Can stock bumpers be match painted?

[techniques]

My question is the same as the subject. The reason I ask is I plan on getting my car painted soon and Im doing all the prep work myself. I want to strip the chrome off the bumpers so they can be painted to match the rest of the car (battleship gray will be the color)
Also where can I find clear headlight covers and a CHEAP set of bumper fillers and how do I go about getting tail lights with the black trim instead of the chrome trim my t-type has?

Thanks for all help,
Jason

 

[Chuck Leeper]

My $.02 worth

1. It's not necessary to strip the chrome prior to painting. If the bumpers are CLEAN and have been prepped w/ a scotchbrite pad on a buffer to rough up the finish, a GOOD epoxy primer, paint will adhere just fine.
HOWEVER!! powdercoating is even easier and MUCH more durable.
2. Clear headlite cover??You are on your own there.. Imo, they look like $hit
3. The words "cheap" and "BUICK" do not go in the same sentence!! GM ft fillers are only $33.00 per side. The rears are about $400.. I just finished a set of aftermt rears. They look great! About $160.00, as I recall. The co. is in Louisana or Miss, I think. Someone here will have that info, I'm sure.
4. The tail lite chrome and/or the black trim comes off the main lens assy. You can do them like the bumper, only hand sand them, paying added attn to the grooves and corners. failure to do that will result in the paint letting go when it shrinks during the drying process. We use a Scotchbrite pad. [red]
We use low gloss trim paint by SEM for the trim pieces such as the lite bezels, etc. The window trim is always powdercoated.
You could also get a set of GN lites and use the better of the lenses in those trim pieces.. I'm betting tho, that unless you pay a goodly amt, the GN's will need painted too!!

HTH,
Back under my rock!!

 

[techniques]

thanks Chuck,
I guess I'll go ahead and order the whole filler kit from POSTONS its only like $240 or something in that ballpark.
I like the way the clear headlight covers look!!!! (I saw them on the buickgn.com website and I thought they looked pretty clean?)

 

[Red Regal T]

Re: My $.02 worth

Originally posted by Chuck Leeper

Clear headlite cover?? You are on your own there.. Imo, they look like $hit

HTH,
Back under my rock!! [/B]

........I BEG YOUR PARDON?

 

[Red Regal T]

IF YOU DO A SEARCH IN THIS SECTION FOR "FILLERS", I'M SURE YOU CAN BEAT THAT $240 FIGURE BY QUITE A BIT.