Snake Blinder Coverup

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Front Range 4x4

Front Range 4x4

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Nope, not a conspiracy thread...

I'm interested in what you guys have done to cover up the holes after removing the snake blinders. I'm not interested in welding and painting them cuz I don't think I can find Freeborn Red in a rattle can. :crybaby:

Any creative solutions? :confused:


Thanks!
 
I'd be interested to know as well, as I think I'll be pulling mine off soon as well:

LCcarnage.jpg


I was thinking maybe that cuttable diamond plate that freightdog (??) used to line his cargo area. GF said diamond plate was "tacky" though. Hmmm....
 
grrlscout - That's along the line of what I was thinking. I have the rocker covers from an old Honda in the garage that might work. I could paint them to match the sliders but don't want to create a spot for rust to start.

beaufort - I assume that's for drainage? Even if the holes are filled?





grrlscout, nice t-shirts btw ;)
 
my rockers were full of sand. i pulled the plugs and used a pressure sprayer pointed at the "blinder" holes. sand empted out of the rocker for a few minutes. the sand had rusted the rear drivers side rocker from the inside out. I found out about the inside out rust when i bumped a stump. it crumbled the rust spot.
 
definitely take the plugs out. the seal around my tail liight leaked and i ended up with about half a gallon of water in the rear quarter panel.

i took one of the blinders off with a tree and the other one with a screw driver.
 
Just got some generic body plugs from Pep Boys and glued 'em with RTV. Unless you are making a specific point to stare at the rockers, almost nobody will notice them.

BTW, there should be a small gap in the pinch weld along the rockers and rear quarter - these are supposed to act ad drains for those interior spaces but they often get plugger over time. If you can keep these clear its better than removing the rubber plugs because less dust etc. gets in.
 
cxs said:
...I don't think I can find Freeborn Red in a rattle can. :crybaby:
Click to expand...

You'd be surprised. There's an auto parts store around the corner from me that custom mixes rattle cans, for about $10 each. All you have to do is take them the paint code (from the VIN tag under the hood), they'll match it. Did this for some touchup work I had to do on my '87 mini, the match is pretty good.

There's places on the web that can do it too.
 
Cruisergreg said:
Just got some generic body plugs from Pep Boys and glued 'em with RTV. Unless you are making a specific point to stare at the rockers, almost nobody will notice them.

BTW, there should be a small gap in the pinch weld along the rockers and rear quarter - these are supposed to act ad drains for those interior spaces but they often get plugger over time. If you can keep these clear its better than removing the rubber plugs because less dust etc. gets in.
Click to expand...

Thanks Cruisergreg, I was thinking along that line and it seems to be the most sensible approach.I also like the idea of leaving the bottom plugs in, seems better in the long run. I'll take a look at the pinch weld, seems like I recall a small gap.

Thanks! :cheers:
 
The '88 FJ62 I used to own was also Freeborn Red, my favorite color. One of the last projects I did was to scrape the rain gutters and re-caulk them. That job truly sucked, BTW. Anyway, when it came time to paint over the new caulk/sealant, I bought a quart of Rustoleum Regal Red and brushed it on. It matches remarkably well, actually. You might give this a try.

There is a convenient masking line for the rockers, and they are down so low, being below the doors, I bet you could use this and it would look just fine.

Another option that the current owner of my old truck did, he Herculine'd the rockers and the bottom lip of the fenders. There's a thread on here with pics, his id is "peepers". It doesn't look too bad!
 
cruisergreg and cxs,

plugs in or out, it all depends on where you live and where you take the cruiser. No rocks or dry heat near me, mud is sandy and full of fine silt. If you let this type of "mud" into hidden areas and don't let it drain out it's going to promote rust. You guys are lucky out west with the consistently mild environmental conditions, that's why we ship all the nuclear waste out there.
 
Thanks for everyone's input, I've ordered a rattle can of freeborn red which I will use on the generic plugs and see how that works out. I'm pretty certain it will be the solution I was hoping to find.
 
beaufort-fj60 said:
cruisergreg and cxs,

plugs in or out, it all depends on where you live and where you take the cruiser. No rocks or dry heat near me, mud is sandy and full of fine silt. If you let this type of "mud" into hidden areas and don't let it drain out it's going to promote rust. You guys are lucky out west with the consistently mild environmental conditions, that's why we ship all the nuclear waste out there.
Click to expand...
Don't get too envious. That fine dust that you see behind every car scene in a movie set in the desert turns to a cement when mixed with water. It's not uncommon to return home from a wet run with 100 lbs or more sticking to the underside of our rigs. Takes hours at the pressure washer to remove. And it can be very alkaline, promoting rust.

Our saving grace is that the roads usually aren't salted, which I think promotes a faster oxidation...
 
Cruisergreg said:
Just got some generic body plugs from Pep Boys and glued 'em with RTV. Unless you are making a specific point to stare at the rockers, almost nobody will notice them.
Click to expand...

KLF said:
You'd be surprised. There's an auto parts store around the corner from me that custom mixes rattle cans, for about $10 each. All you have to do is take them the paint code (from the VIN tag under the hood), they'll match it. Did this for some touchup work I had to do on my '87 mini, the match is pretty good.

There's places on the web that can do it too.
Click to expand...

Old thread but wanted to thank CruierGreg and KLF for their worthwhile advice. I used the generic body plugs and ordered a rattle can online. Can't tell from the pic but it looks great and the blinders are gone. I'm very impressed with the paint - didn't think Freeborn Red would match very well but it did.

Thanks!
sblinder.webp
 
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