Carl'sMJ

Your truck is looking good :thumbsup: ... I might have missed it, but isn't that bumper you plan to mod the one you used to have on the front of the truck? Are you looking to make any other mods to the bumper besides just how to mount it?

:eek: Looking forward to seeing how you clean this one up. It sounds like you got alot of good parts to start replacing all the rusted out existing panels. It is really suprising to see how decent the floor pans are in comparison to the rest of the truck!

Regarding the foam piece that covers the front of the floor pans and the lower firewall... Is it just a noise dampener or does it serve any other actual purpose? I've already trimmed it up a bit while doing my floor repairs, but I've noticed it has ripped and is starting to separate from its attachment points. I would like to just cut the whole thing out and ditch it if it doesn't serve any real purpose... Thoughts? Image Not Found

:rotfl2: Yeah, I hear ya! Did you spray your rear frame or brush it on? I thought about spraying the POR when I do under the cab, but then I thought about the same thing with the "sprinkles"... I think I'll brush it on... much easier to control.

Nice work on the frame :thumbsup: I used the POR inside my frame rails under the cab and I had planned on using it to paint my new floor pans inside the cab and underneath as well as the exterior of the frame. I just wanted to get some opinions from others who had used both products before I dove into the project... By the way, have you alwys used the Marine Clean and Metal Ready during prep?

I like this method too. I was referring previously to folding the metal all the way up, but I think this method would work just as well to keep some rigidity in the bed and might be a bit less work. Oh, by the way here's the direct link viewtopic.php?f=7&t=9854&start=150... Page 11. :thumbsup:

Got another patch panel done today... I've got another similar one to do on the passenger side and I think that should be the last one. :D I think it's time for some new gloves for me too! :rotfl2:

For sure! I'm not taking Rust Bullet at their word... All I was trying to say is that Rust Bullet verifies on their site some of the concerns I've seen voiced on other forums about the adhesion properties of POR-15.

Looking for some opinions and stories about which one is better. Both products are comparably priced from what I've seen so that shouldn't be a huge factor. I think POR-15 is the more popular name that everyone knows about, but after doing some research I'm not sure it's the better product. The main complaint seems to be that the POR does not seem to adhere as well as it should and acts more as a coating. Rust Bullet even addresses these claims on their site and claims to have much better adhesion properties than POR-15... I've only used POR before and haven't really been using it long enough to voice my opinion on any conclusive results regarding its durability and such. It looks like the Rust Bullet is a much simpler application process and much easier to topcoat.

Herculiner is good stuff... and probably one of the better ones when it comes to DIY bedliners. :thumbsup: The truck bed is the application it was designed for and it will hold up well as long as the bed is prepped properly prior to application. You need to make sure that you scuff the hell out of the existing paint/metal, eliminate all rust, grease, and dirt too before application otherwise the Herculiner will not adhere well and will fail early. The sun's UV rays will fade Herculiner, but you can buy a UV protective topcoat from them that will help fight this process. I haven't tried it, but I've heard that Armor-all works well for this same purpose on Herculiner. As far as your floors go... The same guidelines for prep before application stand with emphasis on the rust. Herculiner will not stop rust and I would highly reccommend putting down a product like POR-15 over the rust on the floors first... I'm guessing you have rust on your floors, most of us do. :fs1: I like Herculiner, and I've used it in my truck bed, on my rockers, and pretty soon to coat my new floor pans. I think it's pretty durable stuff and I enjoy the ability to patch it up on my own if it gets damaged without a whole lot of work. I say go for it and use it... I don't think you'll be disappointed. :yes: ... Just remember, like any paint work, the key is in the prep.

I would use the "cut and fold" method you referenced. Just before you get the metal folded all the way up I would run a decent bead of silicone along it and then "crush" the silicone in there when you finish the fold. After the silicone dries hit the seam with some undercoating for additional corrosion protection. Or instead of the silicone you could finish the fold and then use some seam sealer to seal the joint. Regardless, I would seal it up good or it will be a debris catcher like you stated. The added strength of the folded metal will help support the body panel during everyday use. It still probably wouldn't do much if it gets hit by a rock or other obstacle on the trail, but it sounds like you already have plans to use a rock rail or extended rear bumper to protect it anyway.

Looking real good! :thumbsup: The paint job seemed to turn out good. Which brand spray can bed liner did you use on the underside of the bed? I thought I saw a Dupli-Color can in one of the pics, but I couldn't tell for sure. Also, was the olive drab rattle can or spray gun?

I believe the fading is due to the UV rays from the sun, not heat. I don't think so because my friend kept his mud truck in a garage and it looked almost warped on top of the hood. and pete your truck looks amazing! i don't think ive ever seen them hood handles either. very cool. Sorry didnt mean to get off of subject. Brandon After doing some research on Rhinolinings Industrial website... "When subjected to constant UV exposure, Rhino Linings may fade. However, Rhino Linings offers a UV topcoat capable of protecting your lining from UV damage." "Our formulations are designed to withstand temperatures between - 40° and 175°F. Rhino Linings were designed to withstand abrasion, impact, corrosion, vibration, expansion, contraction, flexing and chemical wear."

Yeah, I was curious about it too. I think as long as don't expect the thing heat beyond its intended means and set the thermostat at a reasonable temp I should be OK. I opted for electric over natural gas for a couple reasons. Primarily because I already had the 240V circuit and breaker panel in the garage, so convenience and ease of installation right off the bat. Plus, if I don't have to work with gas I'll avoid it. The electric set-up is probably safer and I don't have to worry about leaks and such.

Cool... nice find. Keep us posted. Looks like it had been sitting for awhile based on all the debris stuck to it.

Installed it a few weeks ago and figured I'd share... It's a Fahrenheat 5000 watt ceiling mounted electric heater. It's rated for 17,065 BTU output and runs on 240V. I bought it from Northern Tool. http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_595_595 I was fortunate to already have a 240V circuit and breaker panel in the garage which made installation a bit easier. I've only used it a couple times since I put it in and it worked well, but the weather wasn't that cold. I'm curious to see how well it heats once the middle of Michigan winter hits. I think it should do well enough to take the edge off anyway. My garage is about 20' x 30' and is completely insulated.

I believe the fading is due to the UV rays from the sun, not heat. Anyway, I agree with pretty much everything said above. I opted to use Herculiner on my rockers and in my bed primarily because it can be fixed easily by myself if damaged. Rhino Liner is good stuff and a tough product, but it's not invincible and will get worn and look terrible after awhile... My vote, don't do it, use the regular paint on the exterior.

Some progress on the replacement floor pans today... I got the front floor pans prepped for welding. I still need to make a couple patch panels to supplement the new pans up front, but this it what things look like right now. First, I set the pans in place and then crawled underneath the truck to trace the outline of the frame rails on the bottom of the floor pans. Once I had the pattern traced, I started marking where I needed to drill holes for my plug welds. I also needed to flatten out a couple sections of the rib in the pans so that it would sit nicely on the frame brace that extends from the frame to the inside rocker. While the pans were in I marked where holes needed to be drilled for the seat mount studs and two holes for bolts that help hold a bracket on the frame that has mounting points for the transmission crossmember. Here's how they look in place ready to be welded. I'm pretty happy overall with how things are turning out. I know this project is taking some time and progress is slow, but this is my first time doing anything like this and I spend alot of time planning and researching as I go.

Wow... That sure looks like alot of work :eek: . Keep it up. Your project makes me feel bad about when I get frustrated with my rust problems :bowdown: ... I'm anxious to see how it all comes out. Now that the bed is off are you gonna rust bullet the whole rear frame?

Today I topcoated the inside of the frame rails that I had previously painted with POR-15. I used Rustoleum spray can truck bedliner as the topcoat. I know this was probably a bit of overkill, but I wanted to make sure this job was done right and would rather go a bit overboard to ensure that. The POR-15 has been in there a few weeks so it is definitely cured. The manufacturer reccomends to topcoat POR-15 while it is still tacky, but this obviously wasn't an option at this point. So, after doing a bit more research, I opted to use some self-etching primer directly over the POR-15, followed by a couple coats of sandable primer, and then the truck bedliner. The Product Lineup: The Results:

Yeah the Purple Power did a good job on the carpet. :thumbsup: This was my first time using this product. I had heard good things about it and wanted to give it a try on the carpet and all the old vinyl and plastic trim. The real test is gonna be when I try to clean up all the trim pieces. I'm curious to see how it does...

Sorry, the XJ is Steel Blue. :D ... Build date on the MJ is December 1991

A couple of updates... I changed the transmission oil in the AX-15. Got rid of the old GL-5 fluid and put in some Redline MT-90. I've heard good things about this stuff and after alot of research it seems like the way to go for the AX-15. I also took advantage of the nice weather to clean up the carpet... Purple Power and the garden hose did the job. I'll be putting it back in after I get the floors welded in. The plan is to get some POR-15 and Herculiner down on the floors first then put the carpet back in over it. I'll be eliminating the insulation material that comes under the carpet. IMO it just acts like a big sponge. I've also been working on my interior lights. I never was a big fan with the way they worked and recently they haven't been staying clipped into their slot in the trim piece very well... So I have modified them to work a little better and cleaned them up cosmetically a bit too... First, I notched out both sides and epoxied in a couple of plastic tabs on both sides. The plan is to use a couple screws through the tabs and into the plastic trim to hold the assembly in place. I sanded it all down and painted it gray. I also soldered some wire between the middle and top contacts so the lense sits flush in its normal mode (when the door opens the light comes on). Before the lense always had to be rotated down to operate this way. I wish I had taken more pics during the process. I am happy with the way it turned out.

Sounds like the cat might be shot to me. Do you notice the noise at all when driving? If it is the cat and if you're gonna replace the muffler anyway I would do the cat at the same time while you've got everything tore apart. Otherwise, in two years you'll be ripping apart a perfectly good exhaust system just to put the cat in for your emissions test. I'm not sure you're gonna get any real perfomance gains without the cat so why lose it? Just my two cents. :smart:

:agree: Self-etching primer should be used in conjunction with a sandable primer.