So you just got a new bumper, or you are looking to refresh some older bumpers, or your adventures have brought rock rash and damage to your bumpers. Let’s go over what we recommend when you want to coat your armor item. To spoil the answer early we recommend good old fashion spray paints. Let’s dive into the pros and cons of the popular options we get asked about.
Bedliner
Bedliner is a popular option in our area. There are several DIY kits available.
Pros
- Several DIY kits available
- Paint from a can available
- Tintable options to paint the color of your choice
- Textured paint
Cons
- Harder to clean
- Paint gets everywhere when painting
- When painting from a air gun need to make sure to have dry air and a reasonably sized compressor
- Making texture uniform across the part
Powder Coating
We are asked about powder coating often and many parts out there come powder coated.
Pros
- Clean finish
- Thick coating
- Many Color options
Cons
- Chips and flakes off with damage
- Moisture can get in between metal and coating and corrode the metal
- Tough to repair
- Needs specialized equipment (though kits are available)
Spray Paint
This is the option we recommend when coating your bumper or items.
Pros
- Paint available everywhere
- Easy to reapply
- Many colors available
- Touchup is simple
- Low cost
Cons
- Difficult to get good finish
- Not tough
- Needs several coats
- Spray nozzles can mess up finish
As mentioned before, we recommend spray paint. We expect your armor to take abuse, rock rash, rock chips from forest roads, and my favorite, sliding into a tree. Being able to quickly sand the needed repair area and spray it with a can is a quick way to fix it. Whatever it is, doing a quick touch up or repainting the whole thing will keep your armor looking good and keep corrosion away.
Regardless of what option you choose, ensuring the coating will adhere to the surface of your new bumper is needed to look good and protect items for a long time to come.
Lightly sanding the surface will aid the paint and give an even surface for the paint to coat on. After sanding, degreasing will remove the dust from the sanding and the grease from the metal that is present from manufacturing and shipping to keep the bare metal from corroding. A primer may need to be applied before the final coatings are applied. Follow the instructions on the product when applying. Also pay attention to the recoating and drying time recommendations of the manufacturer.