 4 times, more on the mini bars. Much more black than it was before, though pictures may not show it. I'm very happy with its outcome, looks brand new compared to how it did before. Mounted it that evening maybe an hour after painting. Was dry enough for it, no marks left behind.
Can't think of anything else to add. Rustoleum is some good stuff man. Real clean.
As always, input welcome! Be nice, it was my first time painting anything of this magnitude, let alone on a vehicle.
A few questions:
1. Since the grille guard is now black instead of faded grey, should I spray the bolts black? They stand out quite a bit now.
2. I got antsy with Rustoleum. I had a good scrape on the front left covering of the chrome bumper (the black, thin part). I said what the hell, and sprayed it a bit, cleanly of course. Come the next morning, it looks 10x better. Is this a safe thing to do, and will it damage the existing paint? At that, can I go ahead and hit another steel-deep scratch that I've got? As well, I have some oxidation spots on the roof, can those be sprayed? Just wanting to make sure. If not, suggested alternatives, other than full strip/repaint?
3. So, when can I wash? Do I need to worry about pressure at any point, now or future? Can I/should I wax the lower valance? Can I soap and rub the valance and grille guard?
Again, thanks for all the help!
Before:
Note the rust on the grille guard and the stock grey lower valance:
Without the grille guard, just to see:
Lower valance detached:
After:
80% through painting, still wet:
10 hours later, drove 100 miles, 4 hours later drove another 100 miles:
Can't see the valance too well in those last ones, sorry. Will get it out to a parking lot for some real pictures this weekend perhaps, after a much needed wash n wax.
Procedure:
This freaking SUCKED to do. For me, at least. For those from here and other forums saying they got their lower valance off in 30 seconds or 5 minutes or by popping it off via a curb stop, screw that! Sucker took me a good 45 minutes. Perhaps though it is because there was some built up nastiness and the thing had been sitting still for 11 years. Anyway, I did it the right way, first removing each of the 13 push pins, and then removing the "host" for those push pins, instead of just yanking each pair as a whole (which is much harder and should break the part, considering the mechanism), let alone the whole darn valance.
After that was done, my issue was then my grille guard mounts, bolted to the frame by 2 bolts each. This was tricky because this component is supposed to be installed with the valance off, and uninstalled with it off. However, to get the valance off, these mounts had to be off. Sort of a catch 22.. Anyway, I spent the time making my hands do interesting things and using socket wrenches at hilarious angles to eventually get the right (anatomical) mount off, and then maneuvered the valance in a way that cleanly angled it so the left mount slipped right out. That one stayed in. Rustoleumed both mounts just for kicks and to hide the rust, bolted the other back on.
Started sanding with some low grain stuff, but as you can see in some parts, it scuffed it through the rough, or rather the material, a bit more than it should. Switched to 200, which worked it a bit better. To anyone doing it, I suggest starting at 200, or perhaps an even higher grain. Painted the valance with rattle canned black Krylon Fusion. Perhaps I had a bad can, but even after attempting declogs and shaking like I couldn't shake no more, it still didn't aerosol like the Rustoleum. However, it was fine enough that after a few coats it was looking good. I wasn't very systematic about it, just horizontal sweeps followed by vertical and then repeat, then went over areas that needed more. It's simple paint. Let it out to dry for a few hours, put it on in the evening after a late dinner. No issues, dried fast.
Sanded the grille guard with 50 grain in some spots that had stickers, rips in the powder coat, and rust, as well as an impact site or two or three ANYWAY then covered the whole thing in 200, which for some reason seemed perfect. Sanded because I didn't strip the powder coat because I don't even know how to strip the powder coat with my resources. Rattled canned Gloss Black Rustoleum, went really well. Hit all sides at least 4 times, more on the mini bars. Much more black than it was before, though pictures may not show it. I'm very happy with its outcome, looks brand new compared to how it did before. Mounted it that evening maybe an hour after painting. Was dry enough for it, no marks left behind.
Can't think of anything else to add. Rustoleum is some good stuff man. Real clean.
As always, input welcome! Be nice, it was my first time painting anything of this magnitude, let alone on a vehicle.
A few questions:
1. Since the grille guard is now black instead of faded grey, should I spray the bolts black? They stand out quite a bit now.
2. I got antsy with Rustoleum. I had a good scrape on the front left covering of the chrome bumper (the black, thin part). I said what the hell, and sprayed it a bit, cleanly of course. Come the next morning, it looks 10x better. Is this a safe thing to do, and will it damage the existing paint? At that, can I go ahead and hit another steel-deep scratch that I've got? As well, I have some oxidation spots on the roof, can those be sprayed? Just wanting to make sure. If not, suggested alternatives, other than full strip/repaint?
3. So, when can I wash? Do I need to worry about pressure at any point, now or future? Can I/should I wax the lower valance? Can I soap and rub the valance and grille guard?
Again, thanks for all the help!
Last edited:
