Dutchbelly

Lol thanks Jason, but I had more time than usual today, I had the afternoon off so I went back to work on the truck. I'm addicted. And yeah Chef, I had no issues getting the lug nuts off, it's the rim itself that's seized to the hub. I don't know how many years those rims have been on there, but they're on there good. I tried everything I could think of aside from hitting the rim itself. I started out just kicking the tire to loosen it. I was beating on the tire with a sledge at one point, I threw a couple lug nuts back on halfway and was ontop of the frame lunging right and left, and those darn rims didn't budge. I'm just hoping the penetrating fluid does its job overnight because I swear I could have driven down the road on those things with no lug nuts on.

dark_fairytales

When you say "I was thinking about painting the frame with a couple coats of rocker guard." Are you meaning bed-liner? As I am not familiar with any paint known as rocker guard.

ChefYota4x4

iTrader: (5)

Wow, wheels are frozen, eh? I've had that often with drums... never the fronts. Hmmmmm, .... You have tried putting the lugs back on, plum with the tip of the studs and giving them a moderate rap with a brass shaft and Hammer?

Dutchbelly

Rocker guard might be a local term for rubberized undercoat. A lot of guys spray it on their rocker panels for extra rust and stone chip protection.

dark_fairytales

That my work for rust protection. My concern would be that most rubberized coatings are porous which would negate rust protection. Be careful to make sure the material you decide to go with will do the job properly.

ChefYota4x4

iTrader: (5)

What about a gallon or two of "Hammered" paint from Rustoleum? Just asking, not saying it would be 'better'... I have it on my Grill Guard and it seems to be pretty durable stuff.

I would think you'd want a coating that's smooth, for easier cleaning on occasion, etc. There's got to be an optimal product for your application at a decent price, Dutch, ya know? I believe Rustoleum products are fairly rust resistant, ..but I guess anything where you are is going to be compromised by the weather/conditions/road salt, etc.

Dutchbelly

New tools! I'll probably be needing those this week. I went back out to work on the truck, again couldn't get the wheels to budge. I was trying everything I could think of:

No dice. Gave them another bath of penetrating fluid and continued working on the back end.

I did the back axle with that rubberized undercoat. I want to see how it holds up before I do the whole frame in it.

started sandblasting and painting the lug nuts, and then realised there's no point. I'll be pulling them off and on so often that the paint will be gone. I'll probably get them all pretty after I get the thing on the road. I then put the rear brakes on. Here's a before and after:



I really hate that shiny paint. It comes off on your hands and you get it on everything. I'll probably clean it off and just paint them with black or green caliper paint before I drive it the first time.

Edit: Pasting this diagram from the FSM here for reference:

jason in tn

Dutch on getting those wheels off I don't know if I can explain this well enough but on another progect that I am working on I had the same problem so I used a small bottle Jack between the frame and wheel Just to put out word pressure and hit the wheel with a dead blow hammer. It worked for me just an idea.

Dutchbelly

I did wipe it down with a rag. A lot of the sparkle came off. Problem is I think most of the paint came off, too. I'm leaning towards a metallic green caliper paint for them now, but I'm not sure how well it'll go after I've already put this junk on there. I know very little of paint. What type of paint should I be looking for as the base coat under the clear? Just the rustoleum stuff that chef's mentioned?

Terrys87

iTrader: (1)

Wow Dutch.. I was gone for a few days and you have gotten alot done. Sorry about the water pump, but at least it isnt to bad of a fix.

Like Jason said, I would be tempted to put just a little pressure on it with a bottle jack between the wheel and frame and let it sit over night. You might come back and it pop off. Them being connected that way is something else. I have had that with drums before and a wheel sticking some.

You are getting that frame and brakes looking great.

Dutchbelly

Thanks and welcome back terry! doesn't always feel like much progress when you're the guy doing it. so i got talking to the guy who services our fork lifts and he has a replica shelby cobra kit car that he built about 10 years ago and he said he painted the frame with por-15 and it's still spotless. he only drives in the summer but it still sounds like the right product for me. you guys have any experience with the stuff?

Terrys87

iTrader: (1)

You may not feel like you have made progress, but cleaning and prepping consumes a big part of the time. Look at where you started til now and that is a lot of work.

I dont have any experience with POR-15, but hear alot of good about it. Just about anything has got to help these frames. I spend as much time cleaning the underside as I do the top side.

Makes you wonder how many good trucks are gone just because of the frames. These are starting to get hard to come by and can only imagine 10 years from now.

Dutchbelly

So I've been doing a ton of reading on different things you can do to frames. Por-15 seems to be really highly regarded, but from what I've read should be put straight on rough bare metal, not smooth surfaces like mine, as I sandblasted/primed it. I'm thinking I should stop trying to reinvent the wheel, and go with the oldfashioned basecoat clearcoat like dark fairytales has suggested. I waited too long to paint because I'm so worried I'll screw it up, so now I'll really have to clean what I've primed really well. My father in law has an undercoating gun that he uses to spray that gel-like clear undercoating so I'll probably soak the insides of the frame with that, and then shoot the whole underside before it gets driven in the winter. I've decided that I'm spending too much time worrying about this part of the project, and when it comes down to it the best thing I can do regardless of paint product is to just keep sticking my nose under there to check on things. That shouldn't be a problem considering how quickly I've become addicted to this kind of work. As always thoughts/experiences are welcome. I'm a complete novice when it comes to paint.

jason in tn

Dutch there are companies that offer different types of frame specific paints they are a lot tougher than standard body paint but also more pricey, por 15 is designed to paint straight over rust but I believe you can still use it as a base coat, I would think if you start with a good coat of primer sealer which has like a resin in it to seal out moisture then a good paint and a clear you should be fine, any way you go tho its gonna be alittle exspensive.

Dutchbelly

So after reading and worrying for a couple days about this I think I've gathered enough info to piece together some semblance of a plan. I'm going to leave the back axle exactly how it is with the undercoat material on it, and if it ever starts to look bad I'll strip it and prime/paint it. At this point the whole frame has been primed, but was done on different evenings, after I'd finished sandblasting another section of the frame. There are a few spots where some surface rust has shown up, so I'm thinking the best plan is:
1. Wait till I have a full day to work on the truck uninterrupted.
2. Buff out or blast any spots where I didn't prime sufficiently until the whole truck looks completely rust free. I know there will be a few spots on the underside that I'm sure weren't done as well as they could have been.
3. Clean the whole frame with degreaser, and then=> First question=> Do I have to wipe the degreaser off of the primer before continuing?
4. Put one solid coat of primer across the frame to cover any spots that needed to be buffed.
5. Have a beer while the primer dries.
6. Talk myself out of having another beer.
7. Mix and prepare the black chassis paint for the spray gun=>Second question=>Is it enough to empty the water from the bottom of the compressor or do I need to find a dryer unit for the air line?
8. Apply one thin coat of black chassis paint
9. Wait for the first coat to flash (think it's called flash) while enjoying another frosty beverage.
10. See step 6.
11. Apply second coat of black chassis paint
12. Thank the heavens it's done.
One more question=>Is a clearcoat necessary for rust protection? The chassis paint I was looking at in the store had descriptions saying best results with a 2 coat process. I'm really not worried about looks as I'll probably spray it down with undercoat oil anyway. I've put a lot of work into this frame and now I'm worried I'm going to screw it up. I should find someone who does frame painting for a living, buy him a coffee/beer and ask him politely to write down step by step instructions in crayon.

Edit: Looks like I have time to work on this anyway, The company I ordered my suspension kit from had to backorder some parts, said it would be probably 3 weeks from day of purchase, which I think was a week and a half ago. All I really can do until the suspension goes in is paint, rework the rear gas tank bracket, rework the transfer case crossmember, and fart around with some brake/fuel lines. I might see if I can get the bracket and crossmember done this week so I can paint everything in one shot. I should probably get the gas tank blasted this week as well. The lines going into the fuel pump look kinda iffy, really hoping I can salvage them.

jason in tn

Sounds like you got a good plan going, as far as clear on the frame I don't think I would but that's me, buy a cheap inline dryer harbor freight, northern tool etc has cheap throw away ones, you will be glad you did, sorry to hear about the parts back order.

Dutchbelly

Yeah I asked the question because Dark Fairytales mentioned 3 coats of poly acrylic clear coat, and he seems to know much more on the subject than I do. Its funny I tore down the truck with much less fear than I now have before painting the frame. And yeah I know a buddy who has an inline dryer, think he just needs new pucks for it, so maybe I'll buy him the pucks and borrow the dryer. Thanks for the input Jason, really appreciate it.

jason in tn

I by no means was trying to say DF was wrong. I had a very lengthy discussion with him about painting mine and he gave me a lot of good tips, I was just adding my 2 cents.

Terrys87

iTrader: (1)

I would go with the clear, it will just put another layer between the frame and the possibility of rust on the out side. These also rust from the inside out.

After you get done paininting it, I might would try to get an oil coating on the inside. I used an air gun with a siphon hose attached to it to try and coat the inside of the frame. There are enough holes in the rear to get to it. Dont know how well it really got mine, but I tried to put in the effort so maybe it will count for something.

I think back ordering is a requirement for these trucks.lol

Dutchbelly

I hear you Jason. I'm not here to discount anyone either. I've spent almost a week now trying to find "the best way" and everytime I think I've found it I then find just as many people saying the opposite. So far all I can say for sure is if there are that many opposing opinions on the subject it probably matters less what process I choose, and more how well I do the job. I'm going to go with the chassis paint I priced out and I guess I'll get a price on poly acrylic clear coat and if it doesn't break the bank i should do that too. I just don't want any regrets on skipping anything by the time I put the body back on. And yeah Terry I plan on shooting the inside of the frame with undercoat oil.