Restoring window trim with Trim Paint

[Civic-EG]

http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/bad_trim.jpg

Look familiar? Years of outside weather & sun is not kind to window trim. The surface is actually rubber, over a piece of metal. Over time the rubber dries out and gets surface cracks, which then begin to chip off.

http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/DSCN0967.jpg
Take them off and sand then down to smooth any peeling edges that are sticking up. something in the 80-150 grit range is good so you're not sanding all day. But remember the lower grit you use, you must watch out for any scratches in the end.


http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/DSCN0968.jpg
Here I have sanded down the worst areas and cleaned them off with a wax/grease remover. Then lay down the bondo/filler. The idea is to fill in the areas where the rubber coating has chipped off to make that part flush with the parts that still have the coating. Also fill in any areas that have the rubber coating with cracks in the surface.


http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/DSCN0971.jpg
Let it dry. Next sand down with your low grit sandpaper like before just to form the contour by removing any extra thick areas.

Once you're happy with the overall contour of the face of the trim piece, go back with some lighter grits (220, 320, 400) and remove any deep scratches left by the low grip paper.


http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/DSCN0976.jpg
if your trim was like mine, there were some areas that did not even need to be sanded or bondo'd (the part by the mirror was better protected from the elements and was fine)

So for the initial primer, I used a couple light coats of Self Etching Primer.
(right side of pic)
Next I did a few coats of filler primer (left side of pic) to help fill in some additional remaining scratches from my sanding.

Then give them one final sanding with a paper in the 400, then 600 grit range.

http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/DSCN0985.jpg
Clean them again with the wax & grease remover and then One more final coat of primer...

then hit them with a few light coats of Trim Paint (http://www.duplicolor.com/products/trim.html)
http://www.duplicolor.com/gallery/gallery_images/can_trim.jpg
(I didn't get a pic of this step)

Let dry and install:

http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/DSCN1440.jpg
(dusty car)

http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/DSCN1441.jpg

The Trim paint looks just like OEM. I had a few chips on my mirrors and white was showing through, so I sanded them down and painted them too.

http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/DSCN1443.jpg

http://www.6thgearadvertising.com/misc2/civic/trim/DSCN1444.jpg

This paint is great stuff! Works great on those faded/chipping windshield wipers too. Something as small as a few fresh trim pieces can really make a car look a lot younger :)

[charliebrown]

New guy here.

I have a 1990 Mustang (original owner). It's been a daily driver for over 17 years and the trim has taken a beating. Great info. I'll give it a shot. Just and FYI: I've used the gray FB106 bumper paint on the ground effects of my GT with excellent results. I did not use clear over the gray but may spray clear when I touch up next time. I plan on testing one panel to see if I like the look.

[Dupli-Color-Specialist]

New guy here.

I have a 1990 Mustang (original owner). It's been a daily driver for over 17 years and the trim has taken a beating. Great info. I'll give it a shot. Just and FYI: I've used the gray FB106 bumper paint on the ground effects of my GT with excellent results. I did not use clear over the gray but may spray clear when I touch up next time. I plan on testing one panel to see if I like the look.

Clear is always a good idea for added protection but considering we designed the bumper paint to match the sheen of the OEM finish, adding a clear might give it too much gloss. Just an FYI.