Is there a paint I could use to paint the fake louvers on the hood of my IROC. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

When my car was painted over the winter my louvers were painted by the body shop, they did a real good job.


Mike

you dont need a damn body shop to paint some louvers. go buy some plastic paint from auto store, take off your louvers, take a scotch brite and scuff them up, wipe them off with a cleaner and paint them.

I don't have louvers, but I assume their plastic. And in that case what you should do is scuff em clean em and use a special secret of mine. Actually it's really no secret, but for plastic like that I would use krylon's black plastic "infusion" paint. I know that krylon isn't considered the worlds leader in paint quality, but this infusuion plastic paint is really good. Like the name says, it actually chemically fuses with the paint. One other thing I always do when painting biggerr plastic pieces is ground them. I would take a chain and attach it to the plastic. doesn't have to be big heavy chain, and just let the chain hit the floor. this way you know that you paint won't be screwed due to static electricity.



Good Luck, DacMan

yea i wouldnt pay a bodyshop to paint something that small.. i would do just what he ^^^ said... much easyier and much cheaper.. u can go to walmart and get krylon paint that works amazing

Great minds think alike kris lol.

Grounding plastic? That's a new one. I will do it btw, I just have never heard off it. My problem is they have been painted before, maybe by GM, but it's has shed about half of it.

Well, as far as grounding it, I picked that tip up off of Kevin Tetz... the guy off of Trucks, that's on Spike TV's powerblock. Ofcourse I give kevin a lot of tips as well lol lol lol. Scotch brite will take that paint right off, it's really pliable, like steel wool.

DacMan

Scotch brite is the green scrubby thingies?

Green is one of the colors they come in, dark red is the most common color, but the differences in colors represent differences in "grit". You can get them at your hardware store, or even a NAPA. It's perfect for what your' doing.


DacMan

I know what you are talking about now. I should get the finest grit I bet. I also need to paint it the right color... I think a satin. Any suggestions? They are black already. Just need to get the texture right.

It may just be common sence, but I would get a good car wash soap and hand wash them a couple of times before you scotchbrite them.


What is the correct color for them? Flat black or glossy?

you dont need a fine grit. the scotch brite will work fine, all you gotta do is get them dull (no shine) then just clean, and paint. the krylon will seal it well. do 2 light coats, first coat is just to get some paint on it for the other coats will stick well. wait 10 mins, add another coat this time make it light but make sure the entire thing is covered, then wait 10 mins and add the 3rd coat this time make it heavier, not TO heavy, but make sure its all even and decently thick. if its to thick youll get what looks like "pin holes". but since its thicker itll spred out and seal all the bumps and what not, thus no need to go with a fine grit paper. make sure you primer first though. 2 coats of primer is plenty. wait a good 2 hours before handling it just to make sure you dont get finger prints in it.

Just for the sake of more info, I used the following product to paint an overhead console. I was very impressed with the results.

Rust-Oleum Specialty Plastic. (Direct-to-plastic paint. No primer needed.) Pics in the second post:

http://www.thirdgen.org/techboard/in...-continue.html (Overhead Console Experiments Continue)

JamesC

All the ones I have ever seen on original cars were flat black. To be honest, I'm not even sure GM painted them at the factory as they all look like bare black plastic to me. I know the ones on my Camaro are just bare black plastic.

Dish soap would be better than car wash soap. Some car wash soaps contain waxes and/or other compounds to help make the car shine better when you rinse it. I use dish soap when I wash plastic models before painting them and I have never had a problem with the paint sticking.

And its Krylon FUSION, NOT "Infusion" and it does work great on plastics. Works decently on metal too with a good coat of primer.

They may have not come from the factory painted, but they were painted by somebody, and where the paint flaked away, it looks kinda aged, and pasty. If they make krylon fusion in flat, I will go with it and paint the whole thing.

I'm still open to suggestions..

Nice pic James. Was the rust oleum satin, flat, gloss?

Yes, they make it in flat black. You should be able to get it at your local Wal-mart. I've also heard good things about the Rustoleum paint mentioned by JamesC and have had success with their other paints, but haven't used it myself.

i used krylon fusion paint - made for plastic. scuff it a little - not much. works great. dont need a base coat. and its cheap.

Nothing on the can. I suppose you can judge from the lid/cap on the can itself.

JamesC

Good call on the dish soap.

I have an extra set. Tonight I stripped all the dirt and grime off with dish soap and hot water. Then scotchbrited them, then washed them again. Just got them dried and put my 1st coat of Fusion on them. Once i am done with the third coat will i need any sanding? I hope not, but would like to know in advance if possible.

Under more careful inspection, the louvers look like they came unpainted from the factory. The previous owner must have painted them, but with what? They are about half covered with paint, and the rest is flaked away. I don't even want to try any chemical stripper.

At this point I will look for either brand of plastic paint in flat. This will emulate the factory look.

You can use dish soap, but if you really want a clean surface,,, and you know your gonna paint it for sure, then you can use comet. Yeah the powder green stuff. Works best and will get rid of any wax or grease, also you can use window cleaner as a pre final wipe to really get rid of any contaminates before paint, after the window cleaner, I suggest using a tac rag. This may seem a little excessive, but professional results require professional quality techniques. Sorry about the mix up on infusion and fusion, really not a big deal.

DacMan

Yea I'm not worried about the fusion infusion, I meant what you know. I will wash with dishsoap, comet, window cleaner, and wipe with tac rag. I hope I'm smart enough to remember this lolol. I was told to ground the plastic louvers while painting to get rid of any static also. Gonna lay off the bear till after this one is done.

What type of relationship do you and the bear have?

lol

Definitely don't want to use any kind of chemical stripper on them as you run the risk of softening, warping, or otherwise damaging the plastic. I'd be careful using Comet as well, it may scratch the plastic. I know you're going to scuff it anyhow so it may save a step, but you don't want any deep scratches.

I use dish soap to clean anything car related, it works great at taking grease off my hands after working on the car, and cleaned up my engine and front suspension parts nicely. Just have to watch where you wash stuff like that. I'm not sure which my wife hated more - me using the kitchen sink or bathtub to wash parts.

I know its not a big deal as far as fusion/infusion goes and everyone so far seemed to know what was meant, but it never hurts to make sure everyone is on the same page. There's always one in the group who is a little slow on the uptake.

One other thing you may want to consider. Painting them is fine, and the Fusion stuff is good, but you still have the paint exposed to the elements and to the potential for stone and other things to chip the paint. That protection is one of the reasons for clearcoat on car paint. Normal clearcoat would give them a nice shine, but that is not what we're looking for here if the aim is to take them back to a factory look. They do make a flat clearcoat for plastic models that should work nicely. I'm not sure if Krylon has produced one as part of their Fusion line or not. The stuff for models is made by several different manufacturers, but the commonly used one is call Dullcote by Testors. A couple coats of something like that should give it a measure of chip protection.

Btw, be sure to post some pics up once you get them done so we can see how they turned out.

92T-top is right. If you're gonna wash with dish soap forget the commet, it would work, but it's really overkill (which is how I like to clean things before I paint). I don't know were you intend to paint this but if you can you might want to try to go for your garage. I don't know how "paint smart you are", so I'll just fill you in on the basics In the event that the garage is not usabel then you can paint outside so here are DacMan's simple rules to outdoor painting lol lol lol, don't paint in the sun, find a shady area, but preferably not under a tree, and if at all possible, try to hang your pieces to be painted, it's much easier, the ground can't contamanate it, and you will get better coverage.


Good Luck, DacMan

I would add that screened in porch would be a good substitute to a garage as long as you watch the overspray. That way you don't have to worry as much about bugs getting in your fresh paint. I usually paint my parts on the front porch, its not screened in but its easy to hang stuff from the plant hangers that are already there. I need to start putting plastic up or something as my white porch is starting to take on a multi-colored look from all the overspray.

I would also recommend a painter's mask whether your painting indoors or out.

A screened in porch would be a great place, one other thing I forgot to mention, don't listen to all that humidity and heat bull sh** on the can, if it's not raining, and your not painting in the sun then it really doesn't matter within reason. Of course if it's cold then it does, but just use common sence, like, if it's 100 degrees, probably shouldn't be painting, or if it's so muggy, you can't hardly breath, then you shouldn't paint then. The only reason I tell you this is when I was younger I use to always wait for the perfect days to paint lol. And you really don't have to.


DacMan

If it's over 100 degrees, I would just spray a lit match lolol.. Actually I have a screened in porch that would do just fine. The bugs seem to come out of the cracks when it's time to paint.

i painted my louvers maybe a two weeks ago with satin black rustoleum paint from home depot after sanding with a 300 something grit paper. i did another coat after a brief wetsand on some bug spots and they look like this now:

Not bad man. They almost look like they function! Did you use regular rustoleum, or the stuff for plastic?

just had mine done when I got my car painted I got them gloss black, at first I was skeptical, because I was used to the flat look but they look amazing......now I just gotta fix some broken studs, and they'll be good to go

in fact i used this stuff to paint all my ground effects and im going to use it to paint the t-top bars, handles, and line trim on the car. Its all about sanding and prep for good paint, not million dollar paint unless your showing the car or something. im in high school and broke- this is my paint and this is what it does

Mine has broken studs also. Not sure hot to repair them. Any suggestions?

I've never seen that lid on a can of rustoseum. You can get them anywhere? I was thinking about flat. My car is black, and I thought flat might complement the hood. What do ya think?

Scuffed with a scuff pad, wiped off witha tack cloth, sprayed with some actual auto body paint that won't fade in a year. BTW, i used the same paint on the hatch trim, door handles, locks, windshield wipers, t-bar, t-top sides, and drip rails. The stuff worked amazingly. I believe it's just called satin black auto paint by ppg.

btw, t top bars, are you refering to the part just above the window? I need paint on mine in a bad way.

I used windshield urethane, they are NEVER coming off lol.

I ended up painting my louvers with krylon fusion. I am not completely satisfied with the finish. I had a lot of orange peal like ****. It didn't have continuity either. It changed texture as I sprayed. I put them on, and they look better than they were, but I just might try the rustoleum . I have brittle studs holding, and some are missing. Any suggestions?

I painted the louvers on my first Iroc blue.

It looked real nice at first, i painted them a dark blue and they came out amazing.

You just have to sandpaper it down and everything. But i used a can of spray paint....but after a couple months they started to powder off. My suggestion would be clearcoat it after your down for a more glossy and better down application

I can go the distance with sanding them down. I just didn't like the krylon finish. I also had another one of the studs break off. I saved it, but I need a solution to them breaking off. They are brittle, but new louvers would set me back somewhere between 80 - 100 bucks..

This might help. I don't see it posted yet. Link (IROC hood louvers - broken posts)

If there's enough meat in the plastic you may also try drilling and tapping the plastic along with the epoxy.

I'll take time to read about broken studs, and how to repair them. I have enough to hold the louvers on now, I am concerned about taking them off, and putting them on, and loosing some again.

I'm in the middle of refinishing my louvers.

Just finished scuffing them with some 400 grit. and washing them clean.

Then gonna hit them with SEM "OEM Trim Black" paint. Should give them an OEM finish.

Make sure you sand the edges and corners for maximum hold.

Where do you get oem paint? Is it semi gloss?

Bought the paint from an automotive supply store.

I'm assuming it's satin finish

Quick pic of the can....

I don"t mean to beat a dead horse here, but Krylon Fusion with 3-5 light coats look so good it brings a tear to your eye.

I tried Krylon fusion, and it slightly looks like sh**. I couldn't get rid of the the orange peal look. I need to sand them down, and start over. Maybe with the oem stuff, or maybe with the krylon stuff.

Take them off and send them to me and I'll paint them for you. Just sand off the paint you have on them now.