Factory running board rusted. What do you think?

[ekrampitzjr]

Discovered today that the right (passenger's) factory chrome-plated running board that was installed when the truck was new has serious rust on the inside toward the cab and around the holes to attach the plastic step cover. Chrome-plated stuff is prone to rust once the coating is compromised, because the chrome actually accelerates corrosion. Undercoating and rustproofing wouldn't have helped because of the way the part is made.

I removed it to have a better look and reinstalled it.

The driver's side board still looks okay. Right now the rusted board is still sound enough to use, but over the next year or two that will change.

Replacement right boards are still available, but cost ~$600. I don't care to spend that much, especially not knowing if the left board is eventually going to rust too. What would you do? Here are my options:

1. Remove the boards and brackets and forget them. The truck is 2wd and not raised, so I don't really need them. I'm not young any more, though, and one day having them might be useful after all. The plan is to keep this truck for a l-o-n-g time.

2. Try to find a good replacement in a salvage yard. I'm leaning toward this idea.

3. Replace both boards and all brackets with aftermarket, probably stainless iBoards, for ~$300 total cost.

4. Maybe some other idea?

What do you gents (and any ladies who are members) think? Thanks!

 

[Roert42]

I would just swap them both for aftermarket.

 

[racsan]

Theres a good product out threre called “por-15”. Its not cheap but does a good job with rust, clean the rusty spots & mounting points then brush it on. Ive done a couple rear frames and a whole 1946 ford 2N tractor with it. Its black but can be painted over once its cured.

 

[JavaG66]

I’m not sure that POR15 is the best solution, but you should give it serious consideration. I also have used it quite a bit and it’s exceeded my expectations. I patched the rotted out pan of my 66 beetle several years ago and it’s still solid as a rock.

 

[rangerx4]

Aftermarket running boards can be had for under $200. That's the route I would go. I have actually had great luck over the years with Ebay running boards/side steps.

 

[ekrampitzjr]

POR15 saved my bacon years ago with its fuel tank kit, which I used to salvage an old diesel tractor tank. I don't think regular POR15 it would be a good idea in this application because of the chrome plating on the running board. If the boards were painted instead of chrome plated, then POR15 would be a great idea. It's not clear how badly the board has been weakened by internal rust either. It's essentially a flattened tube, and you could hear loose bits of rust inside when moving around the board.

Right now I plan to go to a salvage yard some distance away that specializes in Fords and look around before I decide what to do. One reason for leaning toward finding a used factory board is to avoid having to remove the brackets, which would be necessary for aftermarket boards that require different brackets. But I'm still open to ideas.

 

[ekrampitzjr]

Pulled off the running board again today and ground off the rust. The board is in worse shape than I thought, because some of the rectangular holes for the vinyl step clips were badly eroded and new rust holes opened as I ground.

The old Ford salvage yard no longer exists as it did. A national company, LKQ, bought all the salvage yards in that area and closed them to the public. You can't even drive to the old building now because of gates with signs saying "Employees only" blocking access. So much for wandering the yard looking for a factory running board. LKQ's site does not have a matching board.

Now simply removing the boards and brackets looks like the least of all evils. Some of the aftermarket boards have bad reviews mentioning sagging under load (I'm no lightweight) and installation hassles. Some also require drilling into the rocker panels, which looks like a really bad idea.

My brother agreed to check yards near him in Pennsylvania, though finding a matching board in good shape will be a tall order. Pennsylvania uses loads of salt in the winter too.

 

[ekrampitzjr]

The plot thickens. Saw a 2011 Ranger SuperCab very similar to mine in Tappahannock, Virginia, last week. It had the same running boards. The driver's side board was clean, but the passenger's side board was also starting to rust. The rust begins under the vinyl step on top of the board.