I've always loved that bumper and finally have the funds in my budget to order the front, the rear will have to wait a while. So here's my question.....what color should I do the bumper in? Because the truck is that pewter color with chrome accents black just wouldn't look right. In order to pull that off I'd have to black out the wheels and running boards which just isn't in the cards right now. So I was thinking one of two colors:
Silver-to try and keep it close to the stock chrome look using powder coat
Color matched to the paint-my Line X guy says he can match the color
Or should I go with something else? Ideas?
Here's some older pics to reference color
http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/garageimage.php?do=full&p=17628&d=1160621543
http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/garageimage.php?do=full&p=64254&d=1209483634

Id avoid powder coat as it does not hold up well in a high abrasion and chip prone environment. For that reason alone I cay have it chromed, or just lineX it.

I didn't know that about powder coat....interesting. Sadly there are no good chromers left in the US, EPA laws have driven them out. I'll look into silver/chrome Line X or possibly anodizing, just found a place that does it right down the street from the shop.

Chrome LineX??????

WOW, "it does not hold up well in a high abrasion and chip prone environment" I would get a new powder coater!!!! Over 75% percent of after market parts are powder coated. With any coating or painting proses It all In the prep work!! Don't have road armor powder coat It! Find your own, who will stand behind their work!! Parts Should be acid dipped to clean and open up the pours first!!!

WOW, "it does not hold up well in a high abrasion and chip prone environment" I would get a new powder coater!!!! Over 75% percent of after market parts are powder coated. With any coating or painting proses It all In the prep work!! Don't have road armor powder coat It! Find your own, who will stand behind their work!! Parts Should be acid dipped to clean and open up the pours first!!!


Powdercoat has one of the lowest abrasion rating of any coating. It is extremely prone to chipping. It has nothing to do with hos it is applied. Well I mean a crap job is going to hold up worse but.......

Powder coating has gained popularity in the aftermarket because it is hands down the cheapest and most environmentally friendly. Coatings like lineX and even paint like Imron are still more durable that PC.

As for chromers there are several very good ones in the US. There is actually a very good one here in FL. Its not going to be as cheap as PC or Paint, but that all depends on whats in your budget.

I'm still pondering which way to go, I found a guy across the street from the shop that does anodizing....interesting concept.
As for the color, I think I'm gonna put the raw bumper on the truck to get an idea of what it will look like and make my choice then. Still very interested in everyones feed back, keep it coming.

I thought the bumper was steel? If so it cannot be anodized. Anodized steel is what you would call rust. You can apply substrates then anodize that, but that comes with its own issue.

:DChrome, baby:D
Then you will have nothing to regret, because it is what you have:cool:

I would imron it that stuff is tough as hell if it were mine.....

I would imron it that stuff is tough as hell if it were mine.....

http://volvospeed.com/Pics/Mods/imron.jpg

:exactly:

Or chrome if you like the look. Honestly not sure how good the square lines of the road armor bumper would look chromed though.

http://volvospeed.com/Pics/Mods/imron.jpg

:exactly:

Or chrome if you like the look. Honestly not sure how good the square lines of the road armor bumper would look chromed though.

That stuff looks interesting, what color is the finish or can you choose a color?
Honestly I'm not a fan of chrome, if I didn't have so much chrome/silver/polished on the truck already from the factory I'd go the black route. But that would mean blacking out the wheels, running boards and rear bumper so that just added lots of cost to my project. I think the color of my truck would look sick with blacked out wheels bumpers etc, but that's just my thought....look at my bike in my garage, you can see I'm a fan of black. Sleek smooth and understated...:cool:

That stuff looks interesting, what color is the finish or can you choose a color?
Honestly I'm not a fan of chrome, if I didn't have so much chrome/silver/polished on the truck already from the factory I'd go the black route. But that would mean blacking out the wheels, running boards and rear bumper so that just added lots of cost to my project. I think the color of my truck would look sick with blacked out wheels bumpers etc, but that's just my thought....look at my bike in my garage, you can see I'm a fan of black. Sleek smooth and understated...:cool:

You can get it in any color you want. Just make sure when you spray you are on a forced air respirator.

The bumper arrived today, I'm so excited to get it coated and installed. All I can say is holy sh!t that thing is heavy!!!
I've decided to go the black route, going to coat the bumper in black Line X as well as the diamond plate side steps (this will prob help cut down on the slip and slide when they are wet) I want to black the wheels out as well but might hold off till I can get some 22.5's :rolleyes:

I pulled the side steps off yesterday, what a PITA!!! I swear Monroe uses whatever hardware they have laying around that day, the button heads are stainless with whatever nut combo they could find, some where 14mm, others were 15mm and then others didn't use nuts at all, they used a threaded clip that was in the support bar.....man. Then to make things more complicated, the button heads are 5mm allen so at 4 of them rounded out on me, I had to drill them out, took me 2.5 hours to get them off. Good news is Mike, my Line X guy is priming everything today and will have it sprayed by tomorrow am, so I should have everything installed by tomorrow afternoon. I can't wait! I'll post up pics.

Congrats on the bumper , cant wait to see it .

I think your going the right direction . Black always looks good .

Better, yet
Can't wait to see what he hits:eek: looks like:D

OMG, got it installed this evening, SICK! I love it!!! I'll get some pics up shortly for everyone. The running boards are now Line X'd black as well, they totally change the look of the truck, its killer. Now I just need to get the matching rear and some 22.5's in black :rolleyes:

Where's the installed pics?

I pulled the side steps off yesterday, what a PITA!!! I swear Monroe uses whatever hardware they have laying around that day, the button heads are stainless with whatever nut combo they could find, some where 14mm, others were 15mm and then others didn't use nuts at all, they used a threaded clip that was in the support bar.....man. Then to make things more complicated, the button heads are 5mm allen so at 4 of them rounded out on me, I had to drill them out, took me 2.5 hours to get them off. Good news is Mike, my Line X guy is priming everything today and will have it sprayed by tomorrow am, so I should have everything installed by tomorrow afternoon. I can't wait! I'll post up pics.

YES PITA!!! But I just took my steps off and buzzed the clips or nuts off with a grinder. Tomorrow I will drop off the steps to LineX. I will prob just use Stainless bolts to reinstall. I will post pics when done.

Just installed the LineXed steps and wow what a difference. They sprayed them with the new final process that gives it a gloss that wont fade over time.

Just installed the LineXed steps and wow what a difference. They sprayed them with the new final process that gives it a gloss that wont fade over time.

Looks great . :thumb:

I need to do that . Mine look horrible and peeling paint . Repainted many times and it just peels up after a few months .

Yeah you really only have two choices. Sandblast and repowder coat or probably the longest lasting ...LineX