chrome bumper replacements
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 36
Likes: 14
chrome bumper replacements
Corvette America's bumper replacements seem reasonably priced- are they just chrome plated?- the originals seem to be solid chrome. Am I better off trying to get the small rust pits somehow taken care of and the old ones re-chromed?
Also- where do i buy body lift straps?
Also- where do i buy body lift straps?
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 36
Likes: 14
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 36
Likes: 14
I'd rather hear that the quality of the replacements is wonderful and I should run with that. Rechroming is only if the replacements are thin crap that start to peel the day after the warranty is out...
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 31,274
Likes: 4,366
From: Westminster Maryland
Hi wpm,
Librandi's in Pennsylvania has been doing chrome plating for car and motorcycle lovers for many years and do beautiful work as Bill mentioned.
They respect their customers and have reputation to protect by continuing to do exceptional work.
The chrome plating they did for my car is more than 10 years old and is still flawless.
Check them out!
Regards,
Alan
Librandi's in Pennsylvania has been doing chrome plating for car and motorcycle lovers for many years and do beautiful work as Bill mentioned.
They respect their customers and have reputation to protect by continuing to do exceptional work.
The chrome plating they did for my car is more than 10 years old and is still flawless.
Check them out!
Regards,
Alan
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Burning Brakes
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 975
Likes: 108
From: Phoenix, AZ
and it may be cheaper to re-chrome them than purchase the off-shore replacements. Just had my bumper re-chromed and one of the factors in my decision was I was guaranteed a good fit.
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 36
Likes: 14
Well one piece has a small dent, another had 2 big holes drilled in it, and one is rusted through in a spot. CA sells both import and USA replacements, and it appears only the imports warrantee the finish (for 5 years). I think I'll buy a replacement for the one with holes in it and judge the fit and quality of that piece before buying more. It doesn't sound like anyone with actual experience with the CA products has chimed in...
Racer
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 383
Likes: 21
From: Greenville Ohio
Well one piece has a small dent, another had 2 big holes drilled in it, and one is rusted through in a spot. CA sells both import and USA replacements, and it appears only the imports warrantee the finish (for 5 years). I think I'll buy a replacement for the one with holes in it and judge the fit and quality of that piece before buying more. It doesn't sound like anyone with actual experience with the CA products has chimed in...
Eric
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 3,264
Likes: 3
From: Vero Beach FL
Racer
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 383
Likes: 21
From: Greenville Ohio
I was trying to help the OP possibly identify the holes that were drilled into the bumpers but since you brought up Paragon and they have the original GM tooling, would this also apply to the front bumperettes? I will be shopping for those soon.
Eric
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 31,274
Likes: 4,366
From: Westminster Maryland
Hi Eric,
The Paragon catalogue describes the bumpers but not the bumper-ettes.
I'd give them a phone call to clarify.
Also, the bumper-ettes have a section that is painted to match whatever paint is used on the egg crate part of the front grills. So that finish will need to be matched.
Regards,
Alan
The Paragon catalogue describes the bumpers but not the bumper-ettes.
I'd give them a phone call to clarify.
Also, the bumper-ettes have a section that is painted to match whatever paint is used on the egg crate part of the front grills. So that finish will need to be matched.
Regards,
Alan
Racer
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 383
Likes: 21
From: Greenville Ohio
Hi Eric,
The Paragon catalogue describes the bumpers but not the bumper-ettes.
I'd give them a phone call to clarify.
Also, the bumper-ettes have a section that is painted to match whatever paint is used on the egg crate part of the front grills. So that finish will need to be matched.
Regards,
Alan
The Paragon catalogue describes the bumpers but not the bumper-ettes.
I'd give them a phone call to clarify.
Also, the bumper-ettes have a section that is painted to match whatever paint is used on the egg crate part of the front grills. So that finish will need to be matched.
Regards,
Alan
I have heard Paragon has the best fitting "aftermarket" bumperettes and it could be true IF they have the GM tooling to reproduce the bumperettes. I wish I could re-chrome mine but they're too far gone. I'll have to do more research when I get closer to tackling that project.
Eric
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 31,274
Likes: 4,366
From: Westminster Maryland
Hi Eric,
The fit of the bumper-ette can be difficult but I believe it usually has more to do with it's upper connection at the bumper and then it's lower connection at the bottom bracket that attaches to the front crossmember, rather than how it was made.
Also, the way the grills are mounted have a LOT to do with how the gap between the grill and bumper-ette lines up and how big the gap was.
Ideally there should be very little gap and the alignment with the grill should be straight. Unless the fiberglass, crossmember, or brackets are 'tweaked', a good fit is obtainable. This is why it's often a good idea to trial fit the the bumpers and GRILLS before painting so that if the the grills need to be moved a little the fiberglass can be 'adjusted' if necessary.
The exterior of the car is rarely easy!
Regards,
Alan
The fit of the bumper-ette can be difficult but I believe it usually has more to do with it's upper connection at the bumper and then it's lower connection at the bottom bracket that attaches to the front crossmember, rather than how it was made.
Also, the way the grills are mounted have a LOT to do with how the gap between the grill and bumper-ette lines up and how big the gap was.
Ideally there should be very little gap and the alignment with the grill should be straight. Unless the fiberglass, crossmember, or brackets are 'tweaked', a good fit is obtainable. This is why it's often a good idea to trial fit the the bumpers and GRILLS before painting so that if the the grills need to be moved a little the fiberglass can be 'adjusted' if necessary.
The exterior of the car is rarely easy!
Regards,
Alan
Last edited by Alan 71; Jul 15, 2013 at 09:42 AM.