Updated DIY Bumper repair chronicled - what not to do - final pictures

A couple of weeks ago I posted about my unfortunate highway speed encounter with a golf umbrella that rolled out the ditch into my path. While I avoided most of it, the handle punched a hole in the bumper. I thought about after-market replacements, but the cost was too much (would have need skirts etc. and the mod budget is dedicated to the TR6 restoration) and even a used OEM would have been close to $1,000 once painted... So I decided to embark on a DIY, never having done any paint / body work before. All painting was done with spray bombs. Here is what I found after removing the bumper cover. Front side damage A bit worse than I thought Backside damage Evidence of a respray previously, but no accident damage was apparent Bumper repair kit About $20. It's pretty simple and idiot-proof to use. Best of all when I remove the bumper I found the small piece of the bumper that was broken right off. It glued back into place perfectly! Preparation Washed the bumper both sides 2X with soap and water. Sanded and cleaned the area up to remove paint and used acetone to clean everything thoroughly. Patching Material is pretty easy to work with once dry. Sands with 120 grit and the 220 to feather into existing bumper. Backside uses mesh tape for strength. Primer Here is where my pack of experience came through... While I primed the area I did a poor job of managing overspray and surface preparation and had to actually remove and respray (picture conveniently omitted ) In the end the primed area was more than 2X what you see in the picture. Used 320 grit sandpaper to prep the surface for the base coat. Base and Clear Coat Again I had a huge difficulty managing the overspray and clear coat blending (you would think that I would have learned) and ended up have to let everything dry and then sand off. My painting area grew by 200% at least. However, I kept telling myself that it was a safe learning experience. Moreover, my neighbor lent me the FadeAway product which blends the clear coats and really works well. The finish is not great with a fair amount of orange peel in the clear coat. I expect that maybe some 2000 grit wet sanding might be the right cure... I am a bit trepidatious to try it though for fear of messing up the surface. Inner trim I refinished the inner trim with black trim paint. It looks 100% better. All in all, total cost for patching, paint, sandpaper etc. was about $100. The finish will do until next year when I get a new cover and side skirts....

I missed your original post. Well done for a first attempt, especially with no experience! It may not be perfect, but I'm sure it's a dramatic improvement. How easy was it to match the color? Can you see a difference, or did it blend right in?

I think you did good for your tools. The only thing I think you did wrong was all the paint was to be removed where filler would be. I dont think you are to put filler on top of paint???? But I am not body man either. In fact you know what you deserve??? I got it right here

Nice work!!

Atta Boy! BtW, that hole looked like an umbrella handle.

That looks good! I would not have attempted it......but since you did it that gives me promise! Good job.

Well done and honestly, being on the underside, I don't know how noticeable it would be as Sunlight doesn't hit it too much down there at that angle. As for the orange peel, you'd be amazed what a random orbital polisher and the right polishing compounds can do to not only seamlessly blend but also take out the orange peel. Obviously, depending on the level of orange peel, you might have to wet sand it first. Have you ever seen primer polished to a mirror finish before? Ask me how I know.

Thanks for all the compliments guys. I realize that the rest of the bumper looks kind of tatty... Might have to get another can of paint and do the whole thing... Now that I know what I am doing, I would not hesitate to do it again. Wet sand and buffing tomorrow. Read about it last night, should be fun.

Fergus, (see the first name in your sig helps! ) Very nice job! I like your logic going into this project. If successful, you saved a lot of money and developed some new skills. If unsuccessful, you buy a new bumper cover and get it painted, and developed some new skills along the way.

Nice work!

Quotes source post: 7545619

Bit of advice, be very careful with the sandpaper in corners and sharp curves. It's easy for inexperienced to take off too much past the clear coat and/or even base coat.

LOL!!! Yep I learned the hard way - twice. On the third spray of clear, I was finally able to get a decent even finish and buffed instead... The result is passable, unless you know where to look it's not immediately obvious. 2011 will bring a an aerokit bumper and side skirts, so this just has to last the summer.

nicely done. Any pics from further away?

wtg - we are all proud of you !!

Nicely done. Treat yourself to the adult beverage of your choice!!!!!

How does it look from 10 feet away? Looks pretty good in these little pictures.

I will shoot it in the sun later this week, when the sun comes back from whereever it is hiding.

Colour match is good, but the lack of wet sanding is noticeable. I will live with it until I can get a an aerokit bumper and side skirts. Call it justification

I think you did a good job, except you must have some overspray on your headlights.

Nicely played, fbgh

Nope... The bumper was not on the car when sprayed. Must be the headlight covers that need to be restored. The right one is particularly bad.

Just kidding...

Wow nice job. I wish I had the marbles to jump into a task like that.

See me other thread on headlights

Timely thread for inspiration. Thanks! My GT3 front bumper cover "met" a curb two days ago and paint cracks developed in various spots of the bumper. The extent of my DIY is to remove the bumper and eventually reinstall it. Knowing my lack of patience with paint prep work, the bumper is now with my autobody guy for repair and repaint. The surprising thing for me is that I called several retail autobody repair/paint shops and none of them would touch any repair jobs. They would rather replace it and an OEM GT3 bumper cover and repaint is not inexpensive - over $2K at a minimum for the work and used part. Repairing it costs much less, especially when done by a guy you can trust...

me so sad - that ^^^^ is my old car I just had the front end fixed on did you get my pics Mike?

Ed, Got an email from you yesterday, but no pics. BTW, don't worry - the car would be back in shape in no time. I couldn't bear seeing the car with paint peels, cracks, etc. It's tucked safely in the garage. I'll send photo when done. To the OP, good work! Better than what I would have probably done.

Nice work, and I like the ramps too.