painted bumpers?

Years ago I had a '71 Cuda and want elastomeric bumpers but couldn't afford them. So, I took my bumpers, welded on studs for the brackets and filled the holes so the bumper was smooth. Then took a 60 grit disc on a grinder and ground the bumper to fresh steel. followed that with 80 grit, then some basic bodywork to fix a few dings, primer and paint. Looked great when I was done. Was it correct...no, did it look perfectly original...no, but to the most onlookers, they received positive comments.