I got the sliding glass rear window from the ebay seller, but he didn't include the seal/gasket. I read the ad, and sure enough, no mention of it at all. I called them up and got one shipped right away. They were real nice on the phone, and said I could use the original one in the truck now. I explained that it is most likely the original from '81 and replacing would be best.

A friend of mine helps me on this kinda thing when I need it, but he works out of town. I'll have to wait for him on his next visit home, which will be next week.

Sliding rear windows help a lot with air flow esp in the hot climates of Florida. My '85 has factory AC, but it's only cool, not cold, and the fan is really slow, so I just use the rear window and it works pretty well. I need to get into it, but that truck is only occasionally used.

I do plan on adding AC to the '81, but that's still a little bit away. I am going with an underdash aftermarket, but am concerned about fitment being as it's a manual shift on the floor. Most likely I will get a unit from Nostalgic AC in Ocala, FL and plan to just go there and get them to break some likely candidates out and see what fits. More later:

Nostalgic AC - Evaporator Units

 

On the interior, I have a couple of things to do. One is to exchange and paint the excellent dash pad from my '85. It was recommended to use SEM paints, and I have a color chart being sent to me.

If you look at this pic, there are several shades to the interior, so I'll take the chart and order one that is close to the dash and dash pad I think.



When I get the paint and actually into the job of replacing/exchanging from the '85, I want to replace this pillar trim. It looks like the dash pad will need to be out to access one of the attachment screws.



Gary Lewis has the paint code for the interiors:

Interior Paint - Gary's Garagemahal

From talking to the dealers, none seem either aware, or willing to mix up the custom blend # and put it in an aerosol can, so first I'll see how well the match is from the color chart when I get it.

 

OK, now to what little I did get done today!

It was determined on Joe's buildup of Festus that this was a factory radio delete. It did have a set of Jensen speakers behind the seat, but the sound quality was bad; so bad I usually just turned the radio off, esp at any speed over 45 or so as you couldn't understand anything anyway.

I think I found the problem:



I went through my box of good speakers - all of these are new and for one reason or another weren't used in prior projects. I found a set of Sony's that fit:





I used the existing holes, so the speakers and grilles were a bit off center



The sound is much better, but something I noticed with the old speakers persists with these. The passenger side doesn't balance out - that is, you can bias it all the way over to that side and still hard to hear. I did not replace any wiring, and don't know if this is a problem with wiring or the radio.

I have another set of speakers that will fit into the door behind the factory grilles:



I also have a set of 3 way 4x6 speakers, and was thinking of building some sort of enclosure to put them in the cab corner. This would either augment, but most likely replace the ones I just worked on so the rear deck would have more room for things back there like spare fluids, basic took kit, etc.



That's it for now, thanks for watching!

 

Oh, I forgot, free to a good home, groovin' Jensen speakers!

 

Interesting...my pillar trim (on both sides) is cracked in exactly the same way. The only difference on mine is that the cracked-off tips (the pieces with the screw in them) are completely lost. I wonder if this is a standard thing with this generation of trucks...anyone else have this same cracking problem?

 

I think mine are also cracked and even more so in the parts truck as it was rolled over on it's roof.


I have used PLASTEX PLASTIC REPAIR KITS on another dash and also on a John Deere tractor plastic hood side panels. Stuff works great and if you need to make a lip that screws go thru just make a forum and fill it up.


Once the part is fixed paint it and never know it was repaired.
Dave ----

 

The pillar trim in my '85 is in great shape, which is sorta odd seeing as how the rest of that truck is pretty rough.

I wonder if when they're off, maybe some sort of reinforcement could be added to the back side? It would need to be thin and strong; maybe glue it in with the plastex kit linked above.

I'll order a kit from them; thanks for their info.

 

When I get to the inside is when I will worry on the fix but I am sure I will use the Palstex.
Keep us posted as I may steal your fix
Dave ----

 

Well, that certainly explains the authentic vintage classic heritage 1981 sound!

 

I didn't notice until today, but the passenger side has a crack starting also. My plan is still to switch the pillar trim and the dash pad between the '85 and Festus, the '81. I'll do the fix on the bad ones before I reinstall to the '85.

I'm still waiting on the SEM color chart, and then will order the paint for both trucks. I'll be sure to do some pics and post.

 

Authentic sound for sure!

I need some stick on sound deadener for the doors, and then will wire in the door speakers. It should help quite a bit with a good even sound in the cab. Hopefully the balance problem is something simple.

 

I spent what seemed like days researching heat and sound mat for the Jeep (FatMat, Peel & Seal, etc.), and decided on this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/221910266163?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
It's a bit more than $1/sq.ft., a good mid-range price, and I'm extremely pleased that it doesn't smell like tar or asphalt. I read some unfavorable reviews on other brand-name, popular mats; and I've used the stuff from Lowe's and Home Depot that is designed for roof repair, and it's "fragrant" to say the least. Can't imagine what it would be like in a cab, in the heat.

This eBay seller has other quantities available; whatever you buy, I'd advise making sure it doesn't require spray adhesive, which is a tremendous hassle and adds quite a bit to the cost, methinks.

 

Thanks Joe, I'll take a look at that.

I noticed on the ride home from Colorado there is a fair amount of noise from the doors. Not really wind noise as in poor seals, more like lack of insulation. I figure to go ahead and use something like this while I'm in there. Can't hurt, right?

PS Great progress on the Jeepster. I read the latest updates just a bit ago.

 

Updates on Jeepster? Where? PM me if need be.

 

PM sent with link