It was a love and hate replationship up until now...

[Darknesss23]

I love the simplicity of the Chevy Bowtie logo... but I hate the "gold" on a black truck... so bare with me... I know some might think this is a bit cheesy maybe a little "ricer" but i really really dislike the gold bowtie on a black truck... to me it doesn't fit and i HAD to do something about this... i wasn't ready to pain't these logo's yet so i thought i'd try and at least cover them up instead (don't worry this is only temporary) I went back and forth with going with a black vinyl or silver... then i thought what if i put carbon fiber... i was originally going to put real carbon fiber (with 3M adhesive) so that the rear logo would be a chrome bowtie filled in with CF... Now carbon FIber is a bit pricey so i looked around then i found some silver carbon fiber vinyl i bought that for about $12 traced and even measured the shevy bowtie (tape measure + digital Caliper) then using a metal ruler, a fine point pen, and an xacto blade.... here's the out come... THey're not perfect, there's still an air bubble that i have to try and get out some how but for the time being i like the look of silver CF against a chrome outline or grille...http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r175/Dcn4314/DSCF0217-1.jpg?t=1244728348
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r175/Dcn4314/DSCF0219.jpg?t=1244728446

[Darknesss23]

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r175/Dcn4314/DSCF0221.jpg?t=1244728487
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r175/Dcn4314/DSCF0225.jpg?t=1244728529

[TRPLXL2]

I have never seen silver CF before, that is some seriously cool looking stuff. I really like the way the front bowtie came out, but the rear one just doesn't look right. BTW I love the red tow hooks, those are a nice contrast on the black truck. Honestly when I first looked at them I thought you used reflective tape, because it has a shiny quality to them. Keep up the great work, and let us know of any more mods that you do to your truck.

[Darknesss23]

its not real carbon fiber...its just a vinyl sticker material with a silver CF pattern... i know the rear didn't come out just right but i don't mind it... it now actually serves a good cause as it is quite reflective at night... much more so than the OEM gold...

reflective tape on the tow hooks?? haha i thought about that... but they are just painted... I actually had them sandblasted first, then i did a coat of primer, a coat of Cardinal Red, and then i clear coated it. I chose red because i'm a Volly Firefighter and the plate in the front that says what Dept. i'm with is Red...

[Springthing]

I like the way you are headed but seeing as I'm not much of a cf fan I'd have just gone with silver. Not a black out to 'match' the truck but a nice colour to make it stand out enough for ppl to see.

Way to go ahead and make minor mods to your truck like that. I love initiative like that!

[Darknesss23]

I chose the CF because i actually love F1 and racing, i dunno i love the way it looks. I wish i had an actual silver carbon fiver bowtie emblem... but i know that would cost A LOT of money...for a logo.. besides that... its "different"

[bry2500]

Not too keen on CF but those are growing on me the more I look. Anyhow it came out nice. Good work!!

[heavy chevy]

looks good man. If you decide to paint em it isnt that hard.

[Darknesss23]

I think i might just have some bowtie decals professionally made... hopefully in a similar silver carbon fiber material/"color" and then have them professionally put on... it'll look cleaner and probably won't cost more than $40...i hope.. the bowties are only 3" x 9" or 10" the only thing that i didn't account for when i made my template was the 3D pattern/effect that the front bowtie has...

[1S1K]

I just painted mine black. The gold was bugging me too!!! Pretty happy with the outcome as soon as i figure out to post pics ill get them up there!!!

[Darknesss23]

I just painted mine black. The gold was bugging me too!!! Pretty happy with the outcome as soon as i figure out to post pics ill get them up there!!!


I 've been looking at mine all week.. I think The one in the front I'm going to paint a chrome-ish/silver color.. I really like the single black outline of the bowtie and with chrome on the outside(grille) and a chrome/silver on the inside i think it'll look good. I'm hesitant to do it to the back because it means having to take it off of the tailgate completely... and then having to put it back on... i'm concerned that i may not put it back on straight or level...

[Springthing]

Not necessarily.

If you are handy and take your time you can easily tape around the bow-tie and not have to remove it from the tailgate at all. Just take your time, use the right tape (green auto body tape), make sure to mask off the rest of the back of the truck (auto body paper if you can as first choice, butcher paper second, newspaper as a last resort - NEVER plastic/garbage bags), and have a go at it like you did with the front. The green tape will take a little bit of a beating so you should be fine to scruff pad/sandpaper the edges of your bowtie.

It might take an extra 15 or 20 minutes of prep time but it will get the job done!

[Darknesss23]

lol i'm willing to bet.. with my luck... both processes of leaving it on or taking it off and painting it...would take the same amount of time... haha


i'm always hearing things(all good) about the green painting tape... whats so great about it?

[iPublicEnemy47]

looks nice... you could have always blacked it out but thats up your personal style..

Im gonna black out my GMC soon...

[Darknesss23]

not a fan of blacking out the logo...

[2ToNe04]

piant it black, or maybe red or blue to flow with what ever color scheme your going with.

[Darknesss23]

What do ya think? paint the rear one black to get the bowtie "outline" in chrome and the front one in chrome/silver to get the bowtie "outline" in black...?

[Project1]

yea thers alot of us who dont like the gold bow tie but the cf is pretty sweet bro

[Jimmiee]

I bought the solid chrome billet Bowtie for mine. They also make a black billet Bowtie but I like the silver myself.

[Springthing]

Dark-

I totally agree with your decision to not black either of them out. I think the silver is a much better look on your truck. The blacked out thing, at this point, is not unique at all anymore.

The automotive tape stuff is good because it's meant to hold up to the uses of automotive body work. It sticks well but is easy to come off and won't leave residue (unless you leave it on for more than a few days - NO tape is meant for that!). It holds up well to scuffing - so it's a little more resistant than your usual (beige) tape. It's somewhat waterproof (aka paint proof - paint won't seep through). It's just the right stuff to use and it's difficult to beat.

[cascott325]

i like the way it looks. that would be cool if you got a paint job to look like that

[Darknesss23]

i like the way it looks. that would be cool if you got a paint job to look like that
I WISH I COULD TOO! lol... i have to bring the bowtie to a professional decal place with the material i want and see if they can make it work...

[Breathtaker]

Why don't u get the chrome tow hooks from GM?

[Darknesss23]

Because they are $115.00... i'm considering it..

[Breathtaker]

I think they'll look awesome on your truck, black/silver combo, I'm also considering it. :wink:

[Springthing]

I think they'll look awesome on your truck, black/silver combo, I'm also considering it. :wink:

You're considering buying him chrome tow hooks!?? That's so awesome! Totally nice of you... way to help site members..!

:)


:glasses:

[Breathtaker]

You're considering buying him chrome tow hooks!?? That's so awesome! Totally nice of you... way to help site members..!


In another life maybe. :-)

[Springthing]

Muahahahahaa!!! Dang.. and here I was about to drop you some reputation points!

[Darknesss23]

If/when i get the chrome tow hooks we'll just say you got them for me BT

[zubbiez]

I had a local chrome shop do the tow hooks on my wifes escalade for 40 bucks they even pulled then off. just a thought before you throw down 115 dollars on something you already own

[Darknesss23]

yea... i originally thought about having them powdercoated RED but the guy i talked to said it would be $80 ...he hadn't even seen what they looked like..i figured chroming them would be more expensive...

[Darknesss23]

I could not take the imperfection of the vinyl anylonger... i tried painting, it didn't work, i tried a new vinyl... wasn't happy... the bowtie is now blacked out... i used a metallic black... I hope it comes out ok... I just sprayed on the clear coat... hopefully it'll be ready for tomorrow

[Darknesss23]

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r175/Dcn4314/DSCF0268.jpg
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r175/Dcn4314/DSCF0271.jpg
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r175/Dcn4314/DSCF0273.jpg
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r175/Dcn4314/DSCF0276.jpg
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r175/Dcn4314/DSCF0279.jpg

Prepped, Primed, Painted, Clear coated, Finished.

[Springthing]

Looks good to me so far...

[TRPLXL2]

Now that looks good to me, nice and smooth lines. Are you going to tape off the outer trim and do it in another color, like red? Just curious, anyways great job! :party:

[SoCal Chevy]

you should do mine next =D jk lol

[Darknesss23]

If you want to pay for shipping & handling (both ways) + materials (3m Sandblaster automotive sanding sponge 320 FINE, small can of primer, small can of clear coat)... i can do it for you I still have 1/2 can of GM metallic Black left lol

[SoCal Chevy]

hmm, i actualy would except i dnt know how to take of the bowtie on the tailgate and id rather not ship you my whole tailgate lol. plus id have a hard time convincing my mom to let me ship something to a total stranger

[Darknesss23]

1.) the one i did was the bowtie from the grill... 2.) i'm working on the rear bowtie next... I might paint it black with the chrome trim... or have the silver carbon fiber done professionally but still have to take it off from the tailgate... I'm going to try a combination of the fishing line and the heat gun to see how that works...

[Breathtaker]

I look forward to seeing the emblems on the truck.

[lbuajlw]

They look ok. I see your point about gold on black when everything else is chrome, silver or pewter. I could of sworn that I have seen brushed aluminum bow ties somewhere back in the 70's.