texture at home.

twolitrevw · #1 (**permalink**) 09-01-2008, 06:21 PM

Leo asked for this.

Here's a brief run-down on how to texture some parts for those that may be interested.

What you'll need:

Painter's tape (width of your choice)
Masking paper (newspaper can work)
Big Grit Sandpaper (for plastic parts)
Fine Grit Sandpaper for Paint Prep (you'll see that on the description)
Heat Gun
Goo Gone (or comparable adhesive remover)
Alcohol (or any paint-prep solvent)
Rustoleum Flat Black spray can
Duplicolor Spray-On Bedliner
3M Double Sided Body Tape (if it's not 3M, you'll regret it)
Case of beer
Patience

There's a few ways you can do this. The end result is directly related to the amount and level of prepwork you carry out. The less prep you put in, the worse it'll look, the less time it'll last once complete, and the greater the margin for error becomes. It's not rocket science, but cutting corners will make you regret it in time.

1- Remove all parts you're going to texture. Typically this is bumpers and moldings. I recommend warming the moldings with a heat gun and gently pulling them off as the existing tape begins to give. If you break the molding, you'll have to buy a new one. Take your time.

2- Once you've got your bumpers and moldings off, make sure you didn't leave any double-sided tape on the car. If you did, heat it up and get rid of it. You want the surface you're going to reapply tape to later to be as clean as possible to ensure good contact. Now is a good time to take pics of what a complete POS your car could look like if you didn't have bumpers or moldings. Make sure you post those up.

3- Take a good look at the back of your moldings. See all that tape and gunk that's there? Clean it off. All of it. Odds are pretty good that you'll start to regret the entire thing during this part of the process. Too late to turn back now. The rest should be a breeze, right? Do a good job... remember, you want it as clean as possible so the new tape can make good contact.

4- Wash everything. The moldings and the bumpers. You want everything clean and very dry. Seriously.

5- How are your fingers? Your elbows are next. You can mask off parts of the bumpers with tape if you want, but I didn't. I was just really careful in the areas that were next to parts I didn't want painted. Grab your heavy grit sand paper and get to work. At this point, you're trying to get rid of the wax, clear, and top coat. Some will tell you to take the existing paint off. I didn't, and I don't advise it. You're going to use the existing paint as a primer. So make sure you scuff everything up real good. If there's smooth areas when you're done, you haven't finished. Try to vary directions, too, so you're real thorough.

6- How's that paint powder taste? You'll be breathing that crap for days. Go ahead and grab your finer grit sand paper. It's the one that should say "prep for paint" somewhere on the packaging. This one should smooth out your previous work enough so that it's even and flat, but rough enough for your paint to grab nicely. Remember, if you can see shine, you're not doing it right.

7- Wash everything again. You need to get rid of all the paint dust and stuff that has been flying around your work. Next time try not to make such a big mess. And make sure everything is good and dry, too. You don't want moisture on there when you spray. That stuff will come right off if there is.

8- Rub everything down with solvent or alcohol. I simply grabbed a bottle, put a spray nozzle on it, and applied to the parts i was going to spray. Then I rubbed it all down with a rag. Make sure this is all nice and dry before your next step, too. A fan might help.

9- Carefully mask off the sections you don't want to paint. There's a hundred ways you can do this. I made a tape line first by coming in to the very edge of the non-paint area and carefully taping it off. Once i did that, i simply taped on masking paper with more tape over the existing tape line. If you're careful enough, you can get right into the creases between the bumper sections with the tape and a paperclip so that it's hard to tell whether or not the finish is factory.

10- You're ready to spray. Take your rustoleum flat black, and get to work. You want to do very light, even coats. Be patient. This will take some time. The image above is what mine looked like after the first coat. Yes, there's paint on there.

11- Once you've got everything nice and even with flat black, admire your work. Now is a good time to decide whether that's good enough or whether you want to actually add the texture of the bedliner. Your call.

12- Spray on the bedliner. If you were doing light coats before, this should be even lighter. Make sure you're using long, even strokes as you spray (you pervert), as you don't want one area to be rougher than the next. You might not see it now, but it'll look like shit when you're done, and you don't want to see it when you're done. I suggest applying a light coat, walking away, and checking your results. If you desire more texture, go for another coat. Remember that once you've applied, you can't reverse the process without starting all the way from the prep process again. Be patient.

13- Once you've achieved the desired level of texture, gently and slowly peel off all masking paper and tape. If you followed instructions and did a good job, it should look a lot better than my first attempt. (i say first attempt for a reason... pay attention to the "followed instructions and did a good job part.)

14- Put your bumpers back on.

15- Apply 3M body tape to your moldings. Leave the paper barrier on the outside for now. Just get it ready. Go out to the car and line everything up first. These things don't go on exactly centered, so make sure you know exactly where you're going to stick them before you actually stick them. Once you're sure about placement, stick them on. If you're really retentive, you can apply some painter's tape across them to hold them on until you're sure everything has set properly. I didn't, and so far so good.

16- Take pictures and post them.

some day, i'll get around to doing the front bumper. and taking a pic that isn't crooked.

üBER-GTI · #2 (**permalink**) 09-01-2008, 06:30 PM

wow! Nice write up lou! Whoever screws this up after FOLLOWING all your directions thoroughly is an absolute moron.

Über 525i · #3 (**permalink**) 09-01-2008, 06:34 PM

nice tutorial lou! car looks good, once you get that front done it should look hawt as hell

FerBoca · #4 (**permalink**) 09-01-2008, 06:42 PM

:thumbsup:

but it needs to go lower...lol

BLK MAGIC · #5 (**permalink**) 09-01-2008, 10:06 PM

thx for the write-up!

LipeGTI · #6 (**permalink**) 09-01-2008, 10:20 PM

i just threw up some prime, then 3-4 coats of textured spray paint...and it always came out perfectly. Did the same with Eduardos MKIII, exept no prime, we just roughed up the original paint with sandpaper