73 bumper filler question

[percydaman]

So the bumper filler pieces on my 73 aren't in too bad a condition.  They're old and rather brittle looking, but they're all there for the most part.  Is there a away to restore these?  Can the be painted if they can be successfully removed without damaging them?  I've looked around and seen how hard it is to find replacements.  I'm looking to possibly have the car painted this winter, so I suspect they'll need to be removed anyways.

[ODZKing]

Yes, I did mine. There is no way to make them less brittle BUT you can restore them to their original shape.
You do have to remove the bumper to get them off. When you remove them you'll see metal forms on them, remove but hang on to them as they will be helpful in restoring their original shape.
On my website http://www.retrorarities.com/PartsResto/index.html you see (about half way down) how I made a mold of sorts from strips of metal and formed them back to shape that way.
You need to boil a big pan of water. When it is boiling (not with your hand obviously) dip the filler in the water for 5 seconds or so.  The rubber will become quite limp. And you will have to do this quickly so get everything ready. Put it in the "mold" with clamps as seen. I used a strip of bendable, but rather stiff metal, again as seen. Metal strapping will work well.
I let mine sit for a couple days, then replaced the top metal pieces on the fillers and they were ready to go back on.
If they have faded or become discolored, SEM makes the exact color spray paint.  It is SEM Color Coat Flexible Coating -15183 "Warm Gray".
If you have any further questions, PM me, I'll be happy to tell you more.

[percydaman]

Interesting, so dipping them into the boiling water, makes them soft and pliable again?  I guess i'm a little confused what the result is compared to how they were before.  Thanks for the info, I enjoyed going through your images.

[ODZKing]

Curled and crappy looking

To flat

BTW, scrub them with Fast Orange or Go-Jo.  It has aloe in it which keeps them flexible.

[daytona71]

I have purchased reproductions of the center and outer ends from a fellow on one of the Charger web pages. He currently is not making any more. The quality is great, and fair price. He needed a minimum of 10 sets just to break even, and if I recall his mold was failing. Hope that enough interest in these parts leads him back into production

[percydaman]

Curled and crappy looking

To flat

BTW, scrub them with Fast Orange or Go-Jo.  It has aloe in it which keeps them flexible.

Wow, those do look good.  Did you scrub them with the compound you mentioned after doing the hot water dip?

[ODZKing]

Wow, those do look good.  Did you scrub them with the compound you mentioned after doing the hot water dip?

Both actually. I scrubbed them quite vigorously pre-hot water. And after they came out fairly good, I scrubbed some extra spots off.
I did do most of the hard work before however. And yes, I used the Fast Orange.