Blue Ribbon 4x4 Build Thread

Thanks Rey!!

 

Oh great, now I hate my door panels...damn you Geno.

 

Rear doors done and installed. Really dig the look, and the wife loves it.

 

Tell me you don't own a Pug without telling me you don't own a Pug. That suede looks nice, probably feels amazing, but would not survive my dog.

 

I got a Pit and a Terrier. I’ve already figured out that the suede is a hair magnet.

 

Oh, I bet. My little dog sheds like a couple hundred pound huskies. It's insane. That, and she stands on that portion of the door to look out the window. The Taco's OEM panel takes it well, but suede would be covered in gouges, hair, and snot. Did I mention she blows her nose on the windows? No? Well she does.

 

I figured a pug just blows her nose as a part of every day breathing. They sure are sweet as hell though.

 

Correct on both accounts.

 

So I know that I breezed through the door panel stuff, so for the front doors I’ll be a little more thorough in my work explanation.
First, I pulled the door panels, we all know @2020Platinum made the perfect video showing this, and who can compare with the sweet home Chicago(?) accent. I pulled off the upper interior padding and removed the door handle screws. For the rears, I just masked them, and then @RobertD told me to sack up and pry the silver cover off - a much better idea.


Then I pulled all the torx screws holding the silver strip and upper upholstered panel. Using a sharp 3/8” bit, I drilled out the melted “rivets” holding these pieces. The upper upholstered panel has metal tabs attached to the window seal that need to be straightened out. Plastic bonder epoxy will be used to put these back together.


Then using a red scotch brite pad, I scuffed up the pieces till the shine was gone, so the paint has something to adhere to. Primer went down, and SEM will go down in a bit.

 

After painting with SEM and matte clear coat, I worked on the upholstered panels. After cutting the suede to size, I cleaned the panels with alcohol and sprayed the panel and back of suede with Gorilla glue spray adhesive. Then I just wrapped over the existing upholstery and trimmed it to size.

 

Putting things back, making sure to line up the upholstered panel with the metal clips in the window guide, aligning the once silver strip with the guide pins, and snapping the door handles back together. The door handles came out super clean, thanks to @RobertD. Then mixing the plastic bonder epoxy and filling the old plastic “rivets”. Plastic epoxy is very important here, as I’ve used regular epoxy before and once dried, peels right off the plastic. Once the panels are installed back on the doors, make sure your windows go up and down freely. Years ago, I took the panels on and off and something snagged the inside of the window, scraping my tint. I took the door panel off, checked, found nothing, and put it back on and it was great. So who knows sometimes.

I did get a question about the self-etching primer. It’s what I had on hand, and I didn’t put any thought because my mind was centered on the upholstery. Normal procedure is Bulldog adhesion promoter, then paint. I’ve used this self etching primer on many plastics, and it works great, leaving it very dry and sandable. Other paints I’ve run into that aren’t plastic friendly get really tacky and don’t seem to dry at all.

I’m super happy with the result, and now my eye is searching for other places for the suede. I’m thinking about the area above the glove compartment, under the airbag.

 

Lookin good Geno!

 

Thanks Patrick!!

 

These havr been bugging me for a while. I welded the alignment cradles. I didn’t get the SDHQ kit, I just exposed the metal and welded the tabs so they wouldn’t flatten. Honestly I thought I took more pictures than this.

 

Also took her out to the poppy fields. They bloom like crazy here.

 

Don’t know when I’ll have time to install these, but grabbed some new-to-me 5160s!!!

 

I bet it takes you less than an hour to get these on your truck!

 

Shit, really? I’ve never done the rears myself.

 

Yeah, it took me an hour to jack my rear, drop both wheels, swap from the black stock to the TRD Sports, put wheels back on, and then drop back to weight on wheels.

And that was me solo and being slightly chicken since I'd never done anything like that. I bet it would take you less time



And I'm sure you'll find something to paint blue and still be faster

 

Dang, thanks!

 

Hahaha I was going say something like… and yes after several days of curing time for the primer and paint, I’ve got the rear shocks back on. Hahahaha

 

5160s installed last week. Couldn’t tell much of a difference from the 5100s, but at least there’s reservoirs back there now.

 

Wooot!!! When did I buy it? After installing the 5160s. Ha!

 

Just a few small things. My shift surround was looking real crappy after painting it satin clear. The scratches were really showing, so I sanded it down and cleared with a matte finish.
Also sanded the bare metal areas of the bumper from rubbing the bottom of the grille, and sprayed with self etching primer, then sanded the whole bumper and sprayed with Rustoleum professional black. Hopefully this week I can find some time to sand it again and spray the Raptor liner. The weather here is staying nice, hopefully the wind will stay calm enough for a day.

 

Hit the truck with this combo. Turtle Wax Ice Seal & Shine and the Ice Spray Wax. The Seal & Shine can be a little difficult to work with, but the results are awesome. And after trying so many spray waxes, this is my favorite. Goes on and comes off super easy, and leaves a great finish on top of the Seal and Shine. I use a light mist after every wash.

 

My hood bulge has started looking real worse for wear. The original finish was chrome, which I plastidipped and then coated (badly) with rattle can bedliner. The finish ended up like sandpaper, which I just lived with for the past few years. So I finally sanded the bedliner smooth, cleaned with alcohol, the sprayed with Rustoleum Professional Black and then matte clear. The finish finally matches the grille. Before and After.

 

Working on the Badlands jack mount. I used 1”x2” 3/16” square tubing, and 3/16 flat bar for the braces, which may be overkill, but I had it on hand from another project. The Badlands skid sits flat on the square tubing, and the cross braces allow for a ratchet strap to wrap underneath to strap the jack to the mount. Two rear corner braces hold the rear. Two front flat pieces tuck under the front valance, centering the jack and pressing the jack towards the rear braces. The jack post disassembles and gets strapped underneath the jack.
Next I’ll drill some holes in the lower cross braces and drop 8 rivet nuts in the bed. That way I can pull the mount out easily if necessary. I’m going back and forth on the decision of a lock, I have an idea for one, but the jack will only be in the truck while off-road or while the topper is on.

 

That’s a wrap for today. This thing is buff as hell. Eight 3/16” stainless bolts into the rivet nuts (I checked underneath before drilling). The strap holds the jack down, probably could use another strap for safety.
Next step, paint.