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I'm getting ready to fix up and drop a replacement bed on my 1978 F250 and had some questions I was hoping someone could answer! Total noob here, but learning a little more every day.
Is this damage cosmetic or should I get some scrap metal welded in there for structural support?
I'm replacing the panels soon. Do I need to straighten these arms before putting the new panels on? Are the arms meant to bend to adjust to the panels?
Finally, what's a good treatment plan for the undercarriage? Rubberized coating after cleaning it up and priming it?
Make sure you open up the bed drain holes suggested above, very good tip. Do all metal work to the bed and complete it before bed lining, its not too easy to get off later.
In addition to the good advice above, before you paint it with por15 or rustseal or whatever, I strongly recommend using a 4.5" angle grinder with a 4" knotted wire wheel from harbor freight and giving the whole thing a good once over. youll be shocked at how much crap this takes off! wear safety gear and a respirator. If you want to get meticulous, they make smaller diameter wire wheels you can put on a dremel or drill and get the harder to reach areas after. you can get near sandblast results doing this.
I'm a fan of rustseal paint, but more important than the paint is doing good prep work and wiping it down with wax and grease remover.
That being said... nothing removes rust like sandblasting.
If I were to restore my ford again, I would have scrapped my bed, and driven to Arizona to buy a straight rust free one. if you spend $1000 doing it, youll save 200 in products, a few hundred of your own labor, and sell your current bed for 200 bucks... and have a much better end result... just a thought.
On the rotted areas... yes cut them out and replace with new metal. This is the starting point of a durable repair. Good coating is a bonus. Red Rustoleum primer + Rustoleum satin black is effective over solid metal... and there are lots of other choices for coating.
The bent support arm needs straightened. The tab that bolts to the body may need adjusted or replaced. Get the body panels straight first and adjust the arm as needed.
Could you clarify on the blue box location: are you recommending drilling the fender lip itself, or the lower portion of the inner fender? Thanks in advance for the clarification, I just want to make sure I am understanding correctly before I start prepping my replacement bed.
Glad to see this issue come up. I couldn't find a replacement for my short bed 79 so I'm having to make burlap purse out of my sows ear. hope to follow your progress. if you need bed bolts check cj pony car parts. original style kit was 24.00 including shipping.
good luck
Could you clarify on the blue box location: are you recommending drilling the fender lip itself, or the lower portion of the inner fender? Thanks in advance for the clarification, I just want to make sure I am understanding correctly before I start prepping my replacement bed.
Lower portion of the inner fender.... big enough to get your fingers or some sort of tool to clean out the gap between the inner fender and wheel arch. I cut my inner fender to one inch of metal, two inches of gap, one inch of metal, and so on. I use a toothbrush (with the handle sharpened to a point end) to remove trapped/wedged pebbles and small stones.
Lower portion of the inner fender.... big enough to get your fingers or some sort of tool to clean out the gap between the inner fender and wheel arch. I cut my inner fender to one inch of metal, two inches of gap, one inch of metal, and so on. I use a toothbrush (with the handle sharpened to a point end) to remove trapped/wedged pebbles and small stones.
Now this has me debating if I should weld in the inner fender arch that I bought to replace what I cut out.... It wouldn't look factory, but I could weld in a series of braces that provide the same support, but none of the debris-collecting hassle... Hmmmmm
I've been really apprehensive about welding those two lips over each other because I'll never know if the inside is sealed up right or not. I was thinking of a wax based winter sealer, but being able to see and clean out the fender lip would be a huge bonus.
Lower portion of the inner fender.... big enough to get your fingers or some sort of tool to clean out the gap between the inner fender and wheel arch. I cut my inner fender to one inch of metal, two inches of gap, one inch of metal, and so on. I use a toothbrush (with the handle sharpened to a point end) to remove trapped/wedged pebbles and small stones.
Thanks HIO! That is what I had suspected, but I wanted to be certain before I started cutting on mine. Finding a clean replacement bed in my part of the country is no easy task, so I want to get it right the first time.
IMO lower portion of metal inner fender or X2 what HIO said. NOT the bed fender lip, but the metal piece that is put in there, where it contact the bed side.
The more open the better and easier to get something in there to wash out the area. See the post #2 pic 2 top red circles? See how big those inner drain holes are?
Its always the outside where the metal piece is in contact with the bed side that rusts.
IMO lower portion of metal inner fender or X2 what HIO said. NOT the bed fender lip, but the metal piece that is put in there, where it contact the bed side.
The more open the better and easier to get something in there to wash out the area. See the post #2 pic 2 top red circles? See how big those inner drain holes are?
Its always the outside where the metal piece is in contact with the bed side that rusts.
HIO thanks for the cover down/back up.
77&79F250,
Thank you very much for the follow up. It is awesome to have such helpful folks on here who are willing to help. Much appreciated!!
We are all here to learn, help and enjoy our Ford trucks. How ever you work it out, post some pics and show us what you did to make those drain holes bigger.
Rusty bed fender lip owners want to know, including me. lol
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