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1988 Comanche Pioneer build


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Picked up this 88 Pioneer 2WD SWB back in September down in Illinois and I've been working on it little by little. I only get a couple of hours a week to work on it due to work and family, but the progress is being made slowly but surely! 

 

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The truck has the typical Comanche rust in the floors and rockers, so I picked up my first welder and I'm giving it a shot! 

 

Eventual plans are a small lift, wheels and tires, interior refresh and paint, but this project is a marathon not a sprint. 

 

I have an Instagram dedicated to the work I'm doing and I'm documenting it all in a YouTube series, so anyone interested in following along can follow/subscribe. I also do tool giveaways on both IG and YT, so there's another reason to follow along!

 

My latest video is below, as well as the entire YouTube playlist. I'll continue to update this post as content is available. Thanks for checking out the build!

 

 

 

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50 minutes ago, Pete M said:

the contrast between the paint and those flares is unlike anything I remember seeing.  :thinking: 

Yeah, somewhere along the line, the flares were coated with some kind of undercoating or bedliner and have severely faded over time. Luckily it seems like it'll peel off relatively easily!

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 5 weeks later...

I wanted to retain as much of the floor brace as possible, especially since it includes one of the mounting bolts for the seat. I had to cut the rusty part away and then use some 14 gauge bent at 90° to replicate the original piece. It’s all welded together as one piece now and will be welded back into the truck tonight!

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  • 4 months later...

I've gotten a little bit of work done since my last post! In this first video, I got a bunch of work done on the rusty driver's side outer rocker panel.

 

 

Next, I picked up a bed in better condition and got the underside of it all cleaned up and ready to be put on the truck.

 

 

And most recently, a quick project to save a few bucks and salvage the fuel tank straps.

 

 

Having a ton of fun with this project! Hopefully you enjoy following along!

 

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Suspension, rear axle and exhaust yanked. Painting the frame this weekend. One of my leafsprings was cracked, which sucks. I took them to a spring shop and the old timer there pulled them apart and they had a bunch of stress cracks, so I ordered a new set with a 2” taller arch, so I’m pretty pumped about that! Should have them on Tuesday!

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Frame primed and painted with Tractor, Truck and Implement Paint from Tractor Supply, sprayed through an HVLP gun. It’s an oil based enamel which I have read great things about so hopefully I never have to worry about rust! And since I had the rear axle blasted as well, I’m painting it too. It’s just in primer right now but will receive the same black paint as the frame today or tomorrow. New springs come Tuesday and it will hopefully be rolling again by next weekend!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Making me drool   :jammin:

 

I've been following your approach for a while. My plan is to do a lot of the body & frame opposite. Currently in the process of getting completely upgraded & parts replaced.  Then I'm taking the bed off and doing much of the same as you. I'm extremely impatient with this sort of stuff. The way I figure is that it's already rusted, and if the body isn't done within a few months it won't get much worse due to my location.

 

But the patience you have... very jealous

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3 hours ago, PocketsEmptied said:

Making me drool   :jammin:

 

I've been following your approach for a while. My plan is to do a lot of the body & frame opposite. Currently in the process of getting completely upgraded & parts replaced.  Then I'm taking the bed off and doing much of the same as you. I'm extremely impatient with this sort of stuff. The way I figure is that it's already rusted, and if the body isn't done within a few months it won't get much worse due to my location.

 

But the patience you have... very jealous

I appreciate the kind words. Trust me, though. I'm super impatient! Just trying to knock out little things here and there in the little time I have to work on it. I figure that if I can do the whole back end of the truck, that's an entire half of the truck I don't have to worry about anymore!

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  • 4 weeks later...

A little more progress over the last few weeks! New leaf springs are in, rear axle is back under it and new brakes on. Plus, I found a great deal locally on some Rubicon wheels and tires, as well as a Fabtech spare tire mount for the bed! Slowly but surely coming together.

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11 hours ago, PocketsEmptied said:

Did you go with General Springs for the replacements? If not, where did you source them? 

I ordered them through a local spring shop in town. They're a stock replacement, but with a 2" taller arch. When they arrived, the label on them said "Stanley Spring 97-555." I googled that and that's the same part number as the springs available from General Spring, so I'm not sure if they're all made by the same company and just rebranded, but wouldn't be surprised.

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