Needing to put a headliner in my 53 f100. Looking to use the LMC headliner kit that is the bow style. Is there anyone here that has installed this? How difficult was it? Anyone know of any videos showing the installation? Would like to see pictures.

 

Good to see your post. I haven't seen much from you lately. Unfortunately no help on the headliner though.
R U gonna try to go to OMR this year?

 

would love too, but I haven't driven my truck a lot yet since getting it back on the road. Would be a little weary driving that far. Don't have air it it yet and no way to protect luggage if it rains while driving there. Also my wipers quit working. Here is a picture at a local show.

 

Rainex

Plastic bin with a good lid.

 

I am working on a 55 f100 vinyl LMC headliner with small back window now. It has a rear bow that is tied into the frame for the door opening near the door turndown on both sides with metal clips, also about 10" each side of the centerline with plastic clips (anti-rattle) on the back mid body frame and then again at the centerline with another plastic clip. All these five connections make the rear bow very rigid, The center and front bows tie into the door opening frame similar to the rear bow with metal clips on each side but with only one plastic clip in the center. These bows are much less rigid because of the fewer connection points and before final stretch, which I haven't done yet, you end up with a wave shape in the bows which hopefully will go away with final front stretch. I don't think the rear stretch will move anything much in the middle and front bow areas because of the five bow connections at the rear.

The vinyl material is thick and not overly "stretchy". It's going to take a lot of leverage for 'one man' to make the front stretch and the only way I saw to do it was to remove the windshield which I was going to work on anyway. The rear looks to have enough leverage points for a 'one man' operation if you remove the rear window. I'm using three point seat belts which won't make the rear work any easier. I don't see anyway you can do the job w/o removing the rear window unless you have way better contact cement than I do and more hands. I used pop rivets (a bunch of them) and contact cement for the tack strips.

It's a fair amount of work, especially navigating the materials in the cab, even with the seat removed. I will know more in the next couple of weeks and will report.

 

I took my wrecked 72 Vega's headliner and except for the length had to be trimmed fit my 51 F1 perfectly. Even the cab light lined up.
I know odds on a good Vega hard headliner are zero but never be afraid to improvise any existing part to retrofit.

 

I said earlier that in a couple of weeks I would reply on the amount of work needed to get the LMC vinyl headliner in; it's been way more that 2 weeks. It has been done for a while and looks OK, certainly could have been better w/ a couple of small wrinkles in both back corners and listing lines across the top that are not arrow straight.
It's a lot of work! Not sure I would do it again.