Got Chrome?

Donvito

Donvito

Member
I got my '30 Coupe a month ago and have done a lot of fixing up on it. The car was halfway restored and painted 12 years ago. The last guy got it in 2004 and just drove it. The lower part of my front bumper had rust on it. The lower left piece of the rear bumper was also rusted. I have not been able to find replacement pieces, only complete new bumpers. I don't want to spend a ton of money on the car right now, but I want it to look good. I bought 2 rolls of Trimbrite Chrome tape from Advance Auto Parts. They are 3" x 60" and cost $4.99 each. I took the bumpers apart, cleaned them up, and hit the rust with a sanding disc on my high speed grinder. One roll did the lower front bumper perfectly, 60" covered from end to end. I rolled the tape over the top edge and stuck it to the back side as well. I used just a small amount of the second roll to do the rear bumper. For a $10 investment, and a couple hours of work, they look much better. For me, that's better than spending $500 right now. It is a great temporary fix for bad chrome.
 

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The tape is quite thin. It appears to be some kind of plastic, not metal. The bumper needs to be smooth and clean for it to look good. It looks much better than silver paint. I did use some self etching primer and silver spray paint on the back sides and on the rolled ends. Sticking it on can be tricky. On the front bumper, I peeled about 18" of the backing off, and started laying the tape down about 12" from the end of the bumper. That gets it lined up. After that, I stretched it out to the far end and stuck it on. You have to start somewhere in the middle to get it straight. You can't do it if you start on the very end. But at $4.99 a roll, it doesn't matter if it takes a few tries. It can also be put on in sections, spliced under the bumper clamps. For bumpers that have rust on a small spot, you may not have to cover the whole bumper, just the one section.
 
I used aluminum tape on my tudor back in 1975, when I did not have the money for chrome. I still have those bumpers somewhere.
 
wow!.. that looks better than I would have thought from the description.. Will be interesting to hear how it ages and weathers :)

Thanks for sharing!
 
It is probably Mylar, which is used in chrome like application at times. Good job!! At the very least it looks like nickel.
 
Wow! Donvito that looks super cool. I've been wondering what I can do to the rusty/old silver paint bumpers on my '31 roadster. Looks like you have given me the answer. Thank you!:cool::)

Bob-A:D
 
The rust was pretty bad on the rear bumper. On both the front and rear, I only re-covered the lower bar. The upper bars are normal plating. The match is very good. I also installed new clamps that came with the car. As PetesPonies says, I do believe it is Mylar too. I drive my car, but it is garage kept. I should easily get a year out of the faux chrome. I will replace the bad parts with good used ones, when I can find them. I really don't want new bumpers on the car, because the whole car shows normal wear. I would like to keep the "older restoration" look of it.
 
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