[Prowbar]

Here's the last update covering the front end sheet metal.
As mentioned I blasted the small items myself, larger ones were farmed out.
I recieved the panels back sand blasted, they did a nice job. I went around the nooks and crannies to get the last dirt, blasting media out and then coated the double seams with the linseed rust treatment. This should prevent rust from forming between the seams. The picture was taken before the excess was wiped off.



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The next step was to spray everything in epoxy primer. I used the same high build primer as I did to coat the front end parts. Here are the radiator support and bumper with a good coat. I use the wires to move the parts around.



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The high build primer is easily sanded smooth to create a flat surface for final paint. This was my first time doing it and I learned a lot about body work. Paint doesn't hide any flaws!

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The parts were then sprayed in the Sigmadur 550 topcoat. I then continued to prepare the parts for assembly on the truck. I chased all the threaded holes in the panels and add the fender seals to the inner fenders. I bent staples from stainless steel TIG wire to replicate the factory look.



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I wanted to use new hardware but had a hard time finding the correct bolts for the sheet metal panels. I ended up finding them on Ebay, Pat (Rustbucket) shipped them to me.

The left is the Ebay large flange bolt, the middle is an original sheet metal bolt and the bolt on the right is the typical small flanged bolt. The bolts with the small flanges are used mainly for the bedsides and fenders.



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Continued in the next post.