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Thanks brother! It's been an adventure getting this truck up to my standards. Now that the mechanicals are done, I know this will be the part that takes the longest. I've never done body work before, so this is a bit of a learning experience for me, and the curve is a bit steep. It's been fun though.I love this thread. Keep it coming! I have the same rust spots on the body as you, so I'm definitely keeping an eye on your solutions. For the rear quarter panel, I'm planning on just grinding that down and capping it as is. Is that what you guys are doing?
I've had to drill out my sway bar brackets as well, the same ones as you. Front and one rear. I quickly diverted on the rear one once I broke the first bolt on the frame. I figured all of them would have to be drilled out, so I left the old brackets on there for another day when I have more time to drill out bolts hah.
Yep, we're planning on doing something like that on the rear quarter sections. We're cutting out all the rusty parts and welding in new metal. That being said, we're maintaining the original pinch weld where possible, so it makes it easier to tie the outer skin to the rest of the body. It'll be similar to factory, but not quite as clean. I'd be willing to just cut everything lower than three inches below the belt line off and cap it, but I'm deferring to my brother in law's expertise on this one. I'm going to slather this area with POR15 so I don't have to think about it again afterwards, then the bumper will go over it and it should be good to go. I definitely want this area closed off, it's noticeably louder in the cab when you're on the road now.
Following that, we're going to use the patch panel sections I got from @3_puppies to repair the area behind the doors and get that primed and ready to go. I'll also use Eastwood's internal frame coating to protect the inside of the rockers from corrosion. I don't think it will be an issue in the future, my poking and prodding last weekend showed them to be solid, but I want to be absolutely sure. While this is going on, I'll be working on fill-welding any rust holes that are in the pinch weld. There's only four in total, so this shouldn't be too bad. Then I plan on reinforcing the back side of the pinch weld with additional metal. I'm doing pinch weld sliders, so I want this area to be stout. Once that is done, I'll put a layer of POR15 along the entirety of the pinch weld, then scuff it and cover it with primer so it can be shot body color on the outside. It should be pretty rustproof that way.
Meanwhile, I'll probably pull the fenders off after they've been sanded, clean and paint the back sides, and then prime the outer sides before I drop them off to get painted. I'll do the same with the hood, as it has a few rust bubbles I want to get addressed. Then I'll probably pull the driver's side rear door and the lift gate to fix the rust spots on those. Similar treatment, including filler, POR15, and the internal coating. I'm trying very hard to stop any corrosion dead in it's tracks.
Haha, yeah I had a few of those moments on this project. Didn't want to fight it, so I just cut it off or drilled it out. That's why I've got new control arms everywhere and new suspension.