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Okay, this might be frowned upon, but that’s never bothered me.
My ‘51 F2’s grooved front bumper was shot. Bent up, welded, bent again, and broken. My first thought was to replace with a piece of steel channel, but a visit to my buddy’s shop yielded a nice late 50’s Chebby 3100 bumper for free. Too wide and too straight...
So, I set about learning how to weld a bumper. I cut where necessary, chamfered the edges, preheated with a torch, and laid a bead front and back. Then, set the bumper over my butane camp stove and let it stay hot a while, followed with a slow cool down. It passed the drop on the driveway test.
Not wanting to waste any good chunks of my original bumper, I made over riders from the ends, welded bolts to the back, and installed in slotted holes.
I’m digging it.
Not sure how I’m going to finish it. I’m in the middle of bed repair and will move to the front end soon. I know chrome is tough to paint. Maybe I’ll have it all blasted and powder coated black.
Best part is, it’s all reversible in case I find something I like better.
Ive painted many chrome bumpers, Sandblast them well to give the primer something to bite too. 2 coats of epoxy primer, you can then apply body filler over the primer to fill any pits or imperfections where you've welded. Reprime as needed but at least 2 coats, scuff with a scotch brite pad and paint. While you're at it prime and paint the back side of the bumper too it always gives a nice look. Ive never had any paint peel using this procedure.
Ive painted many chrome bumpers, Sandblast them well to give the primer something to bite too. 2 coats of epoxy primer, you can then apply body filler over the primer to fill any pits or imperfections where you've welded. Reprime as needed but at least 2 coats, scuff with a scotch brite pad and paint. While you're at it prime and paint the back side of the bumper too it always gives a nice look. Ive never had any paint peel using this procedure.
Rick
Thanks for the good info Rick. Sounds like a plan.
