I think i want to restore rusty 2.0...

[rusty ol ranger]

Ive been kicking around the idea since summer when i picked up my new daily driver 400 dollar cobalt.

Ive never attempted a full body off type resto before. The mechanical stuff im not worried about handleing...thats kind of my wheelhouse.

But body work has never been my fortay. My original cab is very saveable, as is the bed. Really all the bed needs is wheel arches and the cab mainly needs rockers/cab corners and theres a few iffy spots on the floors.

Ive been poking around on car-part.com and it seems (if im willing to drive, and i am) clean rust free ranger cabs can be had for around 300 bucks. Beds i havent really checked but even if its 7 or 800 its whatever.

I know it would be cheaper (and probably better) to save and fix the original body, but i dont think im nearly good enough with a welder to do this, and im sure i couldnt have it done for what i could buy a cab/box for. I would also need doors and front fenders but those are easy.

My frame and everything is very, very solid yet. Probably could use new rear shackles but thats about it. Id pry toss in new springs all the way around.

The other thing im worried about is electrical. Is it possible to source any kind of new harness for these things? Im guessing probably not.

What started all this was the day i rolled into the shop and my bosses neighbor had his freshly redone 87 sitting in the shop. Club cab with a 2.9 in about the same color scheme as mine. Literally looked like it just come off the showroom floor.

Also...how hard is it to paint and make it look good? Frame and underneath stuff im not worried about doing (i can do this lol), but what about the body? Can i get the pinstripe repoped?

I guess what im looking for is input from people who have done this. It would be a L-O-N-G project that doesnt have a start date yet and certainly not an end one....and i may decide to tackle my LTD II instead (it basically just needs a motor)...but im for sure very curious about making this come to fruition.

Also...this is for Rusty 2.0 not the original rusty. She still sits in the field but im afraid the frame and things are to far gone by now to make a viable project...as cool as that would be.

 

[scotts90ranger]

For the bed if the structure of the bed is fine just getting bedsides shouldn't be too bad, that's just drilling spot welds and doing some plug welds, not much harder than front fenders...

I haven't done a lot but body work is just a manner of time, it's all labor cost, that's why it's expensive...

 

[rusty ol ranger]

For the bed if the structure of the bed is fine just getting bedsides shouldn't be too bad, that's just drilling spot welds and doing some plug welds, not much harder than front fenders...

I haven't done a lot but body work is just a manner of time, it's all labor cost, that's why it's expensive...

I actually dont even need entire bedsides....just wheel archs lol.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

So… I hate doing body work, but I know right, wrong, and indifferent methods….

The right way involves drilling spot welds and replacing the spot wells when you put the new panel on to retain the factory appearance. That’s not plug welding with a MIG, it’s using an actual spot welder. No bondo if at all possible, metal bumping and such to fix dents, etc. Also involves painting in a clean spray booth and painting the way the Factory does it, hood , doors, windshield and trim off. No tape lines.

I tend towards more of a middle of the road approach, minimal bondo (work out bigger dents with a hammer and dolly), etc.

A number of body shops have gotten away from welding patch panels, it’s a bit of a challenge to do without warping panels and time consuming. They make a glue where you can cut out the bad section, flange it, apply adhesive and stick the panel on. No warping and no opportunity for rust to get in between the flange. Supposedly holds as good as a weld.

 

[Blmpkn]

I've read a lot of good things about that panel adhesive on the squarebody forum.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

So… I hate doing body work, but I know right, wrong, and indifferent methods….

The right way involves drilling spot welds and replacing the spot wells when you put the new panel on to retain the factory appearance. That’s not plug welding with a MIG, it’s using an actual spot welder. No bondo if at all possible, metal bumping and such to fix dents, etc. Also involves painting in a clean spray booth and painting the way the Factory does it, hood , doors, windshield and trim off. No tape lines.

I tend towards more of a middle of the road approach, minimal bondo (work out bigger dents with a hammer and dolly), etc.

A number of body shops have gotten away from welding patch panels, it’s a bit of a challenge to do without warping panels and time consuming. They make a glue where you can cut out the bad section, flange it, apply adhesive and stick the panel on. No warping and no opportunity for rust to get in between the flange. Supposedly holds as good as a weld.

Really? I never heard of such a glue. Can it be used on floorpans?

As far as painting obviously i dont have access to a factory paint booth...but how do they do the actual paint? Im guessing a spraygun is the best way...but is it primer, paint, clear? Or is more involved then that?

 

[Ranger850]

Really? I never heard of such a glue. Can it be used on floorpans?

As far as painting obviously i dont have access to a factory paint booth...but how do they do the actual paint? Im guessing a spraygun is the best way...but is it primer, paint, clear? Or is more involved then that?

All kinds of video's on the different styles and techniques on YouTube. You may have to watch some videos to eliminate some methods, but then you just pick your poison.

 

[Blmpkn]

Really? I never heard of such a glue. Can it be used on floorpans?

As far as painting obviously i dont have access to a factory paint booth...but how do they do the actual paint? Im guessing a spraygun is the best way...but is it primer, paint, clear? Or is more involved then that?

That adhesive will apparently work on anything as long as proper prep has been done, and it'll hold forever. It's pretty much the same crap they glue the windows in to skyscrapers with.

There's 100 different ways of skinning the cat when it comes to paint though. It all comes down to how many hours of brain killing-ly boring hours of prep/sanding you want to do lol.

 

[Snoranger]

One of the things about panel bond adhesives that people don’t usually mention is that it seals the repair. When you overlap 2 pieces of metal, that’s a breeding ground for rust. If that entire area is glued together, water can’t get in to allow the rust to start.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

One of the things about panel bond adhesives that people don’t usually mention is that it seals the repair. When you overlap 2 pieces of metal, that’s a breeding ground for rust. If that entire area is glued together, water can’t get in to allow the rust to start.

Heres my question though...how to you smooth the overlap? With bondo? Im sure im showing my ignorance here.

 

[Blmpkn]

Heres my question though...how to you smooth the overlap? With bondo? Im sure im showing my ignorance here.

That's the quick and dirty way, the proper way would be to essentially flange the hole so the panel you glue in ends up flush

 

[Snoranger]

Heres my question though...how to you smooth the overlap? With bondo? Im sure im showing my ignorance here.

Yes and no. I would step the metal before overlapping another piece. That way there’s very little need for body filler.

 

[Ranger850]

Heres my question though...how to you smooth the overlap? With bondo? Im sure im showing my ignorance here.

I'm willing to bet that there is a YouTube vdo on it.

 

[Snoranger]

I'm willing to bet that there is a hundred YouTube videos (or more) on it.

FIFY

 

[Ranger850]

FIFY

thanks, that's why I keep you around.