Removing vinyl appliqué from rear bumper 72 Fury

bollotti

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anyone any experience in doing this? I have managed to loosen a section using heat from the back of bumper, but concerned that this may warp the vinyl. Any chemical which could be used to loosen glue without damaging vinyl? Thanks
 
you might want to make sure, before you go any further, to find out if the pad is bolted on....
i dont know, my experience is with 69 & 70 furies (aside from my 71 fury wagon)
 
I have the bumper totally stripped cannot see any evidence of bolts or screws. Looks like it is glued, unless they covered bolts with vinyl??
 
Bolted on from the backside? Likely there should be some sort of stud built into the applique that pokes through to the back side of the bumper and nuts and washers will hold the applique to the bumper face.

Check to see if there are small nuts and bolts there holding it on - kinda like bumper guard rubbers.
 
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I've never pulled one of these apart, but I've never seen rub strips with anything less than a mechanical fastener. If it's that tight, someone might have used windshield urethane. When you say "stripped", do you mean "removed from the car"? I'd try to slip something thin between it and the bumper, like a hacksaw blade. Feel around and see if you run into something steel-ish (like a mounting stud).
 
here are pictures from back of bumper, cannot see any type of fastener. only section I have been able to losen is shown. I think this may have been due to heat needed to remove one of the carriage bolts

IMAG1364.jpg


IMAG1363.jpg


IMAG1362.jpg
 
Well I don't see a bolt, that's true... All I could say is try to get that putty knife behind it. You'll either slice through adhesive or find a fastener. If someone has an exploded view from a parts catalog, that would help I guess?
 
I have manuals but does not show exploded view of how this is fitted. I have tried putty knife behind, but feels like it is stuck down solid. May try again with heat, and if that doesn’t work, guess look for a better bumper.
 
Please post a picture of the bumper showing the strip.

Do you have a parts catalogue? Sometimes the catalogue shows an exploded view when the service manual does not.
 
While I don't know for sure, the common sense person in me says there's NO WAY that isn't held on without integral studs that are cast into the applique, and that those studs poke through to the back side of the bumper and are held there with nuts. However, I could be completely off on this one.
 
I can't believe a peice that heavy and large wouldn't be bolted on! The best commonly available glue break downer is lacquer thinner specifically. Not paint thinner, lacquer thinner is way more powerful and evaporates way faster. If you end up trying this, lift the section already up, up and dribble thinner between bumper and pad while working putty knife through the two. Try to limit the exposure of the thinner to the rubber, and once off, it won't take long if it is glue, which oddly it appears to be, neutralize the rubber in water. Good luck!
 
Here is a photo of the applique from the 1972 Parts Manual. The photo I took is pretty clear and from what I am seeing, it is hard to conclude that there are studs on the back of the applique that are used to mount it that I too was suspecting -

2019-03-13 09.34.32.jpg


Also, in the part number pages following the parts drawings, each bumper (bar - 13-66-3) with a different color applique mounted on it had its own different/unique part number, so I conclude that appliques were indeed glued on the face of the bumper (i.e. if the appliques of different colors were mounted to each bumper with nuts, the bumper (bar) itself would have had only one part number and each applique of a different color its own number separately). Also, just in case you were wondering, the vertical guards (13-68-6) in the photo were used only on the non-PP models without the applique.
 
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Thanks for the replies. I have been over ever inch of the bumper looking for evidence that maybe fasteners had simply rusted off, but cannot feel any indents or bumps. It needs to come off one way or the other for rechroming (local company can cerekote a chrome finish), but it goes in an oven to 500 degrees, so applique has to come off. If it does not come off cleanly, I can live with the bumper being all chrome.
 
The only thing that makes sense to me would be that the bumper was replaced in the last 47 years with a version without holes and someone glued the applique back on.

Again, I stand by using something either hot, thin or sharp to slice. The good news is scraping the chrome isn't an issue if you're rechroming anyway.
 
Apply heat to the back side to soften the glue and push a paint scraper between the vinyl and the bumper. It will come off. It's a neat piece and should be saved.
 
The only thing that makes sense to me would be that the bumper was replaced in the last 47 years with a version without holes and someone glued the applique back on.

Again, I stand by using something either hot, thin or sharp to slice. The good news is scraping the chrome isn't an issue if you're rechroming anyway.

His is most likely factory original.

Per the factory parts book it was part of the bumper, had it had fasteners even snap in it would have been listed as a separate part. The expectation was that you replaced the bumper with one that had the applique.


Alan
 
I have several 72's and wrecked one in 1974. Yes, it is glued, and glued quite well. On my wrecked car, when they replaced the bumper it was without the vinyl applique. Made me mad. I continually debate whether to take the vinyl off my restoration/modded or not. The darn vinyl fades, and of course you have color match issues.

They are really stuck on, no real silver bullet to remove, other than heat, putty knife and determination. Good luck, keep us posted.
 
I have several 72's and wrecked one in 1974. Yes, it is glued, and glued quite well. On my wrecked car, when they replaced the bumper it was without the vinyl applique. Made me mad. I continually debate whether to take the vinyl off my restoration/modded or not. The darn vinyl fades, and of course you have color match issues.

They are really stuck on, no real silver bullet to remove, other than heat, putty knife and determination. Good luck, keep us posted.
thats good to have a definative answer. i can go hammer and tong now.....
 
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