Front plate repaint
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 297
Likes: 3
From: Indianapolis
Front plate repaint
My '80 had the front plate when I got it, but it looked very weathered, like it was being turned to dust by UV rays. The finish was so porous it took forever to clean the bugs off it when I washed the car.
I thought, what the heck, it's already ruined, I can't make it worse by messing with it. So I sanded off the rough plastic and gave it a coat of black semi-gloss, mostly to make it easier to wash. To recolor the letters, I used touch-up paint. The bottle I got from Willcox is so big I could probably repaint both bumpers with it, so I am looking for any excuse I can find to use it somewhere. I brushed on a couple of thick coats so you can't see any brush marks. Then I cheated a little bit and scraped the edges of the raised letters with an exact-o knife to give the yellow a crisp edge. Much better! Just don't get too close, it's a 10-footer like the rest of the car.
I thought, what the heck, it's already ruined, I can't make it worse by messing with it. So I sanded off the rough plastic and gave it a coat of black semi-gloss, mostly to make it easier to wash. To recolor the letters, I used touch-up paint. The bottle I got from Willcox is so big I could probably repaint both bumpers with it, so I am looking for any excuse I can find to use it somewhere. I brushed on a couple of thick coats so you can't see any brush marks. Then I cheated a little bit and scraped the edges of the raised letters with an exact-o knife to give the yellow a crisp edge. Much better! Just don't get too close, it's a 10-footer like the rest of the car.
Last edited by indydoug; Jun 20, 2013 at 09:08 PM.
every improvement counts no matter how small
They add up over time, don't they!
