ok guys, i finally have an idea of when i will paint the black trim pieces. I'll be moving into my own place in July or August and i'll have my own garage to work on my car. I think i'll be leaving the pieces on the car and using newspaper and painters tape to mask off the surrounding area. I'll probably remove the front lip and the side mirrors to paint and maybe the door handle if necessary to prevent paint getting into the keyhole.

So far i am thinking about painting the door moldings, front lip, side skirt, side mirrors, door handle and maybe the fog light bezel, and the windshield washer nozzle. what do you guys think.

 

hmmm the only thinng i would leave black is the nozzles... but cant wait to see this done =0

 

yea, i cant wait to get this done either, but i can't start till i move into my new place, so i can leave the car in the garage to dry and paint. just wondering should the antenna base be painted? what about the fog light bezel, would color match look right?

 

NOT the antanna IMO but the fog light bezel i think should

 

leave the nozzles and antenna black, paint everything else . That's what I'll be doing within the next week too, but red

 

ok i think i have an idea, now waiting to move into my own place to start on this project. planning to use some spray can paint, base paint and clear coat. just wondering should i primer the pieces. and i've heard i should use paint promoter, where can i get them? is there a specific kind i need? Look out for updates coming in Late July to beginning of August.

 

well the plastic promoter is great but id still primer and such afterwards!

but i would sand the pieces smooth. the sanding will help the mechanical adhesion as well.

if your going to remove the trim and paint it off the car then go all the way

i plan on removing mine when i do the complete paint job on my civic.

i bought my plastic promoter from a local paint supply shop. you can always try a local paint shop and ask if they would sell you a can of the stuff
a can cost me about 18bucks.
the stuff i used is DU PONT plas-stick A-2330S

 

i've read somewhere that they dont recommend sanding the door molding because it will look gritty since its plastic. so i should spray some plastic paint promoter, primer, base paint, then clear?

also another question, should i keep the lip i have right now or should i get a type r front lip?

 

well as long as your not dumb and only sand with 600grit sandpaper. its just like painting the car. you sand with to ruff sandpaper youll see scratch marks.
the problem with textured trim pieces is the deep pores collect dirt deep in there and takes alot of cleaning to get all the dirt out!
so i highly recomending sanding it as well you just have to lightly sand it to remove the texture and just scuff it up just like any body panels. if you have any scratches in that plastic after using the plastic promoter just slap some extra primer on it and sand the pieces again to smooth out any scratches or dents in the plastic. maybe use some glaze putty.
that stuff is great for filling tiny imperfections!


and the lip is your preference.

 

what grit sandpaper should i use? 1000 and up?