I have been busy on the truck lately… I just haven’t posted in a while. So, here is to getting caught up to date…
I pulled out the interior and laid in some sound proofing…
Before:

After:

 

I was trying to clean the windshield and i kept getting hit in the face with the antenna... So I desided to get rid of it an relocated it later...















Sorry for the blown out Phone photos...

 

My brother in law put these really bad $8 mirrors from Pep Boys on the truck and you couldnt see a thing with them... So I got rid of them and put some Peep Mirrors on... Granted they aren't the best for looking behind you... But it is better than I had... Plus they look better...

 

The bed had some issues (rust) and it was getting worse... So I Banged out most of the bad dents and welded the wheel well where they were pulling away from the floor... Then I sanded it down... Used naval jelly... Wire brushed it... Got rid all of the rust and sealed it...





Then I rolled in a bed liner... I know its not the best but it will work for now...

 

While I was doing the rough body work I came across this...



Yes... Thats all Bondo... A good 2-3 inches thick...

So I went to Pull A Part and found one for $40... Whoo Hoo!!!







Starting to shape up...

 

Since I was shaving stuff I started looking at the Stake Hole on the Bed...



Please excuse the nasty welds... I didn't take a photo after I cleaned it up...



I also didn't take a photo after I did my second skim... It is much cleaner now, trust me...

 

Of corse I have decided to get rid of all of the chrome trim... And now I am filling all of the holes...

 

Now for the fun part... I love the grill I have but it is a little beat up...



So I have pulled the Headlight surrounds off and started straighting them...



The surrounds have several dents... And a small Crease...



So here is the first round of working them out... This is going to take a while...

 

One of the last big things was the dash pad.



It was really cracked up and I didnt want to spend $300+ replacing it...

So I pulled it off...



Then I dug out the Defroster Vents...



I stared cleaning them off and I thought the brushed look might be ok...



I then welded up the holes in the dash and stared filling them...



Then sprayed the dash flat black like the rest of the truck...



This looks glossy, but I took the photo when it was still wet... I flatten out nicely... I am letting it cure for a few days before I wet sand it and spray it again. I am going to pull all of the interior and spray it all at once this time...

 

I guess now with the rain coming down, I started working on the interior...



The headlilner is shot...



I have put anything in it place but I will be sound proofing and probably putting up a stained hardwood liner. I wanted it to match the color of the steering wheel.

I have also pulled off the metal trim on the dash. I have brushed them and they match the defroster vents and the center of the steering wheel...

 

wow you have been busy , looking good !
I liked the look of those peep mirrors too , but i went with a more usable mirror after thinking about it .

 

I still have to Finish the body work on the driver side. Hopefully the weather will hold up... Im doing everything in an Apartment parking lot... If it is still raining on friday I will be pulling the rest of the interior out and finishing the Flat black on the inside.

This spring I will be working on a Crown Vic swap... I have already found the front end, I just have to get time to go get it. I will have to rent a garage when it comes to the front end... Wont be able to get around it... I'm still trying to deside what to do with the rear end...

 

The Peep mirrors are working pretty good for now. The good part is, they just bolt on. If I deside I don't like them, I don't have to weld up any holes...

 

I posted a long time ago about a squeeking/popping from the bed... I thought it was a bed mount or a shock bushing. Drove me insane...

Well I saw something between the bed and cab. I couldn't tell what it was. I grabbed a 2 foot socket extension and tried to knock it out... It didnt move... I had to use a 3lb sledge with the extension and beat the thing out... It was a piece of wood... Hard as a rock...



Now... No more noise... Thank god...

 

BTW... I have all of the side trim (Upper and Lower for a 68 Ranger) that I will no longer need... Needless to say the clips that hold the trim didnt survive...

I also have the Original Wheel covers that are on my original photos...