Nolift911
Well-known member
I vote white!! And we are waiting on a welding master class on those rear quarters 
Between 265 & 485 SQ/FT Made By Miller Studios
- Thread starter MadeByMiller
- Start date
Workspaces sized between 265 and 485 squarefeet.
Johnno
Well-known member
A vote for bronze here. Also I have the Grabber AT/X's on my F150. They have been a great tire very good in the snow and wet conditions, they make a lil bit of road noise but not to bad,
83VillageRepair
Well-known member
Grabber AT/X and Cooper Discoverer AT/X are both readily available in that size and I have used and liked both. Are you using Black Hills Powder Coating?
OP
MadeByMiller
Well-known member
We'll see if I get to it this summer. It's not super high on the priority list, and I hate rust repair.I vote white!! And we are waiting on a welding master class on those rear quarters
Thank you for the feedback on the tires guys.
No, I've worked with Justin at BH Powder Coating in the past, but when I called him about doing the wheels for the Expedition he said that he doesn't do wheels anymore. He recommended I go to Anderson Powder Coating, which I did and Jesse did an excellent job for me. I'll be going back to him again for these wheels.
sawduststeve
Well-known member
Hope I’m not to late to vote
I vote black, adds an air of menace, needs to go lower also
Steve
I vote black, adds an air of menace, needs to go lower also
Steve
83VillageRepair
Well-known member
I used to work with Justin before I left SD. Small world
OP
MadeByMiller
Well-known member
Yesterday was a special day. I decided to finally try to fire up my old '72 K10 and start the process of getting it sold. I think it's probably been about a year and a half since I've had it running. We had been driving it around the neighborhood maybe once a month prior to that, but it suddenly began starting really hard, to the point where it simply wouldn't start without spraying some carb cleaner or dumping gas down the carb.
I hooked up the jumper cables from my Dakota to the '72 and tried giving a spritz of carb cleaner to it. It immediately fired up, but only for a second. Clearly not getting fuel. When I parked it last, I knew there was something going on with the fuel pump. I still feel this way, but I haven't entirely diagnosed the problem. There is definitely a gas leak at the fuel pump, and I'm hoping that maybe it's just loose fittings. I'm hoping it's not bad seals and or diaphragm, but it's possible because I'm cheap and have been just running the truck on 87 ethanol gas for years. The fuel pump was new in 2016, and is an Edelbrock 1721. I haven't seen any rebuild kits for them, and unfortunately a new one is about $170.
Anyways, we got it fired up eventually, with me keeping the engine running with carb cleaner while my father in law cranked it and gave it some throttle. Once the fuel reached the carb sufficiently, the old girl idled like a champ and handled some 3k RPM throttle blips okay with the occasional stumble. I pulled it over to the shop and filled up the one flat tire (all the others held strong at 42 psi) and then moved it into position to start the clean up process. I shoveled probably 50lbs of pine needles and pine cones out of the bed from the now almost six years the truck has lived underneath pine trees. As you can see, it was quite neglected. Covered in tree sap, bird poop, dust, and pine needles.
To kick off the deep clean, I loaded up my foam cannon with some Dawn dish soap. Of course this would normally be bad practice, but the paint on this thing is in need of some real deep cleaning, and I hoped the dish soap would loosen up the sap (spoiler alert: it didn't).
I let the soap dwell and loosen up grime for about 10 minutes, then proceeded to spend an hour straight pressure washing every square inch of the exterior, undercarriage and underhood included.
As mentioned earlier, this didn't do much for the gobs of tree sap all over the body. You'll also notice the missing clearcoat and majorly oxidized paint in the spots with the most sun exposure. The hood is severely oxidized and has almost no clear coat.
I'm sort of on the fence with what to do about the paint oxidation. I know I want to address it to make the truck overall more presentable to potential buyers (yes, I know this is probably silly given the rust issues) and I also don't want to spend a lot of money and time to get it there. There are a couple of avenues. The cheap and easy would be the Zep floor wax/VGG Shine Juice/Sweet Patina Sauce simple wipe on solution. The more expensive and time consuming method would be to buff the oxidized paint with some compound and a wool pad, then wax the whole truck.
I'm conflicted, because I know the cheap and easy method wouldn't give me really great results, but it would be something easy to do to quickly transform the looks of the paint. @D.F.B is the angel sitting on my shoulder telling me that this is the perfect opportunity to finally try buffing some automotive paint with my Harbor Freight DA. I can't really hurt the paint, and I don't need perfection here. I think it would be fun to buff it, but it would absolutely be more time consuming.
I'll leave it at that for now. Later this week I will look closer at the fuel pump and make the decision whether or not to buff the paint.
I hooked up the jumper cables from my Dakota to the '72 and tried giving a spritz of carb cleaner to it. It immediately fired up, but only for a second. Clearly not getting fuel. When I parked it last, I knew there was something going on with the fuel pump. I still feel this way, but I haven't entirely diagnosed the problem. There is definitely a gas leak at the fuel pump, and I'm hoping that maybe it's just loose fittings. I'm hoping it's not bad seals and or diaphragm, but it's possible because I'm cheap and have been just running the truck on 87 ethanol gas for years. The fuel pump was new in 2016, and is an Edelbrock 1721. I haven't seen any rebuild kits for them, and unfortunately a new one is about $170.
Anyways, we got it fired up eventually, with me keeping the engine running with carb cleaner while my father in law cranked it and gave it some throttle. Once the fuel reached the carb sufficiently, the old girl idled like a champ and handled some 3k RPM throttle blips okay with the occasional stumble. I pulled it over to the shop and filled up the one flat tire (all the others held strong at 42 psi) and then moved it into position to start the clean up process. I shoveled probably 50lbs of pine needles and pine cones out of the bed from the now almost six years the truck has lived underneath pine trees. As you can see, it was quite neglected. Covered in tree sap, bird poop, dust, and pine needles.
To kick off the deep clean, I loaded up my foam cannon with some Dawn dish soap. Of course this would normally be bad practice, but the paint on this thing is in need of some real deep cleaning, and I hoped the dish soap would loosen up the sap (spoiler alert: it didn't).
I let the soap dwell and loosen up grime for about 10 minutes, then proceeded to spend an hour straight pressure washing every square inch of the exterior, undercarriage and underhood included.
As mentioned earlier, this didn't do much for the gobs of tree sap all over the body. You'll also notice the missing clearcoat and majorly oxidized paint in the spots with the most sun exposure. The hood is severely oxidized and has almost no clear coat.
I'm sort of on the fence with what to do about the paint oxidation. I know I want to address it to make the truck overall more presentable to potential buyers (yes, I know this is probably silly given the rust issues) and I also don't want to spend a lot of money and time to get it there. There are a couple of avenues. The cheap and easy would be the Zep floor wax/VGG Shine Juice/Sweet Patina Sauce simple wipe on solution. The more expensive and time consuming method would be to buff the oxidized paint with some compound and a wool pad, then wax the whole truck.
I'm conflicted, because I know the cheap and easy method wouldn't give me really great results, but it would be something easy to do to quickly transform the looks of the paint. @D.F.B is the angel sitting on my shoulder telling me that this is the perfect opportunity to finally try buffing some automotive paint with my Harbor Freight DA. I can't really hurt the paint, and I don't need perfection here. I think it would be fun to buff it, but it would absolutely be more time consuming.
I'll leave it at that for now. Later this week I will look closer at the fuel pump and make the decision whether or not to buff the paint.
Is it clear coated? Or just single stage?
If its failing clear coat, you won't see much benifit, but you might bring some of the shine back to single stage. In any case, do a test section and see what you get. This would be a good opportunity to have a play around with that machine, I'd probably start with a foam pad considering the fragility of the paint.
For the tree sap, I'd be using something like Carpro TarX, but apparently hand sanitizer can dissolve tree sap as well.
CARPRO Tar X Powerful Tar Remover Essential for Automotive Decontamination and Adhesive Removal
OG's CARPRO Tar X, an essential tar remover perfect for spot-treating tar, sap, and adhesive residues. Ideal for use after paint decontamination, this powerful solution ensures effective removal without damaging plastic or rubber surfaces.
www.obsessedgarage.com
CARPRO TarX 1 Liter (34 oz)
Removing tar from a vehicle improperly can result in harmful scratches. Sky’s The Limit Car Care makes cleaning easier with its CARPRO TarX 1 Liter (34 oz).
www.carpro-us.com
zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I'd love to have that sitting in my shop as a restoration project Austin.
Hope you get it sold to someone who will do it justice.
Hope you get it sold to someone who will do it justice.
Nolift911
Well-known member
I think it looks awesome as is - if I had the room...and I would leave that patina.
I agree. I don't think you need to do anything in regards to the paint...
Buyer 1 wants to do a full restoration. He won't care what the paint looks like because he knows he's going to have it resprayed.
Buyer 2 is going to keep it as a survivor and drive it as is. They may not want a patina preservation applied to the truck. Let them decide if they want to put some shine juice on there or not.
If a potential buyer can't look past the paint, then they have no business owning that beautiful truck.
cccoltsicehockey
Well-known member
That is an awesome truck. Always loved that body style. Wish I was in a position to be a potential buyer for it. Even love the existing color.
SilverJimmy
Well-known member
Do it Mike! Drive the motorhome up there, bring a hitch to flat tow it home… after you go to Mt Rushmore and the Black Hills. You could even drive the K10 around while up there, cuz it is a Chevy, it will run! And then we all get to follow along while you build it up for Little Z’s 16 birthday present! DO IT!!!
Jayman17
Well-known member
I don't know what Mike will think of this idea but I like it!
SilverJimmy
Well-known member
Oh, he’s thinking….
OP
MadeByMiller
Well-known member
Thank you for chiming in! It was repainted at some point with a base/clear paintjob. There are also some areas that I painted with a spray can years ago. I'm not super concerned with the fragility of the paint, even some burn through would add to the "patina". I mainly just want to get the oxidation off and bring some shine back so that the truck doesn't look like it's been sitting in a pasture neglected for years and years. I want it to present as well as it can. As for the sap, I planned on trying some of the Stoner Tarminator on it. I also have a brand new bottle of Carpro Lift (bought on your recommendation), but I figure that probably wouldn't cut the sap. I think a test section on the paint is the perfect way of proceeding.Is it clear coated? Or just single stage?
If its failing clear coat, you won't see much benifit, but you might bring some of the shine back to single stage. In any case, do a test section and see what you get. This would be a good opportunity to have a play around with that machine, I'd probably start with a foam pad considering the fragility of the paint.
For the tree sap, I'd be using something like Carpro TarX, but apparently hand sanitizer can dissolve tree sap as well.
CARPRO Tar X Powerful Tar Remover Essential for Automotive Decontamination and Adhesive Removal
OG's CARPRO Tar X, an essential tar remover perfect for spot-treating tar, sap, and adhesive residues. Ideal for use after paint decontamination, this powerful solution ensures effective removal without damaging plastic or rubber surfaces.
CARPRO TarX 1 Liter (34 oz)
Removing tar from a vehicle improperly can result in harmful scratches. Sky’s The Limit Car Care makes cleaning easier with its CARPRO TarX 1 Liter (34 oz).
Mike, if I could choose one person in this world to be the next owner of my truck, it would be you. If you're at all serious about owning it, send me a message.
I agree with you. Unfortunately my brain doesn't accept that logic haha. I can't help but to want the truck to be as presentable as possible to potential buyers. Take my word for it, the truck doesn't have what I would consider patina. It looks like neglect. I really believe that bringing some shine back to it would really make it pop and help with the sale. Plus, I'm really curious if I can bring it back somewhat and I think it would be a lot of fun - and a learning opportunity.
Thank you for all of the replies guys. I learned a lot and had some great experiences with the old truck, but I don't feel a sentimental attachment to it anymore and it pains me to see it rotting away under pine trees. I may enjoy metalwork, but that absolutely does not include rust repair, so the prospect of me fixing it is just unbearable. The money from the sale of the truck would be much more useful in other areas of my life, especially compared to just having an old truck rot away in the driveway.
OutlawDrifter
Well-known member
Definitely a desirable combination! And a great color to start with.
How is the interior?
The only thing that would make it better is a GMC grille (but that is just my personal bias speaking)
How is the interior?
The only thing that would make it better is a GMC grille (but that is just my personal bias speaking
)zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Y'all can **** it. Austin chose ME.
Just kidding. Couldn't resist throwing some humor in......
Thanks Austin. Great, now I have some thinking to do.
Nolift911
Well-known member
Group buy and then we can rotate around the awesome -ness?
Thanks Austin. Great, now I have some thinking to do.
not that my opinion matters, but man, a 4x4 resto-mod, in my mind is WAY cool in todays sea of bagged 2wd everything!
zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
not that my opinion matters, but man, a 4x4 resto-mod, in my mind is WAY cool in todays sea of bagged 2wd everything!
Damn Mike, it's like you know me. OR I'm just that predictable?
I just sent a message to my son saying imagine this with modern running gear, full frame-off restoration with fresh paint and body work sitting on a 33's with a few inches of lift?
Unfortunately, I have too much going on right now, but this one is the first one that has actually gotten me to stop and think lately.
How much room is there behind the RV? Safe storage for when time permits!
SilverJimmy
Well-known member
Look closely at that truck. Other than the rust in the lower cab and the bottom of the bed, it’s really clean. And it looks like it’s a factory A/C truck. Then top it off with it still having a wooden bed floor! No pictures of the interior so I don’t know, but if it’s a 4 speed it should have a 205 transfer case. Go automatic or really go all in and swap a NV4500 in it, which would be my choice. And a really cool trick on old Chevy 4x4’s is to swap in a van rear 12 bolt. Makes the rear track the same as the front, just like my favorite, the K30 1 Ton and makes for a unique 1/2 ton truck. You know you want to do it and you have almost 15 years to get it done!
Just had to “Poke the Bear”!
Just had to “Poke the Bear”!
SilverJimmy
Well-known member
Just think how much fun a LS3 with a 4L60 would be in that truck. And you actually could swap modern gauge units into that classic instrument cluster and make them work, no LED **** for Little Z! Get some 6 bolt wheels just like on Grampa’s truck, that boy will be in Heaven!
Poke…. Poke…. Poke….
Poke…. Poke…. Poke….
SilverJimmy
Well-known member
Seriously, we’d all love to watch you get this done. And just think of how awesome this would be on your YouTube channel! You’d break the innertube!
OP
MadeByMiller
Well-known member
Couple of vehicle related updates:
First, I threw a new battery and fuel pump in the old '72 Chevy and have been putting some miles on driving around the neighborhood with my family. It's running great! I also found a good deal on a set of hubcaps on eBay, and to my surprise I really love how they look on the truck. I know, they aren't correct (they're square body caps) but the correct caps would've been about 3-4 times the cost of these. They look the part to me, and I think the truck looks tougher.
Still have to clean it up before I can think about listing it for sale, but getting it running again was an important step in the right direction.
I also worked on the Expedition last week. We dropped it off at the mechanic shop to have a simple routine oil change and ended up getting hit with a $2,600 bill for new front lower control arms, rear upper control arms, and a 4 wheel alignment. Not fun at all, but this is exactly the reason why I take our family hauler to the shop rather than doing oil changes at home - I wouldn't have checked the ball joints and found them to be very worn out... On a positive note, the Expedition has never driven so well and solid as it does now. That inspired me to finally get around to ceramic coating and bolting up the new wheels and tires that have been taking up space in my shop for months now.
As a reminder, I picked up this Armour wheel coating kit based on @D.F.B 's review and experience. It was quite simple to apply. Once coated, I left the wheels to cure for 24 hours. Once cured, I systematically jacked up each corner, removed the old wheel/tire, detailed the wheel well and suspension, and finally installed the new wheel/tire with new lug nuts. It was going pretty well and was an enjoyable way to spend a beautiful summer afternoon.
(shield your eyes from that rotor flash rust, @D.F.B )
As I was finishing the very last wheel on the passenger side front, I noticed a wire harness hanging out in the breeze completely naked, with no loom. This caught my attention, so I investigated. To my disappointment (and slight anger) I discovered that someone that wasn't me (and I likely had paid to do service) had gotten lazy and failed to properly route said harness. Instead, they had zip-tied it haphazardly to a heater line that just so happened to be quite near the exhaust manifold. Obviously, this melted and disintegrated a large portion of the factory corrugated wire loom, leaving the bundle of wires exposed and very close to the hottest part of the engine bay.
By some massive stroke of luck, a visual inspection of the exposed wires showed no signs of melted insulation or bare wire! I can't believe how fortunate I was there, because no doubt that harness would have been expensive and difficult to repair or replace. With just enough access, I was able to wrap the exposed portion of harness with electrical tape, followed by some nylon woven wire loom that I had in stock. Following this, I rerouted the harness up much higher on the firewall, tying it to another harness in a more proper and safe path than the lazy tech before me had attempted...
I just have one photo of this debacle, taken after the electrical tape wrap job:
I was not happy to have to do this repair, but I am grateful that I caught it and took care of it before it became a real massive problem.
The new wheels are such an upgrade though!
We took it to Mt. Rushmore for our first outing on the new wheels and tires, and I was quite impressed with the driving manners of the new tires. As a reminder, they are Yokohama G015's (thank you for the recommendation @OutlawDrifter )
First, I threw a new battery and fuel pump in the old '72 Chevy and have been putting some miles on driving around the neighborhood with my family. It's running great! I also found a good deal on a set of hubcaps on eBay, and to my surprise I really love how they look on the truck. I know, they aren't correct (they're square body caps) but the correct caps would've been about 3-4 times the cost of these. They look the part to me, and I think the truck looks tougher.
Still have to clean it up before I can think about listing it for sale, but getting it running again was an important step in the right direction.
I also worked on the Expedition last week. We dropped it off at the mechanic shop to have a simple routine oil change and ended up getting hit with a $2,600 bill for new front lower control arms, rear upper control arms, and a 4 wheel alignment. Not fun at all, but this is exactly the reason why I take our family hauler to the shop rather than doing oil changes at home - I wouldn't have checked the ball joints and found them to be very worn out... On a positive note, the Expedition has never driven so well and solid as it does now. That inspired me to finally get around to ceramic coating and bolting up the new wheels and tires that have been taking up space in my shop for months now.
As a reminder, I picked up this Armour wheel coating kit based on @D.F.B 's review and experience. It was quite simple to apply. Once coated, I left the wheels to cure for 24 hours. Once cured, I systematically jacked up each corner, removed the old wheel/tire, detailed the wheel well and suspension, and finally installed the new wheel/tire with new lug nuts. It was going pretty well and was an enjoyable way to spend a beautiful summer afternoon.
(shield your eyes from that rotor flash rust, @D.F.B )
As I was finishing the very last wheel on the passenger side front, I noticed a wire harness hanging out in the breeze completely naked, with no loom. This caught my attention, so I investigated. To my disappointment (and slight anger) I discovered that someone that wasn't me (and I likely had paid to do service) had gotten lazy and failed to properly route said harness. Instead, they had zip-tied it haphazardly to a heater line that just so happened to be quite near the exhaust manifold. Obviously, this melted and disintegrated a large portion of the factory corrugated wire loom, leaving the bundle of wires exposed and very close to the hottest part of the engine bay.
By some massive stroke of luck, a visual inspection of the exposed wires showed no signs of melted insulation or bare wire! I can't believe how fortunate I was there, because no doubt that harness would have been expensive and difficult to repair or replace. With just enough access, I was able to wrap the exposed portion of harness with electrical tape, followed by some nylon woven wire loom that I had in stock. Following this, I rerouted the harness up much higher on the firewall, tying it to another harness in a more proper and safe path than the lazy tech before me had attempted...
I just have one photo of this debacle, taken after the electrical tape wrap job:
I was not happy to have to do this repair, but I am grateful that I caught it and took care of it before it became a real massive problem.
The new wheels are such an upgrade though!
We took it to Mt. Rushmore for our first outing on the new wheels and tires, and I was quite impressed with the driving manners of the new tires. As a reminder, they are Yokohama G015's (thank you for the recommendation @OutlawDrifter )
OutlawDrifter
Well-known member
Hub caps look good on the pickup. Glad you found the harness before it became a bigger issue.
New wheel/tire combo looks good!
New wheel/tire combo looks good!
Those new wheels look fantastic! Just wait to you wash them next, the effort put into the coating will make cleaning so simple.Couple of vehicle related updates:
First, I threw a new battery and fuel pump in the old '72 Chevy and have been putting some miles on driving around the neighborhood with my family. It's running great! I also found a good deal on a set of hubcaps on eBay, and to my surprise I really love how they look on the truck. I know, they aren't correct (they're square body caps) but the correct caps would've been about 3-4 times the cost of these. They look the part to me, and I think the truck looks tougher.
Still have to clean it up before I can think about listing it for sale, but getting it running again was an important step in the right direction.
I also worked on the Expedition last week. We dropped it off at the mechanic shop to have a simple routine oil change and ended up getting hit with a $2,600 bill for new front lower control arms, rear upper control arms, and a 4 wheel alignment. Not fun at all, but this is exactly the reason why I take our family hauler to the shop rather than doing oil changes at home - I wouldn't have checked the ball joints and found them to be very worn out... On a positive note, the Expedition has never driven so well and solid as it does now. That inspired me to finally get around to ceramic coating and bolting up the new wheels and tires that have been taking up space in my shop for months now.
As a reminder, I picked up this Armour wheel coating kit based on @D.F.B 's review and experience. It was quite simple to apply. Once coated, I left the wheels to cure for 24 hours. Once cured, I systematically jacked up each corner, removed the old wheel/tire, detailed the wheel well and suspension, and finally installed the new wheel/tire with new lug nuts. It was going pretty well and was an enjoyable way to spend a beautiful summer afternoon.
(shield your eyes from that rotor flash rust, @D.F.B )
As I was finishing the very last wheel on the passenger side front, I noticed a wire harness hanging out in the breeze completely naked, with no loom. This caught my attention, so I investigated. To my disappointment (and slight anger) I discovered that someone that wasn't me (and I likely had paid to do service) had gotten lazy and failed to properly route said harness. Instead, they had zip-tied it haphazardly to a heater line that just so happened to be quite near the exhaust manifold. Obviously, this melted and disintegrated a large portion of the factory corrugated wire loom, leaving the bundle of wires exposed and very close to the hottest part of the engine bay.
By some massive stroke of luck, a visual inspection of the exposed wires showed no signs of melted insulation or bare wire! I can't believe how fortunate I was there, because no doubt that harness would have been expensive and difficult to repair or replace. With just enough access, I was able to wrap the exposed portion of harness with electrical tape, followed by some nylon woven wire loom that I had in stock. Following this, I rerouted the harness up much higher on the firewall, tying it to another harness in a more proper and safe path than the lazy tech before me had attempted...
I just have one photo of this debacle, taken after the electrical tape wrap job:
I was not happy to have to do this repair, but I am grateful that I caught it and took care of it before it became a real massive problem.
The new wheels are such an upgrade though!
We took it to Mt. Rushmore for our first outing on the new wheels and tires, and I was quite impressed with the driving manners of the new tires. As a reminder, they are Yokohama G015's (thank you for the recommendation @OutlawDrifter )
Nolift911
Well-known member
No fun finding poor workmanship you paid good money for, draw backs of having others work on your truck that is not "their own" Reality is most people would not notice and mechanic is working against "book time" for a job...
Wheels look great!
Wheels look great!
OP
MadeByMiller
Well-known member
Thanks Marc!
I appreciate all of your help with the coating, thank you!
I have no way of knowing for sure that it happened during my ownership of the vehicle, but there were two jobs in particular I had done at the shop where that harness would have been in the immediate way of the work being done... Thanks!
OP
MadeByMiller
Well-known member
This past weekend I scored some great upper cabinets off Marketplace to put on top of my Vidmar cabinets. I had been wanting something similar for years now as a place to store some more bulky items and when these popped up for $50, I knew I had to have them. They were filthy from being in an autobody shop environment, but a pressure wash and scrub down got them cleaned up enough to match the sort of condition of the Vidmars. They fit perfectly in the space.
I'm not really sure who the maker of these cabinets are. The only branding is a sticker on the inside that says Visible Computer Supply Corporation, but it seems like that was a distributor, not a manufacturer. Regardless, the cabinets are extremely well built and heavy!
I also started cleaning the mounds of tree sap off of the '72 Chevy as I clean it up to get it ready to list for sale. @D.F.B recommended Carpro TarX for this task, and it worked wonderfully! The only drawback is that the sprayer included with the 1 liter bottle is trash, for some reason I have to have it loose on the bottle or it will sort of vacuum lock and stop spraying? Not sure how to fix this. The product itself made quick work of all of that sap that had been sitting on the paint for north of half a decade!
Before:
After:
I did the cab and front sheet metal, just need to do the bed. A plastic razor blade was a big help to get the globs off, then I followed it up with a microfiber towel to remove the residue.
I'm not really sure who the maker of these cabinets are. The only branding is a sticker on the inside that says Visible Computer Supply Corporation, but it seems like that was a distributor, not a manufacturer. Regardless, the cabinets are extremely well built and heavy!
I also started cleaning the mounds of tree sap off of the '72 Chevy as I clean it up to get it ready to list for sale. @D.F.B recommended Carpro TarX for this task, and it worked wonderfully! The only drawback is that the sprayer included with the 1 liter bottle is trash, for some reason I have to have it loose on the bottle or it will sort of vacuum lock and stop spraying? Not sure how to fix this. The product itself made quick work of all of that sap that had been sitting on the paint for north of half a decade!
Before:
After:
I did the cab and front sheet metal, just need to do the bed. A plastic razor blade was a big help to get the globs off, then I followed it up with a microfiber towel to remove the residue.
Nice score on the upper cabinets. I've wanted something like that for my shop as well. I might just have to buy new, but the ones that seem heavy duty enough cost more than I'm willing to spend, and the ones I can afford feel like they'll bend if I breathe on them wrong.
OP
MadeByMiller
Well-known member
Made some more progress towards getting the '72 Chevy ready for sale today. I decided that it would be a good idea to cut out some of the rusty sheet metal in the rocker/floor/cab corner areas of the driver side, and a bit on the passenger side cab corner as well. A few weeks ago I actually pulled the entire rocker panel off of the driver side with one hand, it was barely even attached. I did it because I was worried that my kids or potential buyers would accidentally hurt themselves on the rusty, jagged edges that were very much in areas that could snag you. So, it may look a bit worse to have a completely missing rocker and cab corner, but it is much safer and they needed to be cut off eventually anyway.
Here is the driver side before cutting today:
And here is how it cleaned up with a bit of cutoff wheel and flap disc surgery:
Another thing on my to do list was tightening up the driver side door handle. It had just a bit of wiggle and it bothered me every time I opened the door. I pulled the door panel off (not without a small fight from the crank handle retention clip), tightened the handle, decided to lube up the window mechanism while I had it off, and finally I cleaned the door and the door panel with Simple Green before reinstalling.
Before cleaning:
After:
Here is the driver side before cutting today:
And here is how it cleaned up with a bit of cutoff wheel and flap disc surgery:
Another thing on my to do list was tightening up the driver side door handle. It had just a bit of wiggle and it bothered me every time I opened the door. I pulled the door panel off (not without a small fight from the crank handle retention clip), tightened the handle, decided to lube up the window mechanism while I had it off, and finally I cleaned the door and the door panel with Simple Green before reinstalling.
Before cleaning:
After:
OP
MadeByMiller
Well-known member
Next it was time to get started on a long overdue project for the truck - mounting the rear bumper.
I had originally removed the bumper when I shortened the chassis but I didn't have time to remount the bumper. When I put the truck back on the road in 2016 I intended to install the bumper, but it was easier to just run some self tappers into the rear bed crossmember to mount the license plate....Now that I'm selling the truck I want it to look as good as it can, so I needed to mount it up.
I backed into the shop and got to work.
And it really wasn't too bad to get thrown on! Right now I only have half of the mounting holes drilled and bolts installed, but with the help of a floor jack and a piece of wood I was able to pretty easily get the bumper into place where I thought it looked right. It looks so much better with the bumper installed!
I love the rear sport bumpers on these trucks.
You may notice that the rear license plate mount/bracket is missing. I have a brand new one that I bought in 2016 that I began to install today, but 3/4 of the carriage bolts snapped when removing the old smashed up one, so I will have to make a hardware store run to get that crossed off the list.
Still have plenty of work to do to get this old truck ready to sell, but it feels good to make progress anyway.
I had originally removed the bumper when I shortened the chassis but I didn't have time to remount the bumper. When I put the truck back on the road in 2016 I intended to install the bumper, but it was easier to just run some self tappers into the rear bed crossmember to mount the license plate....Now that I'm selling the truck I want it to look as good as it can, so I needed to mount it up.
I backed into the shop and got to work.
And it really wasn't too bad to get thrown on! Right now I only have half of the mounting holes drilled and bolts installed, but with the help of a floor jack and a piece of wood I was able to pretty easily get the bumper into place where I thought it looked right. It looks so much better with the bumper installed!
I love the rear sport bumpers on these trucks.
You may notice that the rear license plate mount/bracket is missing. I have a brand new one that I bought in 2016 that I began to install today, but 3/4 of the carriage bolts snapped when removing the old smashed up one, so I will have to make a hardware store run to get that crossed off the list.
Still have plenty of work to do to get this old truck ready to sell, but it feels good to make progress anyway.
Are you planning to patch the rocker? Given your skills, it should be fairly quick and easy to put in a new rocker and prime it.. something that could be a daunting task for a potential buyer. I'm sure it would add a lot of value. Body panels for old Chevy trucks are pretty cheap..
madison069
Well-known member
Truck is looking good! I installed a set of those hubcaps on my 78 Chevy crew cab when I was in high school. It cleaned the rims up a lot due to covering the axle hubs and lugnuts.
Like burger said, the missing rocker panel is the only thing that says to walk away for potential buyers. But without knowing what the underside looks like I wonder how hard it would be to just install them?
Like burger said, the missing rocker panel is the only thing that says to walk away for potential buyers. But without knowing what the underside looks like I wonder how hard it would be to just install them?
Nolift911
Well-known member
OP
MadeByMiller
Well-known member
This.
Otherwise this is just a flat out tease...especially with your skills
Thank you for your comments guys. Trust me when I say that it would not be the simple job that you might be thinking. The rust in the cab is pretty severe, extending into the floorboards, cab supports, rear of cab, bottom of doors, kick panels, etc. To do it right would essentially require either finding a cab in better shape and swapping them, or completely disassembling the sheet metal on the truck, sandblasting, and repairing. I have no time, money, or interest in a project of that scope at this time (or in the foreseeable future) which is why I'm selling the truck in the first place. If I were to fix the sheet metal I would just keep it. The cutting I did yesterday was simply a safety measure, as explained. Not to mention, the bed is really just a shell. There are no inner bedsides and the seams where I shortened the bed are not at all body worked. The wood floor is also shot. Hope that paints a better picture for you all, thanks guys!
madison069
Well-known member
I suspected there was more rot than what we could see in the photos. Otherwise I suspect you would of already slapped some rockers on already.