Cerakote ruined my trim finish. What happened and how can I fix it?

A

andyfs

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Sep 10, 2023
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2000 sport- the trim was looking quite dull and faded so after doing some research I decided to try cerakote. I followed the instructions exactly. When it dried, the finish was terrible. Very streaky, almost as though the trim was having trouble absorbing it. I panicked and put a second coat of it on the trim which helped but not much. See photos for what happened. Here’s my questions

1- what went wrong?
2- how do I fix it?

I hate the way it looks. Any suggestions from here?
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I put Cerakote on mine about a year ago and they’re still looking good. Not sure what you did for prep, but I washed and dried mine a couple times. Think I used Dawn. Wiped them down with alcohol before applying Cerakote.
 
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Take them off
Light grit sanding, and Rustoleum Pro Bedliner

I looked at many polish products and theyre bandaids, short year or two it seemed like. Just be done with it with bedliner…..or do what I did and just trash em and buy a new style and bedliner em before install
 
Show us what Cerakote product you were using. I have Cerakote on my fender flares for over a year and they look brand new. Were your flares gray and faded before Cerakoting them?
 
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I have the Khaki factory flares. I washed them with dawn, pressure rinsed, and let them dry for a few days... ANY moisture will cause the Cerakote trim restorer to streak. I applied it to mine a year ago now, and it still looks as good as it did when I applied it...
 
I sanded with high grit sandpaper then painted mine black. Looked good until the AZ sun eventually faded then some. I stopped caring but wouldn’t hesitate to do it again if the look got bad enough.

I wasn’t a fan of the aftermarket fenders that I purchased so I returned them. They looked unfinished and “plasticy”. Figured there’s little point in going new if they needed to be painted. I’d go this route if i needed a set and couldn’t find originals.
 
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You might be able to use some 100% isopropyl and a white (or a well used green) scotch Brite pad and clean it off... but you need to apply it in shade, after fully degreasing and making sure it is 100% dry. Any grease, or other product, or water will cause it to streak.
 
Cerakote trim coat is an excellent product in my humble opinion. I used it almost 2 years ago and it still looks great. I think the people that have had poor results didn’t prep well. You must strip the surface of all prior products. I used blue dawn. What I see in the pictures is you tried to stretch the use of each wipe. Put it on thick (very wet). I used all 8 wipes, the hard top took 4 of them. I would recommend washing with blue dawn and re do it.
 
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