Builds Well into my build - Herculiner today (1 Viewer)

[Black Rhino 13]

This will have to suffice as my build thread, partially after the fact. I think the Rhino is starting to gain some coherency all around finally.

My signature block shows both the things I've done and the things I've purchased already, but still have in boxes.

[EDIT: However, as time goes on one sometimes simplifies one's signature line. I've loved the evolution of the LC so far.]

So, in the last few weeks I've removed the flares and insignia, got new tires (BFG KM2 255/85-16) after shredding one of my Treadwright tires, installed the Slee rear diff skid and xfer skid, I relocated the windshield reservoir with the Slee kit, and probably something else I'm forgetting. Oh yeah, CDL and the idle knob too. And just this weekend I taped off and did Herculiner below the windows and a strip on the front of the hood. I'll possibly do the front and rear pillars later and maybe the hood. I plan on at least putting one hood vent in first. BTW, I did Herculiner on the roof over Easter weekend, 2011 and have been happy with that so far.

My pics are on Smugmug so I'll give this a try.

Originally in Aug 2010 in Michigan.

First thing: running boards off!

New shoes! Treadwright 265/75-16

Feb 2011 to Colorado en route to Montana. New door and fender off a 96, plus Slee step sliders and front flaps.

Feb 2011. Stuck in Montana snow - high centered. This is where the plan went from stock LC to built LC and we're still working on that.

 

[Black Rhino 13]

Continuing: LEDs and remove rear seats. Then remove roof rack and roll Herculiner. Considering I'm having to do all my work in a college housing parking lot, things go fairly well.

 

[Black Rhino 13]

Next, ARB bumper, Warn M8000 winch, as well as other associated manual recovery tools.

Winch still isn't connected, but that's coming soon with the 2nd battery system, Slee wires, etc... all in one event.

Next, I tried to do the suspension myself. That turned into a protracted fiasco. Ended up getting part done myself, part done by multiple businesses, and part from a great fellow 'Mudder here in town. Thanks Chad! In the end, I still have the rear springs on the wrong side.

Finally got some things together, got the roof rack on, and got out a little bit.

 

[Black Rhino 13]

Really didn't get anything done over the summer except trips. Just recently got the flares off.

And got all the emblems off and removed the adhesive with this wheel.

In the end, the emblems came off really easily, the wheel worked wonders quickly, and getting all the flare attachment points wasn't that hard. I sprayed the holes with zinc spray and taped over with metal body tape. Next post is the after pics of Herculiner on the lower body.

 

[Black Rhino 13]

Took a few shots today while the UV Topcoat was still drying. This pic includes the new tires too. I really like how they perform and handle with the OME 2.5" suspension.

I won't say my Herculiner job was perfect. I have a couple of spots with a little run or a heavy spot, but it is acceptable to me in this situation, and considering the limitations of working in a parking lot and having no experience with this stuff, I'm okay with it. Form follows function in this case.

Need to wax the hood now.

Decided to roll the mirrors on the fly. Glad I did.

There are a few spots where I haven't gotten all the little bits of masking tape off in case you're worried about the pics. Actually, that's fuzz in this pic below from the blue paper towel where I was using the solvent to remove the masking tape sticky from the window sill. The sun got that side of the truck hot enough that the adhesive got attached to the vehicle. The herculiner lines came out really well. The blue paper towel just rubbed off on the Herc texture.

And that's where things stand as of this posting. Body is finally one color, flares are gone, sides are protected from brush, and for our purposes we really like having the body covered in the durable textured bedliner material. For the money and small number of hours in labor, the results seem pretty good. Only time will tell how well it holds up.

I'll be putzing through the remaining projects and posting progress but right now school is priority. This will give me a little reprieve now and then.

Thanks for looking!

 

[NitrousEdge]

Nice build, I really like what you have done!

 

[Tyler93]

My first experience with Herculiner was about 11 years ago when it was almost new on the market. I bought the system at Kmart for about $80 bucks and used it in the bed of my old dodge pickup. Really my only complaint was it began to look like crap within a few months. Sunlight really took a toll on the black and it faded quickly. I would respray it with duplicolor bedliner in a rattle can on occasion to restore the dark black color. Hopefully the current herculiner has more UV inhibitors and you have a better esperience than I did.

 

[landroamer]

looks good, wont have to worry about brush scratches anymore.

 

[Black Rhino 13]

My first experience with Herculiner was about 11 years ago when it was almost new on the market. I bought the system at Kmart for about $80 bucks and used it in the bed of my old dodge pickup. Really my only complaint was it began to look like crap within a few months. Sunlight really took a toll on the black and it faded quickly. I would respray it with duplicolor bedliner in a rattle can on occasion to restore the dark black color. Hopefully the current herculiner has more UV inhibitors and you have a better experience than I did.

I read the stories here about various experiences with bedliner brands. I did some research and ended up ordering the Herculiner brand "UV Topcoat" online and applied it after the two coats of Herculiner bedliner back when I did the roof. I don't know why they don't sell the UV stuff in the stores beside the regular product. (?)

I know what you mean though, because when I did the roof back in the spring, I also slapped just the Herculiner on my center caps. They look really bad, really dull now. It was an experiment. So far, the roof still looks good and has stayed shiny with the UV Topcoat on there. I think they said it would last 5-10 years. It's pretty easy to roll back on as it doesn't fling bits off the way the roller tends to fling a few bits of Herc here and there. I do wonder what kind of maintenance it will require, but I'm sure it won't ever equal the cost of the professional spray on types. The UV Topcoat is about $20 a bottle and it covered the roof and body with a little left over.

 

[mickeyt]

Are you putting emblems back on?

 

[excessive]

how did you fill the holes on your roof? (the ones leftover from the oem roof rack removal)

 

[Black Rhino 13]

Are you putting emblems back on?

It would be difficult to impossible to put them back on over the thick textured Herculiner. I guess I could have just taped them over, but I kind of like the cleaner look of vehicles without the emblems and adornment. Here is the pic of the rear. I just figured out how to blur the license plate.

The LC is our family "go and do" vehicle and it's become more and more customized to our needs, leaving the factory set up and appearance behind in many ways. We're very happy with the way it's going and I can't count the number of times we've been out in the mountains doing something interesting and our little girls have said "Good thing we have a Cruiser".

 

[Black Rhino 13]

how did you fill the holes on your roof? (the ones leftover from the oem roof rack removal)

Hi. I think there are several threads about roof rack removal which might explain it better, but at the same time each person seems to dive in and deal with the issues as they arise on their own vehicle, depending on their skills, experience, and "tools".

I ended up spraying the holes with Crown zinc rich 93% galvanize coating. I just picked it up in a ranch supply store without even asking anyone's advice. Then I went to Ace Hardware and bought little black plastic body fill plugs. I put a silicone goop on the plugs and stuck them in the holes to hold them in place. My idea was that the Herculiner would totally cover and protect the holes anyway so I was just trying to make some effort to inhibit rust and fill the holes. In hindsight, maybe the metal body tape would have been simpler, easier, and cheaper. I got a roll of 3M body tape for a few bucks and it would easily cover all the roof and flare holes.

I ended up using a couple of different types of plugs and sizes, based on their availability and issues like the rivets dropping into the roof and creating a larger hole. Word to the wise, if the rivet is in the hole still, gently press the plug in and make sure it's the right size or you'll end up pushing the rivet into the roof. That's me talking as a total novice. I think some more advanced folks punch out the rivets, and deal with the sheet metal more professionally.

One of these days I'll remove my roof liner and find those couple of rivet plugs, as well as some items in my doors and fenders from the flare removal. It's not like I have rattles from the debris or anything. At least I don't think so. There are a few noises here and there anyway.

Here are more pics from the roof job. The green masking tape stuck to the bolt holes for several days while I figured out about the plugs.

I removed my rear emblems using a several foot long piece of picture hanging wire. I now realize you could probably remove these pieces very quickly and easily the same way, basically using the wire like a piece of floss. And the eraser wheel would make quick work of the adhesive. I just didn't need these pieces of metal and didn't need the extra 1/8" of clearance so I left them on.

You can see this is from the spoiler. This was before I knew about the eraser wheel which removes adhesive. The Herculiner covered the adhesive anyway, but this shows you where I was at the time.

I sprayed the zinc stuff on a few surface rust spots too just for good measure.

This was the first time in my life I ever taped something off like this. I had to wipe a few drips off with the xylene solvent. My big roll of wax freezer paper makes great masking. I'd use it around the windows if I did it again because little bits of rubber and liquid sometimes fly if you get a little impatient and roll too fast when the roller is full of Herc.

I spent a few extra minutes each coat making sure I was squishing the Herculiner into the crevices of the low profile roof rail parts. I don't know whether it looks worse or better with the little rails left on but I haven't given it a second thought since then.

Removing the tape and paper has been a painless process each time.

 

[Black Rhino 13]

Day 2 of Herculiner. We drove around town and things just seem quieter than before.

I put some tire shine on the tires which helped them. Tire shine also helped the center caps.

I noticed that the line where the roof meets the windshield is a little bit worn or faded. You can see it in the last photo. Might want to roll a thin layer of the UV Topcoat along there for protection.

Trying to give folks a little more perspective on the look and the texture. We really like it.

 

[superdeeda]

I really dig what you have done. Just curious, because it looks like your fairly familiar with the stuff, would you consider doing the interior of your rig? thanks

 

[41magsnub]

Looking good!

 

[dukface]

i like, perfect for Montana winters protecting your rig from all the road grime in spring.

side note: are you living at University Villages or those silly X shaped apartments? I lived in the house on the corner of sussex and arthur my senior year

 

[Black Rhino 13]

i like, perfect for Montana winters protecting your rig from all the road grime in spring.

side note: are you living at University Villages or those silly X shaped apartments? I lived in the house on the corner of sussex and arthur my senior year

Thanks! Yeah, we're in the X shaped bunkers. Having a house would be nice. I just started law school but we put in the application for housing last December. They called two weeks later and we accepted our first housing offer. We moved into student housing 6 months before school started. They're small and noisy at times, but they're cheap and 4 blocks from campus.

BTW, I lived in Irvine for about a year once. Miss that area! Had my 21st B-day at some place at Fashion Island I think.

I really dig what you have done. Just curious, because it looks like your fairly familiar with the stuff, would you consider doing the interior of your rig? thanks

Thanks! Would I consider using Herculiner inside the vehicle? Well, I don't know. You could, I guess. The negative, in some folks' opinion, is that Herculiner is pretty rough. It has size-able chunks of rubber in it. I can't think of a comparison, like a XXX grit sandpaper or anything like that though. It's too rough for skin contact really. I know some of the other brands leave a finer coat. The chunks are about the size of grits (the food), or maybe pieces of sunflower seeds, depending on how much you get clumps during your application. I used the included roller and bought a drill bit for stirring up the gallon but it all still comes out far from perfectly even. Maybe that's me though. I'm working under very less than ideal circumstances here. I guess it would depend on exactly where you wanted to put it inside the LC and what purpose you had in mind. As for dampening sound, it works great. The chemical smell seems to dissipate pretty fast. Feel free to ask other questions and I'll do my best to help.

Looking good!

Thanks neighbor! Swing by Maurice and Woodworth anytime. Big X shaped buildings right by the hill.

 

[excessive]

is the herculiner more of a rubberized coating than a paint? it looks pretty tough!

 

[Black Rhino 13]

is the herculiner more of a rubberized coating than a paint? it looks pretty tough!

Yes, Herculiner is one of several brands and types of do-it-yourself bedliners out there. It's designed as a pickup truck bedliner material, but it has as many additional uses as a creative person can come up with.

There are several threads on 'Mud about different types of bedliners from everything like the Herculiner, which comes as a do-it-yourself kit-in-a-box for around $80, up to expensive professional spray on types where you'll pay over $1000 just to start and a whole vehicle would be several thousand dollars.

One reason I went with Herculiner is that they offer a separate UV Topcoat product you apply over the bedliner which should keep it shiny and pretty. All the brands more or less seem to do the same thing.

With Herculiner, think of rice krispies covered in black rubberized glue, dried onto your vehicle.

I get a lot of brush and tree scratches in the mountains and I could either keep waxing and paying for clear coat or something like that or just pony up $100+ and a few hours and roll a tough rubber coating on my LC. I've been very happy with the Herc. One example of use is my wife and I put the ARB roof rack on by ourselves. I don't recommend that, btw; get several friends. Once we got the rack up on the roof and were able to slide it down along the roof, the Herc really saved us. A few very small spots of Herc got pulled up by the sharp edges of the mounting brackets but mostly it just slid along the roof without the frightening screeching sound of paint and metal being torn up. And it's a simple touch up to fix which looks just like new when you do it. What would it cost to touch up paint and how well would it blend if you did? So, for me, the biggest benefit of the Herculiner, aside from cost, is the totally worry free mindset I can now have about the body. It's like armor.

Additionally, if you do some searches you'll find other people have done the same thing. I just saw that Nay did his in Durabak green/blue at some point.