Plasti dipping black window trim. Has anyone done this? Thoughts?

All of my Google results are for blacking out chrome trim. I'm wondering if black plasti dip with a few layers of glossifier would bring my weathered, stock, black trim "back to life." Has anyone done this?

 

A lot of people claim that plasti dip black isn't black. Is it greyer than the stock black trim? I haven't seen it in person and videos don't do colors justice.

 

It started with just wanting to plasti dip the base of the now-turned-grey side mirrors, but then I got concerned with having a seamless black outline around the windows. I'm now considering the window trim, the B-pillars, and the base of the side mirrors. BTW, I do not have tint on the windows, nor do I want any.

 

(I'm also considering plasti dipping the fog-lights, rear diffuser, front windshield gutter, and exhaust tips to keep that shade of black consistent. In the end, it's MOSTLY re-blackifying everything, trying to clean up the stock look.)

 

Thoughts?

I've never had great luck with plasti-dip personally. always seems to mess up somehow or not get the finish I was looking for.

 

have you tried any of the [ame=http://www.amazon.com/MOTHERS-6112--Black-Plastic-Restorer/dp/B00GZLMEN4/ref=sr_1_5?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1408148341&sr=1-5&keywords=plastic+black]plastic-black products[/ame]?

 

I'd definitely try the $8 solution first.

I did the door window trims on my 97 OB wagon and they came out looking great. I only put 2 coats on them so they didn't stay well enough and have a slight peeling at the very ends. I'm going to redo them (my son is as it's his car with my direction..LOL) before winter so they are good and put 4 coats on them. We did not do the glossifier but left them standard black and then put some Mother's wheel dressing on them once in a while.

 

Clean them trim really good and then wipe everything down with rubbing alcohol (it's an oil dehydrant) before spraying and you should be good to go.

 

Good luck.

The old first gens used to have problems with the black trim around the windows peeling and becoming chrome. We did everything from covering it with electrical tape, to all-out painting it, which, in the end, is probably the best solution. Sorry, kiddo, but anything less than getting it repainted the right way is gonna look shoddy/like you took the easy way out. Why is it fading/peeling to begin with?

UPDATE: I did it. I plasti dipped everything I listed, including the stuff in parentheses, exluding the cowling... and ended up peeling 75% of it off. Not because of quality, but because this was my first plasti-dipping experience, and I learnt my lessons. I should have gone with a smaller project to experiment.

 

I spent a lot of time OVER masking-off the car (1st lesson). I was paranoid, but later found out that the over-spray does come off quite easily. I used about 4 Black cans to spray about 5 light coats, then 2 cans of Glossifier to spray around 3 light coats.

 

2nd lesson learnt? The coats were too light. I overestimated how saturated it was, and when I peeling stuff back, it came off in pieces indicating that I didn't spray enough. My suggestion would be to learn the dripping point of the spray can, and get liberal. It'll hit the surface slightly spotty, but pan out.

 

3rd lesson would be to use a razor blade around edges WHEN possible (ie, no risk to the original paint). You can get a razor blade or xacto knife in grooves and cracks to guarantee a sharp edge. Plasti-dip will also not peel at a SUBTLE seem. It needs a sharp edge. Learnt this peeling back the rear diffuser over-spray. That edge is not predominate enough. (note: some of these issues may have stemmed from the coats being too light)

 

I ended up keeping these plasti dipped: base and outline of the side mirrors, the exhaust tips, the rear of the mufflers, the sides of the mufflers, the chrome outline of both Subaru emblems, the spec.B emblem, the fog lights, and the middle chrome strip on the grill. THESE CAME OUT LOOKING AMAZING.

 

All in all, I attest to the quality of plasti dip. When used properly, it is a very powerful and easy tool. Everything that DID work, came out great. Everything that came out crappy was user error, and I know it.

Dip is an art you have to master. So long as you don't live in Canada where dip is $20 USD equivalent a can, it's not expensive to practice on something.

 

*Make sure you remove all dirt/grease/wax and get any water from under it before applying it.

*More layers, the easier it is to remove/clean up

*Microfiber is cool for overspray removal

*Don't use alcohol based products to clean it. Alcohol deteriorates it.

*Tape edges, dip, then yank tape before dip fully dries.

*Don't use the very last bit at the bottom of the can, it's gonna be confetti like when it lands.

 

How hard is it to remove the trim as dipping both sides usually prevents premature peeling. I learned this when I dipped my steering wheel in my DD.

I tried the plasti-dip with poor results. I'm trying to find somewhere other than the dealer to replace all four pieces as they want $70 for each.