Custom 1991 - 1993 Stealth/3000GT Bumper.

[J_Parker]

For quite some time now I've been wanting to do something with my Stealth to modernize it a bit, and help it really stand out in a crowd. I was origionally going to pick something up from Cianc, but in my eye they've pretty well gone belly up in our community, so I began to spitball over just what I could do. I thought of making a 91/99 hybrid but I wanted something a little more origional, so i started from scratch. For the first few days it simply looked like a big gob of foam stuck to a bumper with the main purpose being to safely hit people lol. I let the foam cure for a day or so then off to the knife for shaping! So far this is what I have come up with.


This is the first stageof the rough shape taking place, so far everything looks to be fairly symmetrical.
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/my-stealth-work-done/1852-picture-027.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/my-stealth-work-done/1853-picture-028.jpg

Here is the second stage of my rough shaping, from here on in it gets very tedious and maticulate to maintain as perfect symmetry as I can, I've probably spent around three hours with a ruler and tape measure plotting out the air dams.
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/my-stealth-work-done/1855-picture-029.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/my-stealth-work-done/1856-picture-030.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/my-stealth-work-done/1854-picture-031.jpg

I've pretty well been getting one side at a time done to near where I want it and moving on to the other with the completed side as my guide for measurement and stencils.

[mb3000]

Subscribed, love your recent work man.

[FeaRpb]

This could get interesting.

Keep us posted and good luck.

[J_Parker]

Thanks! I'm hoping to have the majority of the shaping done by tomorrow afternoon and have some plaster/bondo on by the evening. But we'll see, there's still a lot to do :p

[Nihil]

This is cool that you're making all these parts and posting, I've been following along, I've been interested in the process and stages of how to do this so I can successfully attempt some customization myself.......Dude, congrats and take TONS of pics and give lots of detailed info for guys like me!

Cheers!

[J_Parker]

FFFUUUUUUUU!!!

... Okay, it's not that bad... I was quite a ways off from the controur of the hood matching up to the valance :p I fixed it with a few seconds of savageness with a saw though, and I like the result even more than the pictures above. Rather then the ~7" in depth for the nose airdamn it's roughly 4" now :) The overall look is still the same but a little more conservative! I'd post up some pictures but my camera is dead, I'll have some up for tomorrow afternoon.

[GTOJOE]

subscribed.

[2fnloud]

subscribed

[CoreyB]

Awesome. Subscribed.

[mh3kgt]

sub'd

[enigma]

Nice work! I have modified 3 bumpers using this method, you will need to put a wooden batten across the bumper ends to stop it opening up (widening) to keep it to the exact dimentions as when fitted to the car as when you go to fit it you will crack the filler by bending the ends in to fit , heres my current rear bumper done this about 2 years ago.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/parsonsnose/tesco1.jpg

[IPD]

nice! but it needs a lower-profile spoiler. that one makes the car look too tall, as would a 99 wing.

[futurevr4man]

wow enigma, that looks great!

there needs to be more pics of the progression in this thread.

[enigma]

wow enigma, that looks great!

there needs to be more pics of the progression in this thread.

Thank's, the project took about 30 hours, I did all the work with the bumper off the car and once installed I had to modify the bottom of the bumper 3 times to get it right, when I do another, once the foam has been cut and profiled I'm going to cover it with f/glass matting and resin 1st before applying bodyfiller, it will give the foam areas strength and will handle small impacts with less chance of cracking.

[J_Parker]

enigma that looks awesome, good job! I used some fishing wire to hold the sides of the bumper together at the width of the mounts, overall it worked very well. with the way i'm doing mine it wont have to be overly precice as the whole thing is going to be fiberglass, the pics are just a plug for the molds.


wow enigma, that looks great!

there needs to be more pics of the progression in this thread.

I'm doing the best I can for pictures on this one, I've been working out of town off and on so I don't have all too much time to work on the projects right now :p

[FlamboyantStealthTT]

what is that called exactly? when it cures is it like fiberglass or something?

[Nihil]

what is that called exactly? when it cures is it like fiberglass or something?

Are you asking about the foam he's using to shape? If so, that stuff is called Great Stuff. You can find it at home depot/lowes or walmart, it's used for filling, sealing holes or voids in homes and around window edges and what not. It also makes a good foam mold as well, like he's doing.

[AgentOblivious]

Personally, if you're going to be doing big foam projects, use 2-part expanding urethane foam instead of an insulation crack filler. (You can usually get it from a boat building supply store)
It'll be a bit stronger and easier to make big blocks out of.

[CoopKill]

In for the awesomeness! :Bow: :popcorn:

[Gearhead]

Can't wait to see the final product.

[J_Parker]

Personally, if you're going to be doing big foam projects, use 2-part expanding urethane foam instead of an insulation crack filler. (You can usually get it from a boat building supply store)
It'll be a bit stronger and easier to make big blocks out of.

I would, but by the time I get it here it'll cost more than the Great Stuff. I don't have anything like that where I live.

[AgentOblivious]

I would, but by the time I get it here it'll cost more than the Great Stuff. I don't have anything like that where I live.

That's weird, I figured BC would have some boat building supply shops. I order my stuff from Noah's Marine supply in Toronto. Noah's Marine Supplies Online Store - Featured Items (http://www.noahsboatbuilding.com/noahmain/index.asp)

[DocHoliday]

Nice work! I have modified 3 bumpers using this method, you will need to put a wooden batten across the bumper ends to stop it opening up (widening) to keep it to the exact dimentions as when fitted to the car as when you go to fit it you will crack the filler by bending the ends in to fit , heres my current rear bumper done this about 2 years ago.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/parsonsnose/tesco1.jpg

Jesus Enigma. Please get into business and sell me one of those rear bumpers.

[J_Parker]

I'll look around a little more and see what I can come up with, I'd like to start working on a few other things, get a few molds made and see what comes of what I make.

[Nihil]

I'll look around a little more and see what I can come up with, I'd like to start working on a few other things, get a few molds made and see what comes of what I make.

We need more pics though ha, I've really been interested in learning how to make plugs/molds and making pieces, what have you read watched and researched to learn all of this, or are you just learnin as you go along? Everything on youtube seems to be old outdated or unrelated to what I'm wanting to learn, or overly complicated with more materials than seemingly needed.

I see many threads with as much progress as you've done so far, then they end up faded way back, then final product is shown, but not a whole lot of step by step info.

And to Enigma, that bumper is awesome, I've always imagined a bumper like that for our cars, except, where the exhaust comes through the bumper, use an outlet from another car, I think mercedez or mazda has a similar exhaust outlet through the bumper and they have a finished tip that fits in the bumper and looks really clean...ok I searched real quick, and I think it was the LS400 I was remembering seeing.

http://www.motorauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/Lexus/LS/460/Fabulous/lex_various_02.jpg

[Gearhead]

I think it's a great idea, but there are too many different variations in exhaust tips. I would like to know where he learned how to make that bumper. I would love to make a custom bumper for my car.

[enigma]

Thank's guys for kind comments, the inspiration for the bumper came from farrari, I wanted to keep some of the original features and looking clean, if your new to doing mods such as this it takes time and commitment to complete it, and be prepared to rectify mistakes along the way, if you want an idea try looking here Fiberglass Forums - Powered by vBulletin (http://www.fiberglassforums.com/) plenty of projects and information and how to's.

[J_Parker]

Well, I finally made it home in once piece and will hopefully have some good progress in the next week once I catch up on everything. Thanks for the patience and sorry for the delay folks!

[FeaRpb]

Awesome, glad you are back on it. Can't wait to see some progress. Keep up the hard work.

[Nationalmilkman]

In for pics

[J_Parker]

I got quite a bit done tonight, but upon trying to turn my camera on I left the damn thing on for the three weeks I was away "FACEPALM" I'll got grab some batteries and update you guys tomorrow!

[IronmanTT]

Can't wait to see the progress :eek: from the looks so far it's going to be SICKKKKKKKKKKKK... :D

[J_Parker]

As promised here are a few more pictures, I'm working on getting the one side shaped to what I want then molding the other side to what the completed side looks like, so far so good :)

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/my-stealth-work-done/1948-100-1215.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/my-stealth-work-done/1947-100-1214.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/my-stealth-work-done/1946-100-1213.jpg

As you can see I got ambitious and did a little trimming of the stock bumper to keep the motivation up and make it a "too late now" project :D I wish I could have a little more room to show you guys a front on shot, but I assure you it looks very gressive, something that small children will avoid, and almost like it's up to something bad. :suspect:

[IPD]

looks like you're giving it the best features from the 97-98 bumper; the "jowls" on the sides. :)

[J_Parker]

looks like you're giving it the best features from the 97-98 bumper; the "jowls" on the sides. :)

Sort of, with all do respect to the car it looks like it has down syndrome, I "flipped" all the aidams over putting the wider ends up.

[IPD]

not exactly sure what you mean by that. what i was referring can clearly be seen by comparing the stock 97-98 bumper with a cianci "torino" bumper. the torino doesn't look quite as aggressive.

[J_Parker]

After a few hours of rough shaping the more fine details of the bumper this is what I have come up with. All that's really left to do is finish off the fishmouth and the lower edge on the side. ONce I get this side shaped I'm thinking that it should be plain sailing on the other, as I'm spending most the time trying to make the best overall shape. Don't mind my horrible paint job, it's just my method of seeking low and high spots easier.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/1954-100-1218.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/1953-100-1217.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/1950-100-1219.jpg

Now that I had seen what my lows and highs were I could start filling in the small spots and cut down th high spots. I was also able to do some more detailed filling and shaping on the areas that were in need.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/1951-100-1221.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/1952-100-1220.jpg

[bluzvr4]

im not gonna lie when i first opened this thread and saw it i was scared but it looks like its turning out very nice

[J_Parker]

im not gonna lie when i first opened this thread and saw it i was scared but it looks like its turning out very nice

I was getting pretty skeptical myself, but Now that I'm making some quick progress I'm becoming much more confident in it. Thanks for the interest and positivity.

[J_Parker]

not exactly sure what you mean by that. what i was referring can clearly be seen by comparing the stock 97-98 bumper with a cianci "torino" bumper. the torino doesn't look quite as aggressive.

Ahh, now I'm pickin' up what you're throwin' down :p Sorry I was feelin' pretty slow upstairs this afternoon lol.

[bluzvr4]

r u going to do anything to the rear bumper?

[J_Parker]

I am actually., I'm going to be making a diffuser in the rear and if I get really ambitious I may try for twin center exit exhaust tips with the diffuser to accomodate them.

[IPD]

r u going to do anything to the rear bumper?
...like clone glecar's rear bumper? ;)

[J_Parker]

...like clone glecar's rear bumper? ;)

Haha, not quite. I have something special up my sleeve for it :p

"Stay tuned to find out" ;)

[bluzvr4]

will do

[J_Parker]

Finally got to do a test fit on the car, so far so good. It fit very well :D Only about a millimeter off on the one side. To my supprise it's looking very good! Hopefully I can get the car in the shop to finish it up in the near future, at this rate I really don't want to risk getting all this way and have anything out any further on contours.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/1960-100-1222.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/1959-100-1223.jpg

[FeaRpb]

Wow, that is sexy. But everything looks good on a stealth, how does it look on the 3k =D

Can't wait to see more updates, this is turning out pretty awesome.

[bluzvr4]

lookin good i want to see a big ass front mount in there

[J_Parker]

lookin good i want to see a big ass front mount in there

Haha, trust me I do too! I have to wait for my dad to get his fucking boat out of there before I can do anymore though. The car is sitting heartless right now and it's starting to get the better of me :(

[bluzvr4]

is in a n/a car orginaly? if it is i have a couple tt engines that need rebuilt im lookin to get rid of :)

[J_Parker]

No, it's a T/T. I have two motors for it right now, one that just needs to be put back together and the other is patiently waiting for the 3.5L. I just need the shop soon is all I'm waiting on :p Thanks for the offer though! How about a trans? lol.

[bluzvr4]

thats what i need lmao

[IPD]

nice crashbar. nearly half that opening is crashbar. are you planning on pulling it or running one of jackhammer's? or are you planning on staying with SMICS (since the front opening is, imho, too small).?

[CoopKill]

Time to get back on that gauge pod till room opens up in the shop!

[J_Parker]

nice crashbar. nearly half that opening is crashbar. are you planning on pulling it or running one of jackhammer's? or are you planning on staying with SMICS (since the front opening is, imho, too small).?

Yes the ugly crash bar will be coming out. I'm not putting another one in, and it's getting an FMIC. The opening is more than big enough to allow for adequate airflow. Having said that, I may also look into some larger SMICS and put in a better thicker radiator nearer to the front of the valance.

[J_Parker]

Time to get back on that gauge pod till room opens up in the shop!

On it! I'm just doing a bit of cleaning up, putting all my engine parts in a place where they're not going to get beat on is a bit of a challange right now with that boat in there.

[Nihil]

I'm lovin this thread, you're doin a great job as far as progress/build and also with pics and info, I've been diein to learn as much on this as possible so I can maybe attempt making some fiberglass parts. Are you going to make a mold/plug for your bumper to offer replicas or make spares incase of need for replacement? I'd advise it...mostly because that's where I'm lacking the info in my searches haha

You should list supplies and quantity if possible, as well. Cheers To Ya!

[ViperZ]

Damn that's looking great, I can't wait to see it completed! I'm loving that rear bumper on the silver 1st gen too btw. We need to have more people post up their custom body work!

[J_Parker]

I'm lovin this thread, you're doin a great job as far as progress/build and also with pics and info, I've been diein to learn as much on this as possible so I can maybe attempt making some fiberglass parts. Are you going to make a mold/plug for your bumper to offer replicas or make spares incase of need for replacement? I'd advise it...mostly because that's where I'm lacking the info in my searches haha

You should list supplies and quantity if possible, as well. Cheers To Ya!

I suppose I could give a material list, good idea!

Great Stuff - I used about five of the larger cans to overbuild the surfaces to avoid having to waste any more time applying it. In total they ended up costing me about $30 CAD (Buy them in bulk at a building supply store it's much cheaper)
Bondo - Depending on how well you did your shaping of the grat stuff, you should only need a couple of the larger sized pain cans of it. Maybe one of the smaller ones to fill in some of the smaller imperfections. ~$80 CAD
Sanpaper - Various grits, look to spent about ~$20 CAD
Other consumables that you may run into which shouldt be too much more.

I will add to this as I progress further into it the build.

And last but not least, having the most awesome looking Stealth in town thus making me the the fucking man... Pricelss... ;) Lol.


Some of the nescessary techniques I had to do, to do this properly.

1 - Clean the bumper! The Great stuff is remarkably tacky, but will not stick to a waxy, oily, or dusty smooth surface. Use brake clean or gasoline to ensure optimal cleanliness.
2 - Foam it up. Apply the foam in a general shape of what you want, don't be shy either. Another thing to keep in mind, if you're going to be making any air dams don't put the foam there, it'll just get in the way and be wasteful.
3 - Let it cure. Don't go all Edward Scissor hands on it just because it feels solid, I learned this one the hard way. The surface will feel hard for the first inch, maybe two. But really, once you get down there you'll be greeted by a nice stick mess that's going to fuck up your steak knife or weapon of choice.
4 - Shape away. Do your thing, keep everything symmetrical. you don't by any means have to be 100% perfect. Just get a ruler or a measureing instrument and work off of the easiest stand out feature you can, preferably one on the existing bumper. Unfortunately for some of the Yokels out there, a piece of string wont work very well for this.
5 - Put the bumper on the car, properly. Because the foam has some give to it it will still stretch and bend when you put it back onto the car. Measure the distance of the bumper edges and tie them together or find other methods of securing them. The measuring was a little tricky, because mine is outside I put two stakes in the ground plumed them up and measured the overall distance between them then measures off of key points between them and the bumper. subtracted and valla the overall width of the bumper. The same thing can be done squaring up your car in a shop and using the walls.
6 - Hog tie it. I used fishing wire, I fish a lot and I had a shit tonne of it lying around so I put some to use. I prefered this over using blocks like stated above, simply because it's much easier to move the bumper around if need be, which in my case was very necessary because I always keep the work area clean of dust and debris.
7 - Apply your bondo. Start off in smooth thin layers. Mix it light on hardener to elongate the amount of time you will have to work with it. try to keep all the lumps and bumps to a minimum as they will complicate things later on.
8 - Leveling... Woot... I use a thin pice of wood about three feet long that flexes easily and consitantly. I then run it along the larger surfaces of the bumper to see where my high and low spots are, cutting and filling as I go. (If you run into a spot that you will eventually hit foam in, don't worry about it. When you go to make your mold you're going to be spraying a lovely thick application of release agent that is not only going to hide the minimalistic fuckups, but give a nicer smooth surface than we can wo with our sand paper. Afterward the gelcoat etc, to be cont.)
9 - Finishing. After all the shaping, we're going to move onto some final sanding stages. Pretty self explanitory.
10 - Primer! Prim it up with some good spot filling primer, I recommend two to three heavy coats. (No drips though)
11 - Floor wax. I use a wax called Aero Floor Wax, It's extreamly good at keeping things from sticking to it, use a few good aplications of it.
12 - Release Agent. Spray on some thick coats of this, it's going to be what does the majority of the imperfection hiding. I'll get back to you on the brand I use.
13 - Glecoat. Spray this on according to the manufacturers recommendations.
14 - Fiberglass mold. What you're going to want to do with this, is make yourself some flat peices of fiberglass to add borders to your molds. in any areas that the mold will catch on when releasing it from our final product. I am predicting that the mold I will be making will come in about five pieces. unless I can find a more efficient way to do it. You're going to want to be very generous with your molds fiberglass too, unless you want your finished products to be warped and piss your customers off over time this is the only way to avoid it... Also, make sure you have signifigant refrence points on the seperate sections on the mold to ensure that they are going to line up through all the manufacturing!

That's all I can think of for now, if I come up with any more I'll add to this one as well.

Thanks for all your interest guys, the positive feedback is keeping me going.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/my-stealth-work-done/1965-100-1222.jpg

As you can see I did a little illustration of what my molds will be doing .

[Scorch]

Wow that looks great! It's nice to see it on the car, it's coming along great I can't wait to see the finished product!

[mh3kgt]

looks awesome. Very similar to Cianci's I like it

[J_Parker]

looks awesome. Very similar to Cianci's I like it

Pretty well, yes. But if I decide to go in the company direction of things, I most likely wont sell out like Ryan did.

[Nihil]

Awesomeness, this is gonna be a cool thread if you keep up the work, most people seem to stop at about this stage. Did you not tape your bumper off then? I always see the use of masking tape, and I've been readin stuff on that forum Enigma suggested and they even use an aluminum tape of some sort, over the masking tape, then wax so it's easy to remove. This is pretty cool, can't wait to see all the rest of the stages and the final outcome, don't give up man!

[J_Parker]

I have no intentions of giving up. I am not going to be saving the stock bumper as I planned to sacrafice it for this, I want it to be a perfect fit and what better way than to use a stock fitting bumper right? The only reason I used a layer of masking tape on my Pillar Pod is I wasn't overly confident in the sucess of the whole thing, but if I were to walk into it knowing what I have learned now I probably would have massacred it just like the bumper without fear of failure.

[boosted3s]

I'm not gonna lie, I am not feeling how the bottom is lower on the sides than the middle. I think it would look much better if the middle was even with the sides. I do however think its cool that you had an idea and are going through the process of making it a reality, props for that.

[IPD]

no way. sides lower than middle looks WAY better.

this:
http://www.carbodykitstore.com/images/EDfb/ED-101491_b.jpg

looks WAY better than this:
http://www.midamericacustoms.com/images/products/detail/bumpertorinogen2.jpg

and you can't count the hood, grille or anything else; just a bumper-bumper comparison. 1 > 2.

[DocWalt]

I don't like the 97-98 bumper because of those upside down side openings... Glad to see yours don't look like that, lol.

[IPD]

"upside down" wtf are you talking about? you want your bumper to SMILE like the 94-96's?

[DocWalt]

Those holes on the side for the IC's are upside down on 97-98's. And yes, I MUCH prefer the 94-96 style bumper over any of the others. Why do you think I had a '94? lol

[boosted3s]

no way. sides lower than middle looks WAY better.

This:

looks WAY better than this:

and you can't count the hood, grille or anything else; just a bumper-bumper comparison. 1 > 2.

All a matter of opinion

[mh3kgt]

:bitch: Sorry, but the 94-96 front doesn't look very good to me unless it has the bomex lip or similar. Too much like a grinning cat. I like my cars to look pissed off. 97-98>all IMO

[bluzvr4]

i prefer the 94 i think the others look like a big mounth bass and im not much of a flip up head light

[mh3kgt]

97-98 looks like a shark to me and 99 looks like a catfish. Those are both my fav, but I'd still take 1g over 94-96 anyday

[IPD]

i looked into all the 2g front bumpers a LOT. the 2g r/t bumper looks a LOT like the 2g 3kgt bumper once you snip the crosshair. and the 99 bumper looks like a large-mouth bass. not to mention that all the 3g bumpers ditched the trim crease; which is MONEY.

i looked at pictures of "angry-eye" hoods on as many different bumpers as i could (2g, 99, torino, etc). nothing quite fit the look as well as the 97-98. i liked the torino to an extent, but it didn't have that "edge" that the stocker has. but i REALLY like 99 turns.

...so now my current project is to "improve" the 97-98 bumper. :)

[CoopKill]

i looked into all the 2g front bumpers a LOT. the 2g r/t bumper looks a LOT like the 2g 3kgt bumper once you snip the crosshair. and the 99 bumper looks like a large-mouth bass. not to mention that all the 3g bumpers ditched the trim crease; which is MONEY.

i looked at pictures of "angry-eye" hoods on as many different bumpers as i could (2g, 99, torino, etc). nothing quite fit the look as well as the 97-98. i liked the torino to an extent, but it didn't have that "edge" that the stocker has. but i REALLY like 99 turns.

...so now my current project is to "improve" the 97-98 bumper. :)
That is easy my friend!


REMOVE IT!



















































I keed, I keed!

[IPD]

...well i guess you'll just have to see if you like the finished product when it's done. ;)

p.s.
if i wanted a car that smiles, i'd buy a mazda. i like the rx7 concept, but that front would be the first thing to go.

[CoopKill]

You said the "M" word! /BAN

lol

[J_Parker]

Now, now kiddies. Lets keep the pointless arguing of what looks best for NG.

[IPD]

it's not pointless. some 3/s's look better than others. case in point: stealth bases. :D

[J_Parker]

Okay you got me with it's not pointless, however, it is far more enjoyable to ragefully argue over insignifigant things in person eventually turning into one of the contestants seeking out the others biggest insecurity and viciously attacking it until they give up casuing the other to win the argument reguardless of what really does or does not look better :D

[IPD]

but i'm right. i'm always right. and i'll fight you for it. :p

[J_Parker]

Haha, you sound like an Oprah follower ;)

[Nihil]

Haha, you sound like an Oprah follower ;)

Oh BURN! ha hey J_Parker...remember when that guy was makin a cool prototype bumper and it was turnin out to be pretty awesome, then his thread got all sorts of crazy with people arguing about what looked better/best for like a whole page...ooh wait! That was you, and it was this thread! These people are goin nuts over yer bumper already and it's not even half way done yet?! WTF lol

I say we all just keep watchin and readin and keep our mouths shut on what's better ha instead lets keep cheerin on and give suggestions when asked haha

Cheers!

[J_Parker]

Couldn't have said it any better. It's some pretty good hilarity though, hence why I haven't stopped it. I'm also in the process of an intermission for the build, so the hilarity can ensue for a little longer. Keep in on topic though guys, I'm open to suggestions and have no problems crushing your egos when you nay say :D

[Nihil]

Give us all an update, my friend!

[J_Parker]

As soon as the snow goes and my dad and I get his boat done I'll have the car in the shop and get it all finished up. Winter is taking it's tole on my build schedule :(

[Nihil]

I hear ya on that...I've got shit I'd like to finish up on but the snowy cold weather makes it hard to get things done

[Runner up]

In for more pics. Keep up the good work man.

[J_Parker]

Thanks, hopefully I can get something done by June lol. The snow is getting outa control here :p

[Dark-Hawk]

Any updates on this? Very impressive so far, looks great.

[J_Parker]

As soon as I get the single conversion done on my Soarer it's going to be balls to the wall on my Stealth build again. I should be done hopefully at most in three weeks.

[J_Parker]

Yeah, so, pretty miserable day in the making of this bumper. A couple of weeks ago we re-did the front fence, but that's not what's important, what is? Well while cleaning up, I entrusted to my uncle leaving the three left over 4"X4"x6' posts left over behind the shop.... He felt it necessary to place them on top of the bumper that I had put out there the week before. So over the course of the two weeks, the bumper warped, and warped some more. By the time I put it on... It was 6" too wide on the top, and about 8" on the bottom. I managed to get the top back on properly, but the bottom is horrible looking now... If I can't suck the bottom back in to where it used to be (Flush with the bottom edge of the sideskirt) I will be re-starting it. :mad:

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/2783-img-0348.jpg

Temper tantrums were thrown...

[Gearhead]

I hope you get it to fit, I'd love to see this finished. I'd love even more for you to start selling them.

[J_Parker]

Well, I took a mulligan on the bottom and sides of the bumper... I didn't like them anymore... Just waiting for it to dry, then I'll cut out the shape, and fine tune everything. I saved myself a bit of time by moving on with some foam block rather than all spray foam.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/2790-img-0370.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/2791-img-0372.jpg

It's also a lot lower now, and the fish mouth grew about 4" in width 2.5" in height.

[GTOJOE]

Dude your family seem determined to fuck your projects up. Time to ban them from the garage :p

[CoreyB]

Must have finished pics, its important.

[J_Parker]

Dude your family seem determined to fuck your projects up. Time to ban them from the garage :p

I very much so wish to change the locks and code for the garage... It's really starting to get irritating, but this time I think a good thing came of it.



Must have finished pics, its important.

Finishing must ensue first... And ensuing it is.

Here's what I decided to throw into there, the sides were looking very boring to me. They don't look half bad and should help with drag too :D

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/2792-img-0374.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/2793-img-0376.jpg

[Nihil]

This is lookin pretty cool dude, glad to see ya back on this

[Gearhead]

I like the new look better. Although I think it's going to be too low in the front, it wont look right with stock side skirts. Like the cianci novara bumper.

2794

[IPD]

I like the new look better. Although I think it's going to be too low in the front, it wont look right with stock side skirts. Like the cianci novara bumper.

2794

this. but those side vents will do marvels for SMIC's. ;)

[J_Parker]

It's been a pretty long day, but the shaping is almost done, and everything is looking pretty symmetrical for the most part. The foam I used didn't agree much with the fiberglass, but luckily I used a small test chunk before hand, all I did to fix it was a thin skiff of body filler.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/2795-img-0380.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/2796-img-0386.jpg

Still pretty ugly but coming along quickly with all the room in the shop now, I can also do test fits as needed on the car which saves a lot of grief.

I personally don't think it'll be too low, I only really dropped the nose of the bumper. The area in front of the wheel only went down about 1.5", whereas the front almost 5" just because it tilts upward originally which I hated the look of. If it is too low though, it'll give me a reason to make up some side skirts as well. But the rear bumper will be first, I've landed on the F-430 style diffuser for it, I think it'd be very suiting to the styling of the car, and go well with the front bumper. Hopefully I can pull it off without making the car scream Ferrari.

http://www.clublexus.com/forums/attachments/is-second-generation/193969d1292427995-euroteck-motorsports-new-carbon-fiber-rear-diffuser-is350-is250-f430_press-rear.jpg

[IronmanTT]

Do you plan on selling this once it's complete and fitted?? And that difusser would be so SICKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK with the front bumper... :)

[J_Parker]

Do you plan on selling this once it's complete and fitted?? And that difusser would be so SICKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK with the front bumper... :)

If I get enough positive feedback, and am myself happy with it, I will likely be venturing into selling them. On a stock basis though, I don't want no trouble lol.

[J_Parker]

Some folks have been poking fun at it, but oh well, this is what it is to look like. It may look like an ugly carp in blue, but with red, smooth, and worked edges, I think it'll look just fine.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/2797-img-0388.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/2798-img-0390.jpg

It also didn't turn out to be too much lower that the sideskirt, although, my car is very low...

[2fnloud]

Who has been poking fun? As far as anyone that has popped up on a forum talking about custom bumper, you have been showing great progress towards a nice looking end product.

Not my cup of soup but still nice.

[CoreyB]

People cant visualize finished products. I can see it and think its going to be nice.

[TwoXist]

There is potential there. It would be real nice to see the finished product.

[TUFFTR]

I would avoid driving through school zones with that. you may suck up small children.

Gotta say, epic effort, seriously great to bring a vision to reality

[Tos]

Love all your work and sharing info. I'll be PMing you soon with some questions of my own.

Kudos to you.


-Matt

[J_Parker]

Thanks guys, it's just been family and "friends" that have been criticizing it. Family comes as no surprise though, they make fun of my vehicles constantly, I've just learned to tell them to fuck off. The friends on the other hand piss me off a little more though. All in all though, I don't care, it's going on my car no theirs.

For sure Carnage, I'll do my best to answer them for you.

[TUFFTR]

Thanks guys, it's just been family and "friends" that have been criticizing it. Family comes as no surprise though, they make fun of my vehicles constantly, I've just learned to tell them to fuck off. The friends on the other hand piss me off a little more though. All in all though, I don't care, it's going on my car no theirs.

For sure Carnage, I'll do my best to answer them for you.

tell them to do what your doing, and make something better. that's what I say, so far, all my mates have proven themselves less useful then I. Well bar one.

[THE_FATTIE]

This looks awesome man... Keep up the good work and don't let those other people keep you down!

[J_Parker]

Well, at this rate guys, with me being back working I may just take what i have done right now and drop it off at a body shop for final completion, I have very little time to be working on it right now :( over the past two days I've accomplished very little on it. I'm not quitting though!

[Nihil]

weekends are your friend, my friend! Don't quit now! We're all diein to see this finish and some of us (myself at least) are wanting to learn from this too in hopes of attempting similar projects

[AgentOblivious]

Nice work! Keep it up.

Hopefully I'll have something to show too in a couple weeks, just ordered some 2-part polyurethane foam for my project...

[BigTyla]

It's not really my cup of tea, but the craftsmanship looks great! You've done a good job.

Design-wise, I will say it looks a lot better than any other aftermarket front bumper I've seen.

[J_Parker]

Well after trying a first time and figuring that the bumper wouldn't fit on this car properly, I threw it in the back and forgot about it... Until today, I went back there and seen it sitting against the wall and decided to give it a shot... I marked out areas with little clearance and notched them out. IT FIT!! :D I'll hopefully get it finished this go 'round :p

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3215-img-0677.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3216-img-0679.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3214-img-0681.jpg

[2fnloud]

way to go!!!! Don't give up.

[bluzvr4]

its lookin good

[J_Parker]

Thanks guys! Here it is all primered up so we can actually see what it looks like, and how the lines are going. It's clearly a little bumpy, and could use a sand, but you get the idea :p

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3218-img-0689.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3217-img-0685.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3220-img-0690.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3219-img-0682.jpg

[bluzvr4]

comin along nice tho

[BigTyla]

One you get it smoothed out it's going to look great. Good work! Looks better than any aftermarket offering I've seen for these cars.

[Nihil]

Sweet dude! Glad to see this comin along nicely, I like the styling/shaping of it all, looks good, only thing I'd change would be the bottom, how it angles up towards the front, I think it should be a straight edge, but all the 1g bumpers seem to have that narrowing nose, which kinda makes the front end look like it's squinting from side profile, but also makes for more clearance over speed bumps n what not

[CoreyB]

Very nice. Going to look great when done.

[Badandy247]

Looks good, subscribed to follow your progress.

[IPD]

so this is why you never got back with me on the mirrors/wheels? :suspect:

[J_Parker]

so this is why you never got back with me on the mirrors/wheels? :suspect:

Shit, I sincerely apologize Thadd, I've been extremely busy the past few weeks. I'll have some pics for you tomorrow around noon. Then we can bargain. I may have the wheels sold though, but I'll let you know tomorrow if they're still available.

[J_Parker]

Here's what it'll look like when the car is finally all one color.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3258-img-0726.jpg

[bluzvr4]

love it

[Miguel92.3000GT]

More pics

[J_Parker]

More pictures will come later, I just started a new job today and am very busy.

[J_Parker]

Another long stint of nothing done on this, so here's an update guys. I got the next two weeks off of work and am now able to get some of this done, hopefully I can wrap it up by the end of my vacation lol.

So far today I got the whole one side nearly finished, smoothed, and ripple free. Don't mind the multi-color paint on there, it's just my method of finding the highs and lows.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3583-img-1007.jpg

[BigTyla]

Looking better and better. Dare I say if I had a 1G I would definitely give this bumper a consideration.

[J_Parker]

Well, I stepped away from the fiberglass for the last round of this and replaced it with some cloth, it gives a much smoother surface to work with, and saves on sanding for hours on end.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3602-img-1023.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3603-img-1024.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3601-img-1030.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3600-img-1026.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3599-img-1032.jpg

[J_Parker]

Starting to come together, I've for the most part gotten all of the lumps and bumps out of it, minus a few small areas. I painted it back so that when I come back to it tomorrow, I can see more dimension to where needs to be filled and sanded, Obviously it's shitty paint job and looks like garbage, but as of now, it's getting very close to being done.

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3604-img-1034.jpg
http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3605-img-1038.jpg

Thank you all for the positive feedback, I appreciate it very much :)

[bluzvr4]

lookin killer man!

[BigTyla]

Looks pretty good!

[enigma]

Nice work, Ive done a few bumpers myself and it take quite a time to get it right, your work is inspiring me to do another myself, just be careful when its off as it may expand at the ends, I use wooden battens between the ends to keep it the correct width, as when you go to install it maybe be too wide, I had this happen to my very 1st bumper design and it ended up cracking the bumper.

[J_Parker]

Nice work, Ive done a few bumpers myself and it take quite a time to get it right, your work is inspiring me to do another myself, just be careful when its off as it may expand at the ends, I use wooden battens between the ends to keep it the correct width, as when you go to install it maybe be too wide, I had this happen to my very 1st bumper design and it ended up cracking the bumper.

Actually since you mention that, just this last round on the fiberglassing, I forgot to do that, it was about 5" too wide by the time I put it on. It ended up cracking when I had installed it so I sanded down the cracks, smoothed them out properly, and filled them with resin. it worked out quite well in the end. I was worried that I may have torqued the whole thing out of shape, but I got lucky that time. I certainly wont be forgetting to do that again :p

[J_Parker]

Teaser!!! :D It's looking great so far!

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/custom-1991-1993-3-s-bumper/3658-img-1167.jpg

[bluzvr4]

want more

[J_Parker]

want more

I'll post more pictures of it when the cold snap goes away and I can put it on my car lol.

[bluzvr4]

right on it looks killer

[SL00ƜGT0]

Lookin good. Love it when people take projects like this to completion

[vroom4]

I wish you wouldve left the sides in tact or been a little more subtle, but still a+ for effort lol.

[J_Parker]

Lookin good. Love it when people take projects like this to completion

I didn't actually make it to completion, it got smashed up a few days ago.

[bluzvr4]

what?!?! need pics

[vroom4]

Fail!

[J_Parker]

I was extremely upset when this happened, my little cousin was up at our house with his quad and lets just say... He's not very fucking coordinated, somehow he managed to "accidentally" hit the throttle and crash into it. It was up against the wall when this happened, so obviously there was no give whatsoever when he hit it. I couldn't even go near the little shit after that.

[GTOJOE]

is that the same little cousin that damaged it previously?

[J_Parker]

is that the same little cousin that damaged it previously?

Yes... Yes it would. He's no longer allowed near the shop or within 10 feet of my car, he and his parents have been told.

[2fnloud]

I thought that you told him that before?

[MeTarzan]

wow that sucks man :(

[AgentOblivious]

How much damage are we talking about here?

[Nihil]

I didn't actually make it to completion, it got smashed up a few days ago.

Dude!!! That SUUUUUCKS! This was one of the coolest threads to watch progress and I was hoping to learn from some of your experience! LAME!

[IPD]

I was extremely upset when this happened, my little cousin was up at our house with his quad and lets just say... He's not very fucking coordinated, somehow he managed to "accidentally" hit the throttle and crash into it. It was up against the wall when this happened, so obviously there was no give whatsoever when he hit it. I couldn't even go near the little shit after that.

i'm pretty sure i'd be asking them for $500 to cover the labor involved which was just down the drain. and since you have pics, you can take them to small claims court if they don't play ball. i don't care if the lil shit has to have his next 5 years of paychecks garnished.

[J_Parker]

How much damage are we talking about here?

If you look in my sig, its pretty much annihilated from about halfway in the middle of the left hand stripe... It's not even going to be worth trying to salvage :(



i'm pretty sure i'd be asking them for $500 to cover the labor involved which was just down the drain. and since you have pics, you can take them to small claims court if they don't play ball. i don't care if the lil shit has to have his next 5 years of paychecks garnished.

If I could I would, nobody is behind me on this one. My parents as well as his, pulled the "He's only a kid" card on me. If I were to do this about half of my family would never talk to me again, it's just not worth the effort, him being banned from our shop and allowed nowhere near my car is good enough. (If I catch the little shit near my car ever, there will be zero tolerance in my actions.)



Dude!!! That SUUUUUCKS! This was one of the coolest threads to watch progress and I was hoping to learn from some of your experience! LAME!

I'm very disappointed in this, I really wanted to see this one through to the end. Maybe if I can get another bumper I'll give it a shot and see what I can come up with. Although it'd be a shame to hack it up, I still have the Kaze bumper that came with the car originally that I could use as a base.

[IPD]

i still say try selling the kaze as funds to build with.

and no, frankly, i wouldn't give a shit if my family disowned me. only bleeding liberals think that there should be no accountability. if it were my kid, i'd have paid out of pocket to make it set right, and my kid would owe ME for the damages. your family sucks ass. /thread.

[J_Parker]

After spending hours upon hours on the internet trying to find a bumper that I really wanted for my car, without going to a 2nd gen front end... I started fixing the mangled remains of this one, I went to far to want to simply discard it.

[MeTarzan]

persistance !!!

[J_Parker]

persistance !!!

I refuse to let this one go to the junk yard, I've had too much positive feedback on it to scrap it off.

[Street_Chally73]

Awesome news, dude!!! Good luck with the rebuild process!

[Alan92RTTT]

You should take a pic of the carnage. Just so you can show where it started.

[2fnloud]

You should take a pic of the carnage. Just so you can show where it started.

This!

[bluzvr4]

x1000

[J_Parker]

I already had it all together before I snapped a picture, otherwise I would've shown you how bad it was. It was more or less just a spur of the moment thing where I put Humpty Dumpty back together.

[J_Parker]

Here it is all patched up, painted and on the car! :D

http://www.3sgto.org/members/j_parker/albums/91-gto/3941-img-1387.jpg

As you can probably see, I still have so fine tuning to do on the bottom, the darker spots are where I had to put things back together, the top however came out great :)

[CoreyB]

Looks awesome man, thanks for the update!!

[bigworm82]

Does look really good IMO

[J_Parker]

Thanks guys, I'll snap a couple more pictures for you when I can and post them up :)

[vroom4]

:derr:

[J_Parker]

Is anyone interested in this bumper anymore? I won't be using it on my car anymore and may be selling it. It still needs a bit of work, but nothing someone with body experience can't handle.