hey guys. Well I am planning on buying a 97-99 front bumper to put on my 95 Eclipse, so that I can also fit a front mount whenever I can purchase it. But, I was wandering if anyone has ever painted any body part for an Eclipse so that it would match the car's paint. I was wandering if it was hard? Or should I have someone do it? I know it sounds stupid, but I was thinking about painting the front bumper by myself for now so that it would match the color of my car, and then eventually when i have money, get the entire paint job.

 

i would have someone else do it couse painting takes quite alot of skill

 

I guess so. I was really planning on it, but I figure I would ask, because maybe it might have been or is easier than I think.

 

I have painted for years, and it does take alot of practice to master. I would have it done if you have no prior experience. Once you get it down though, its real rewarding to see what you have acomplished. I actually need to post my new pics of my Eclipse that I just finished.

 

I never painted a car before and I decided I would respray my front bumper... didnt come out as good as I was hoping, the dude at the shop sold me some real ****ty paint. Anyway if you have the right tools, and a clean, well ventlated area to do it then its not too bad. If not, just get someone to do it.

 

come on guys cant you just go to home depot and grab some spray paint and put that right on there, . Im JK

 

lol i saw a car that was painted with krylon plastic paint once....it was quite scary

 

Thats crazy! I guess I am going to have someone paint it for me.

 

I always laugh when hear someone say "the guy sold me ****ty paint" "it doesn't match" Truth is that paint wasn't ****ty it was all human error. Don't expect to just go to a part store and expect the color to match perfect, It will never happen. There are a lot of things that change look of the color. The way the paint is sprayed, the air pressure at which its sprayed, the temp of reducer that was used all change the color of the color. Not only that there could be atleast 4 variances of that color and there is no way of telling which variance it is unless you have a variance chip deck. On top of getting the color to look right you will never ever get an exact match if you simply just paint the bumper. I dont care how close the color is it will look different unless you blend the color onto the fender.
Not to mention when clearing it, you have to use a flex additive to the clear which makes the viscosity thinner causing it to run a LOT easier. Bumper covers are natorious for running because you have to get proper atomization (wet look) into all the nooks and crannys and before you know it whooops run. Then your F*****D because they are a bitch to sand and buff out.

I went to 2 years of college for autobody and do a lot of painting. I would strongly suggest taking it to a shop and have it painted professionally because I KNOW you will hate the outcome by doing it yourself.


I hope I was a little help. I tried not to sound too negative about it but im just trying to save you some frustration and embarrassment. If anybody else has paint or bodywork questions i'd be more than happy to help.

 

I also wanted to add....I think EVERY car enthusiast should learn how to paint. What I did to learn was find **** body parts, go buy some cheap paint (base colors, no mettalics) and practice. I started out with acrylic enamel (single stage paint) so I didnt have to clear it. Then when I got that down, I went to basecoat/clear coat. Laquer IMO is best due to the high production times (dries quicker) which in turn means you can wet-sand and buff faster. But there are alot of variables in painting.