Honda Civic 96-00: DIY strip and refinish wiper arms w/pics

[eonsx311]

My wiper arms were looking pretty fugly so i decided to get these things back to how they used to look. You will need: 1. 14mm socket 2. pb blaster 3. 600 grit sand paper 4. Bulldog adhesion promoter 5. Duplicolor Bumper coating paint (or any matte finish black paint) 6. automotive masking tape 7. newspapers, misc rags and solvent resistant gloves 8. Aircraft paint and primer stripper/remover 9. 100% pure acetone (you do not want to be leaving any residue) The materials needed for this were all purchased at walmart and cost under $25 total. First you need to remove the 14mm closed end nuts that hold the arms to the windshield wiper motor posts. They should break pretty easily even if you live in a climate where road salt is used. Next comes the hardest part of the diy (well atleast for me due to corrosion) spray each post with pb blaster to loosen the bond between the arm and post. let is soak in for a few before attempting to pull them. I was able to jiggle the arm back and fourth to pull straight off but you may need a puller tool of some sort if they are really frozen on. Once the arms are removed place them on a work bench on top of some news papers and prep the area for the Aircraft stripper. (this stuff is naaaasty for you skin so be sure to get your gloves out at this point). In my case I decided to tape off the lower section of the arm because the finish was still in very good shape. Spray the entire arm holding back about 8 inches with the stripper. *** NOTE!!!*** avoid your skin, eyes and any area that is a painted surface that you inted to keep that way. DO THIS FAR AWAY FROM YOUR CAR!!! once it touches the paint it's catastrophic to its integrity. Simply wipe off bubbled paint with a rag being careful not to touch your skin to anything that has been incontact with the stripper (i found out the hard way that it burns baaaaad) make sure nothing remains of the original finish. You may need to apply a second time if anything remains on the surface of the arms. ps. if your bored... check out the pic of the aircraft finish remover. see if you can find the face...

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[eonsx311]

Once the finish is completely stripped down to bare metal you need ro rough up the surface with some 600 or 800 grit sand paper to ensure proper adhesion of the Bulldog. During this process pay careful attention to areas with any corosion making sure that all is removed.

Next you need to make sure the surface of the arms are completely free of any surface contaminates (dust, grease, grit and any residue left by the Aircraft stripper) by first washing with a light soap and water mix. Rinse the amrs and let dry completely. Once the arms are dry, dampen a clean rag with acetone and thoroughly clean each arm. Acetone, if it is completely pure, will not leave any residue creating a contaminate free surface.



The next step is to lay down a good base for the paint to stick to. Since the surface which you are covering is aluminum an adhesion promoter needs to be used to ensure that the surface will hold the paint. I used Bulldog adhesion promoter in 3 light coats (it runs very easily) on the arms..



It dries very quickly so within 3-5 minuits after the 3rd coat I was able to lay the first coat of the Duplicolor bumper coating. Much like the Bulldog, the bumper coating runs very easily and needs to be applied in very light coats. I applied 3 coats of this as well, allowing 3-5 minuits between coats to ensure it would not run. This is what they looked like after the first coat.





Once the final coat of the Duplicolor is on let dry for a few hours before beginning to install them. In my case, the humidity and temp of my garage was not optimal so i needed to use a hairdryer on a low setting to speed up the drying process. Here is one almost dried.

[eonsx311]

Once they are completely dry you can remove the tape from the masked areas and begin the install process.



The install is relatively simple but besure that you properly allign the arms when attatching them back on the posts. In this step I also used a bit of white lithium grease on the posts and sockets to prevent any furthur corrosion. To allign the posts I only half tightned them and turned the wipers on untill they stopped at their highest and lowest point checking for cleance. Once alligned you can tighten the bolts all the way. Now you can put the hood down, take a step back, drink a beer, rip a fart and smile at a job well done. This DIY took about 3 hours due to the extended drying time needed in my case but could easily be completed in under 2 hours. Here they are installed... ENJOY!





If anyone has suggestions or questions please feel free to ask.

[Misa]

nice writeup..... i guess it should work with most cars

[pnthr30]

nice

[hoyoung02]

good steps!

[tha_badguy]

For the amount of work you put into it
u did a shitty job
Why did u use bumper paint?
Nice write up tho
U should've used paint 4 metal

[jdmeg6hatchy]

very nice! ill have to do mine! good write up!

[eonsx311]

Originally Posted by tha_badguy

For the amount of work you put into it
u did a shitty job
Why did u use bumper paint?
Nice write up tho
U should've used paint 4 metal

thanks for the feedback

[aenima_20]

this is something that is so often overlooked by ppl
Ive seen tons of modded cars down here that look nice but the wipers are all chipped and faded
good write up

[eonsx311]

Originally Posted by aenima_20

this is something that is so often overlooked by ppl
Ive seen tons of modded cars down here that look nice but the wipers are all chipped and faded
good write up

I have wanted to do this for a year and finally got around to it. Im impressed with how much cleaner it makes that area look, what an eye sore it was before.

[c_rogue69]

you didn't have to remove the old paint. I just painted my wiper blades yesterday. All you have to do is scuff them down with a 3M scotchbrite pad...that's it. Then just spray it with some SEMS Trim Black paint, that's what I did.