I forgot who was wondering about painting their mirrors and door
handles, but I found this how-to that David Howe did up and which
Gary Pinkley reposted. So, with all that siad, here's another repost.
Chuck Robbins
'99 Dakota Sport
http://www.members.home.com/clrobbins/dakota.htm
===================================================
- -----Original Message-----
From: Dave Howe <dhowe@netarrant.net>
Subject: Painting
>Gary -
>Someone on the Dakota RT list told me you had painted the mirrors and door
>handles on your truck. Anything special required to smooth out the rough
>texture of the plastic, or to make sure the paint doesn't chip off the
>handles? Would you recommend this?
>Thanks!
>Dave Howe
>
I didn't remove the texture of the plastic. If you try to sand the plastic,
it creates little 'fuzzies' that are impossible to remove and will really
muck up the paint. Several layers of paint will smooth over the parts
really well. Also the texture really gives a lot more surface area for the
paint to stick and not chip as easily.
First thing I did was dissassemble the mirror and remove the glass and the
plastic backing. The key to good paint is prepping everything you can and
painting all over so you don't give the paint anywhere to peel from. Be
careful with the glass, I broke mine by not being gentle and no one makes
replacements yet, so I had a glass shop make some custom cut mirrors. I
lost the Convex passenger side mirror when this happened.
Next, I cleaned everything several times with wax and grease remover. Then,
I used a scotch brite pad to scuff the gloss off the plastic everywhere.
Once scuffed, I cleaned again with wax and grease remover. Then I used a
two-part PPG epoxy primer (DP45 Red-Oxide color, I might be wrong about the
DP #), which bonds really well to the plastic. DO NOT USE a laquer based
primer or hardware store primer, they will not flex enough and will flake
off. I let the epoxy cure over night and scuffed again with a NEW scotch
brite pad. I then used a tack rag to remove all the dust and grit. Then I
used PPG Urethane paint. Again, DON'T use a lacquer based paint, enamel is
good, but catalyzed urethane is the best.
The door handles and tailgate handle were painted at the same time. I also
cut apart the door handles to completely dissassemble and get paint in
everywhere. You will see once you get them out of the truck.
To date, the paint's been on a year and a half and I have no chips on the
mirrors. My factory paint has lots of chips, but the mirrors seem very
durable. The key is prep work and very good materials.
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