what was the process for doing this exactly? did you have to sand down the texture of them or what? what kind of sandpaper do i use if necessary? is there a special kind of paint to use? thanks..

 

most guys just buy them from Ford

 

If you want to paint the stock ones correctly, you will need to sand them smooth. the textured finish wont take color well

 

use a pretty fine sand paper if you going to do it like a 800 grit or something around there.

 

yeah i remember reading a while back about someone who painted their mirrors and handles body color and they had sanded them down. i was more interested in painting my bedrail caps though, they look terrible. i read where somebody on here just did that, but didn't really mention anything about the process or what was used.

 

i take a different approach, i scuff up the part with fine steel wool and then apply bully dog which ia an adhesion promoter then use a high build primer then sand that smooth then paint, imo sanding the plastic isnt worth the time and effort, i have painted a grill on a f350 that has gotten lots of use so far and no chips

 

yeah that will work, however you do it though, it has to be smooth to promote proper paint adhesion

 

what, is it really hard to sand the textured surface down, take a long time? does one way look better than the other?

for the bed caps, what about the ridges that run through them, wouldn't that be hard sanding?

would the paint chip off of the bed caps if they are painted, that would look terrible.

 

I believe that some people paint theirs with the Krylon Fushion paint for plastics. If you use that then you do not have to sand them smooth. It is not color matched but you can paint them black again.

 

krylon fusion works well but tends to chip.

If you want them to last and match, leave it to the paint pros at a body shop. they can clear coat them and buff and all that good stuff.

save yourself some money and do the sanding yourself tho

 

They dont need to be sanded smooth. Get some scotch brite and wet sand them really good with that. Get some wax&grease remover, scrub em down good. Then get some adhesion promoter made for plastic. And paint em, the paint will stick well. Just like any paint it will scratch or chip if you hit it or drag something across it. The only reason to sand smooth is if you don't like the textured finish. And if you primer use black primer, if it does chip or scratch you dont want to see gray primer underneath, especially if you paint them black.

I own my paint shop so I know a little bit about painting.

 

i'm not a big fan of the texture, but do you guys think they'd look ok completely smooth?

 

i think they would. as long as they are painted. I know it will take some time so im going to buy another set of mirrors that i can smooth. I have been told that the dealer sells paintable handles though so i wont waste time on that one.

 

they sell some smooth ones on streetscene so they look good enough to produce them.

Ive vote smooth assuming they wont see too much abused. My stockers have taken a beating and hide it well....

 

i've been thinking about the texture thing and painting- if i painted them body color and sanded them smooth, then they would be very vulnerable to scratching and/or peeling if you use your truck bed....right?

if i use the black fusion paint, there is no sanding needed and they keep their texture and you can prime w/ black, then paint black so if they scratch you won't tell very much.

plus....i can't get my body color paint in a can- i have aspen green paint, code p5, and they only produce the dupli color paint in that color as a touch up pen- no spray cans. however, i could go to a local store and have them get the properties of the aspen green, mix it, and put it in a spray can for me if i decide to do that. i just figured the fusion paint would be easier and more practical for all purposes considered, unless i had a show truck or something.