Sundays work on Truck Truck

[sony1492]

The old bed was made of 3/4" strandboard, it had been painted a few times over the years but clearly that was ineffective. All areas that weren't braced could barely hold the weight of a person, Not good when theres zero cabin space either.

Started pulling all the screws "holding" the boards down, whomever years ago decided to tap the screw points and use torx head bolts is a hero. Sure tons broke off but There wasn't the struggle of stripping out a philips head, or only having the torque of a screw driver.

With that done and the rot removed, the crusty flatbed frame was left bare. This photo is after washing off years of accumulated mud and grime.

Did a half-hearted job derusting sections only available with the floor out, then threw on some rustoleum. This way if the bed gets repainted it'll be easier to mask with fresh paint surrounding the floor.

After managing to avoid any amount of woodworking my adult life, the time came. Measured once and cut several times until both sheets of plywood fit. Some of the cut lines are wonky but the bed also is no longer square so perfection was never an option.

Bust out the stain (stopped halfway through the project and went to the hardware store) then lathered both sides up. I didnt see the point of using 50 screws to hold the floor in so after staining the floor, getting it back in was fairly quick. There are a couple screws in the center to hold both sheets level to each other, tabs on both ends dont allow them to escape regardless.

New tires inbound as I was 7 years old when these were new and having a mechanic look it over at the end of the month because I dont know jack about diesels.

[flatisflat]

@sony1492 Friend, that looks awesome. Kudos!

[AestheticsInMotion]

@sony1492 beautiful. I'm more than a little bit jealous.

[LooseonExit]

@sony1492

Looks really good. Hit the frame/cab protector with BBQ paint or Raptor-liner and should be good for a long long time.

[sony1492]

@looseonexit thats a good idea, I think id stick to semi gloss for the cab area but all the areas a foot might touch could use the grip

[sony1492]

@flatisflat Thanks! Stain is masking the "craftsmanship" to great effect

[WhoIsTheLeader]

@sony1492 that's an impressive turnaround! Good work! I take it you reused some torx bolts to be a hero to someone in the future? Stain was a good idea.

[sony1492]

@whoistheleader they were all super crusty so I dug up a few Allen head bolts of similar length and thread pitch.
Might find more Torx bolts down the line because they don't strip out as easily.

[sony1492]

@aestheticsinmotion Didn't you have some plans about van life a ways back?

[jminer]

@sony1492 well done! You're making me very jealous here! I'm a sucker for old diesels and old Ford trucks.

[sony1492]

@jminer any diesels before 1997 dont need smog here so there's a vague reason to buy one

[flatisflat]

@sony1492 Don't be bashful! It was well done!

[Shop-Teacher]

@sony1492 That's a big improvement!

[jminer]

@sony1492 said in Sundays work on Truck Truck:

@jminer any diesels before 1997 dont need smog here so there's a vague reason to buy one

Ooohhh good to know

[SilentbutnotreallyDeadly]

@sony1492 nice work. I would suggest that you bust out a couple of cartridges of Sikaflex to seal the gaps between the timber and steel frame and between the sheets themselves. It will make the plywood last longer and prevent crud building up where you don't want it.

[Dr. Zoidberg]

@sony1492 Did this vehicle replace your squarebody?

[ST80MND]

@sony1492 Nice job, looks good.

[sony1492]

@dr-zoidberg Yes

[Green Truck]

That looks great. What are you going to do for side rails now?

[sony1492]

@green-truck keeping the old ones around, thought about modifying them to be half as tall for visibility but for now they stay as they were. Just gotta hoist those heavy bastards back up there.

[Green Truck]

@sony1492 Are they wood? I used to have an S10 that had a stake body on the back from new. I loved that little truck, and they stake bed was incredibly useful. It had the metal gates that went up to about cab high. I need to find a picture of it. I still miss it to this day.

[sony1492]

@green-truck wood 2x6"s with 1" steel frame

[Green Truck]

@sony1492 Very useful and very heavy