1FASTZ28

I have an old grille laying around. It had the license plate bracket on that I removed. I would like to fill the holes left from this and paint the grille a gloss black. I did a search on here for it and found a lot of pictures but was unable to find anything about the steps for doing it. What can a person use to fill the holes in the grille and then what are the steps for sanding, primer, paint, etc. What grit sandpaper did you use and what kind of primer and paint did you use to get a glossy finish. Thanks

crimson_bird

iTrader: (4)

most detailed write-up- http://ls1.com/forums/showthread.php?t=113667 -used "plastic repair caulk" to fill holes

https://ls1tech.com/forums/appearanc...paint-mod.html -used "plastic epoxy" to fill holes

https://ls1tech.com/forums/paint-bod...ill-holes.html used 2-part "Automix plastic" repair to fill holes

-hope this helps

1FASTZ28

Thanks Crimson_bird I searched and came up with just about nothing all pictures of the finished product and nothing really in the write ups. Hope these help so I can get on it today now that I am laid off for a while.

tdevil55

iTrader: (23)

Stock Camaro grill paint mod post was mine. I used the epoxy to fill mine in. I didn't take pictures of the process, but what I did was first clean the area to be filled. Then sand or cut the hole down to sit flush with the rest of the grill. With most of the holes, the plastic has been pulled up and out of shape by the screw going into the plastic, so using a sander or a razor blade, I cut the plastic around the hole to get rid of the raised plastic and keep everything level. Clean off the mess you made with the cutting and sanding. Now mix up some epoxy to fill the holes. I got some sticks from the craft section in Wal-Mart to help mix and apply the epoxy to the holes. Once the epoxy is mixed good, start filling in the holes. Fill them in enough that the epoxy is overlapping the holes and sitting on top. Once all the holes are dry (mine took about 10 mins to dry) use your razor again to cut the excess of the epoxy off the top of the hole so that its flush with the grill surface. Let the epoxy set a little more after you cut it down and then do a final fine grit sanding to the whole grill to get rid of any excess epoxy and uneven areas. Clean it again, let it dry. Then start the paint process. It was cold in my garage, so I had to do a few coats a day and let it dry. I also left a small heater on in my garage to help the paint set. another thing I did was instead of hanging the grill to paint it, I used some jack stands to set it on to paint. I also put some string on the center of the grill on the connectors on the back side to pull the middle down so that the grill bends flat as possible so that the paint will not run if you apply too much at one point.

Good luck with the painting and let me know if you have any other questions, and post some pics when done!

1FASTZ28

If there was primer used what kind was used and also what kind of paint should I go looking foras well as clear coat? I am wanting this to be a gloss black when finished.

tdevil55

iTrader: (23)

I didnt use any primer for mine, just cleaned it real good and sanded it some to rough it up. I used some Rustolim spay can paint. Gloss black and the clear coat.

1FASTZ28

Here is the grille so far I can't seem to get the old license plate holes to hide they are still visible.

1FASTZ28

Here are the final pics

cpo

iTrader: (13)

Sorry man, but that paint job doesn't look good at all. I'd strip it and try again, or take it to a body shop. Trust me, it looks bad....

11SECSS

iTrader: (199)

here this might help you out.

http://hrfbody.com/showthread.php/10...step-with-pics

1FASTZ28

Sorry we can't all be professional painters. This is my first time doing any body work and painting if it shows I guess that would be why. I really don't think it looks that bad on the car now with the inserts in it here is a picture.

crimson_bird

iTrader: (4)

your headlights need some TLC... in a major way.

the grill came out pretty good though. like anything you choose to paint yourself, if you did it once, you can do it again. so if you feel like it, you can always give it another shot, so it's no big deal. the main problem, is that you can still see the holes a little, but in person, its probably not that bad.

jb98camaro

iTrader: (1)

or just some new ones lol

jb98camaro

iTrader: (1)

that does look good tho man.. im going to do mine soon i think

1FASTZ28

Yeah I know the headlights need some TLC I tried to wet sand them and polish them but the hazing is on the inside. I need to find out if I can take the lens off like doing the whistler mod and try to do the same wet sanding and polishing to the inside of the lens.

ky_black_ss

iTrader: (7)

dude use some flex primmer on it before you paint it

cpo

iTrader: (13)

A little wet sanding in between a few coats of Semi-Flat Black. Smooth as butter.........