'85 Bronco II Paint & Body Thread

[ford4wd08]

So, I started playing with body work a little tonight.

I bought the $15 PDR kit from Harbor Freight the other day just for shits and giggles. Figured what the hell.

It actually works though... I'm working on the dents behind the driver's door and little by little I'm able to pull them without a hole lot of effort.

I ran out of glue sticks tonight and got some on Amazon on the way.

I did sand down to bare metal with 80 grit to give it something to bite to since I have to sand rust off that area anyhow.

This is making my body work a lot easier, it will still require some filler, but not near as much.

I'm just going to replace the passenger size fender, the dent is along the body line. That speeds up my process a lot. I could be ready for epoxy primer in a week or so.

 

[Shran]

That's cool, I was kinda curious about that myself. I have the HF stud welder and the pneumatic suction cup dent puller... the stud welder works pretty good for certain things, but the suction cup deal is a joke! Don't waste your money on that one if you're ever tempted! It leaves round rubber marks on everything and comes off before it pulls the dent out. I got it very cheap used though so I'm not out much.

Keep us updated with pics!

 

[ford4wd08]

That's cool, I was kinda curious about that myself. I have the HF stud welder and the pneumatic suction cup dent puller... the stud welder works pretty good for certain things, but the suction cup deal is a joke! Don't waste your money on that one if you're ever tempted! It leaves round rubber marks on everything and comes off before it pulls the dent out. I got it very cheap used though so I'm not out much.

Keep us updated with pics!

Thanks for the info on the suction puller. I had considered that one but doubted that it would work well.

I'm terrible about pictures lol. I'll start taking some when my other glue comes in this week.

 

[ford4wd08]

Saw a tip on the FB page for TAMCO that there resin prices might be going up and that it might be a good time to buy... so I found the Direct To Anything epoxy in stock on their website and decided to just go ahead and order it.

The kit makes 2 gallons and is ~$233 shipped to my door. Figured that wasn't terrible for what is supposed to be a good product.

Here is the TDS for it---> https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0250/8249/5056/files/HPEpoxy.pdf?v=1585954505

I plan on doing epoxy with this and see how much I have left, I'll do filler after epoxy then come back with this as a sealer.

If I need high build they have another product I can use that is cheaper but also a 2 gallon kit....

Off to the races now.

 

[RobbieD]

The kit makes 2 gallons and is ~$233 shipped to my door.

That doesn't sound too bad, actually. That's about what a sheet of plywood costs these days .

Good to see your progress with the old truck. Don't rush things, and keep us updated. Good luck!

 

[ford4wd08]

Took a small break guys, but I'm back.

The microchip shortage took a tool on my job, and I got laid off yesterday with a severance.

Lucky for me, I saw the writing on the wall and had been looking for another job. I actually got a call with a job offer 30 mins before I got laid off.

So now I have some time to get back around to finishing the bronco and a good time of year to work on it.

My goal is to get as much as I can done prior to starting my new job around the end of the month.

I started disassembly this morning so I can get ready for primer coat soon.

 

[rangerx4]

Always nice to be ahead of the curve. Glad things will work out on the job front.

 

[dvdswan]

I would recommend having the rear, doors, and 1/4 windows pulled, the windshield will be fine with just the trim pulled. I'm not sure if the 1/4 windows are like the windshield or if its a gasket just holding it in.

Anyway, the finished product will look a lot better with them out. I painted my truck in my driveway when I had a couple day stretch of sunshine. This was over about 3 weekends. Take your time and be sure to look at every inch of each panel before you paint. I didn't go down to metal completely but some parts were.

Do not even think about painting until you dream of this...

 

[RobbieD]

I'm really glad to see that you're still plugging away on this truck. It will be worth it!

It actually looks good in your first pic, and I'm sure it will be even better when you get done. And I actually like those wheels, as you just don't see them any more. I'm guessing that you've been driving it, and hope that it's doing you well.

Take you a good break, enjoy working on the truck, and good luck with the new job!

 

[ford4wd08]

I'm really glad to see that you're still plugging away on this truck. It will be worth it!

It actually looks good in your first pic, and I'm sure it will be even better when you get done. And I actually like those wheels, as you just don't see them any more. I'm guessing that you've been driving it, and hope that it's doing you well.

Take you a good break, enjoy working on the truck, and good luck with the new job!

Hi Robbie,

I actually haven't driven it since May because I didn't get around to fixing the AC yet.

So it has been parked in my garage since then. Made me proud that it fired right up once it got gas pumped up to the carb when I went to move it.

I plan on getting junkyard fender for it tomorrow and then getting into pulling a few dents. My goal is to put it in primer some time next week.

Oh and the wheels, yeah you don't seem them very often. I'll probably to to just keep them and rehab them.

I saw a guy on Facebook that had his powder coated and they looked pretty good.

 

[ford4wd08]

Question:

What does everyone do about the door handles and lock cylinders?

Door handles look to be riveted in?

I can remove the rear handle easy enough.

Do people just paint around the door handles?

 

[BlackBII]

You can remove the rivets and just replace them with bolts, that's what I did. I used a nylon lock nut on the back side so they can't be easily removed. You can try painting around it, but it'll hard to get paint in there without spraying too much.

 

[BlackBII]

Did you fill the gutters with new seam sealer? The factory stuff is probably all hard and cracked. An epoxy like Fusor 129 is what I recommend using to fill the whole rain channel so it never leaks and rusts. Make sure you scrape all the old stuff out first of course.

 

[RobbieD]

On mine I cut the rivets and reinstalled with bolts. It wasn't too bad, and I think it's worth the trouble.
I used a file to square the holes, and used stove bolts:

(sorry it's so blurry)

This makes for a finished look on the outside:

And this is how it's mounted from the inside:

If I recall (shit! it's been 12 years since I painted 'Ole Blue) I used a die grinder and cutoff wheel to grind away the rivets from the inside.

Keep us posted on how you're doing on this. Just keep beatin' on it, and don't get discouraged. Good luck!

 

[ford4wd08]

Did you fill the gutters with new seam sealer? The factory stuff is probably all hard and cracked. An epoxy like Fusor 129 is what I recommend using to fill the whole rain channel so it never leaks and rusts. Make sure you scrape all the old stuff out first of course.

I started the removal of the old seam sealer today.

You guessed it, it's old and cracked.