Technical Chrome bumper

I've finally found a chrome front bumper for my '60 F100, but it's tweaked a little. Any advice on straightening it? I was thinking heat and hammer but I'm pretty sure that will affect the chrome....

 

yeah, it would affect the chrome! Without seeing pictures of what's wrong with it, it's hard to help....

Chrome shops remove the chrome then straighten bumpers with a big chisel shaped hammer and a nice heavy "anvil". Lots of small blows. Then they spend some time sanding and buffing.

 

Jim is correct, best just live with it or spend more money to have it repaired and re-chromed. HRP

 

Bolt it up to the truck and slowly tweak it, use the weight of the truck to your advantage.

Someone tapped my daily silverado on the end of the bumper. Telephone pole, come along got it pulled straight horizontally (be sure to set the parking brake). Floor jack, hardwood 2x4 put pressure from below, and piece of hardwood and a small sledge and a few taps got it straight vertically.

Make slow moves, use plenty of towels between the come along strap and chrome.

Let's see where the tweak is.

 

I think a 60 truck bumper is significantly thicker than a later model bumper, at least they are on the Chevys. But yeah, seeing what you have to fix is going to make a big difference in what you need to do.

 

If it's just tweaked , not creased , you may be able to get it a bit straighter with a tree and a come along. Go easy though , it can turn to shit in a second .

ALSO , you might find more help if you title this thread appropriately - something like "Need help straightening a chrome bumper" .

 

Those old bumpers are pretty thick. I would get yourself a 60 or 70 foot length or chain,rope or whatever you got and tie it to a big tree ,get the truck up to 35-40 mph and see if that works. Oh, don't forget to put a towel around the bumper first so that you don't scratch it.

 

Yep, older bumpers are thicker. If you can straighten a frame with a floor jack and chain, you can do the same with a bumper. Correct angle and force, steel will move.
Depends on the damage. If it's outside the bumper mounting, it will pull with a come a long, between the bumper mounts, your better off using a shop press.

 

I was just playing around of course ,never do it that way. always use two towels.

 

I had a really twisted '59 Ford car bumper, I blocked it up on the ground, elevating the high part up off the ground, and jumped on top of it a couple times, I was amazed how easily it snapped back into shape. Sometimes it doesn't take much, although a truck bumper might be thicker.

Be careful straightening it on the truck, if the brackets are bent they'll distort the bumper. If it's not bent too bad and you have straight brackets, try bolting it up and drawing it tight on the brackets. It might create a bunch of torsion but just drawing the bolts tight might hold it straight (depending on where the bend is).

Post pics, would make this a lot easier.

 

Thanks for the help guys. A couple of pics, sorry about the poor quality...

 

A few things I've done...as mentioned, a press might work to get the bolt hole back out close to where it belongs. And you might be able to grab the end of the bumper and yank it back a little bit, then with it removed, carefully put the kink in a vise, between two pieces of wood, and flatten it out some. The bend in the bumper will have to be pulled as you straighten the kink.

You might be able to get it a bit better, but try not to make it worse..

 

Why bother fooling around with that? I've thrown better away.
$250 for a nice repop.
http://www.lmctruck.com/features/fb/fbbmp.htm

 

I wish someone would donate a nice new $250 part every time I need to fix something on my old rides....

 

Many years ago I had a 72 Chevy c10 with no rear bumper, I bought a parts truck for the bumper brackets and after parting the truck out (and it was a money maker with tilt, disc brakes etc) I traded what was left for a bent chrome bumper. I showed it to a friend of mine and he took it out on the lawn with a big hammer and when he got done it was presentable, nope, not show quality but good enough. So I'd take a shot at following some of the suggestions above, what do you have to lose, nothing and possibly save $250

 

Ouch, that kink in the top won't buff out, Squirrel's got the plan, you can improve it but it won't be straight without trashing the chrome.

 

I'd do the vice thing too, I bet you could get it close. Put paint sticks between the vice jaws to keep it from marring. Once you get it real close, some times you can clamp a really big adjustable wrench over the lip and bend it down a bit to get the edge flatter.

 

good point on the wrench thing, I forgot to mention that. Go real easy with it though.

 

Bolt it on the best you can. If you can, tie the frame rail down. Jack up under the twisted end and hit the bent peak with a B.F.H. (you may want someone holding a good chunk of oak on it). Repeat, repeat.