Inner structure for the lower corner/tailgate hinge mount tacked in, got it fully welded tonight (not in pics).

 

Awesome build. Its amazing what a little hard work is capapble of. The sad truth is that most people would have junked that truck. I would try to keep the the original color if possible. Its hard to believe how good these trucks look in brown. My dads old 1980 F-250 is copper colored (just a fancy way of saying brown haha) and I love it. I cant say im a fan of the rat rod stuff but you are being consistant with your theme and its coming together really well. All the personal touches make it very unique. Keep up the good work!

 

Began replicating the inner structure on the passenger side, more of the inner structure was salvageable so I'm just making the outer bits from scratch. Even replicated the big hole from the original with the plasma cutter, just incase it was actually there for something important.






Thanks! I'm really torn between the original color, or the flat OD green, both would look very nice. The markings on the toolbox are going to go, the ratcan paint is already completely faded, and every time a cop sees it they ask about the lettering.

 

Wow!! Great job, ditto on the resource thing.

 

Done here, just need to do the outer skins now.

 

I finished up the outer skins last week, just in time to take the bed home for break. Being the cheap ******* I am, I couldn't afford the $80 for two new patch panels, so I just made the corners out of several sections. Just need to grind them down a bit.





Taking the bed back off with only two people is a bit harder than putting it on with six people...




About to place an order for some MasterSeries to protect the new steel, and some Raptor Bedliner to undercoat the bed...



.

 

Great job newrider. I found some seats at the junk yard yesterday that are exactly like yours. They're out of an Eddie Bauer Bronco. Your truck is coming along great. Lets know how it looks when your finished with it.

 

Somehow, I missed this. I'll likely do the same thing for my bed. It had minor rust issues on the lower corners when I bought it 13+ years ago. Hasn't got much worse though....

 

Got my rear brakes back together, was originally just going to replace the shoes, ended up needing wheel cylinders too.
Also got a new pinion seal installed in the rear end.






Also got the final coats of paint on the rear of my frame. Two coats of MasterSeries silver, then two coats of straight Rustoleum oil-based enamel. It had better last for at least the next 30 years.

 

Sprayed the underside and inside of my bed with MasterSeries to protect all my repairs.
Also sprayed the underside with rubberized undercoating, I used good Evercoat stuff and a gun, not the crappy rat-can kind.



Also got the bed masked off, and ready for Raptor bedliner tomorrow...

 

I wish I was seeing what you're seeing - my box issues are next for me. Looks good !

 

This stuff is awesome, I would highly recommend it (100x better than the Duplicolor I used on my floorboards):



It's been a long time since I've actually seen my truck like this (dig the raised rear from the new 4-leaf packs):



Bedliner:



No more rust holes.





filler started.

 

Just need a little spot putty and a bit more sanding. Got tired of wind blowing the dust into my eyes this afternoon, squirted on some red oxide and called it good.

 

I think you are doing a great job with the truck. It is looking much better.

 

So I picked up a M5R2 to swap into my truck yesterday, and I cracked it open to check out the internals today. Was thinking of installing at least a new set of synchros before I installed it, but changed my mind:



All the gears and synchros look brand new (the stuff that looks like junk between the teeth is water droplets). The shift forks also have minimal wear:



The only issue was a disintegrated bushing/retainer for the shift lever.
Does anyone know the proper name of this part, and where I can get a new one?