Pic1 - The mock mounting of the DR.
Thanks Captkaos and thirsty. I didn't want to do this step, but it turns out it's vital. Without taking the film off the double-sided tape, I screwed the DR onto the body using as many screws as needed (not tightened fully). DRs are shaped in a way that they have tension and so the holes don't always line up right unless most of the screws are in. (
And yes, one must be VERY careful in handling a DR when putting it on one's truck. With their tension, sharp edges, and process of attachment, unless you are slow and gentle it is very easy to swipe them "record-player-arm" style across your paint-job.)I put blue Painter's Tape to-shape along the top edge of the DR. I didn't need any on the bottom. Then took the DR back off. (This tape outline was my best friend through all of this.)Having the tape down and all items I needed within reach (DR, sealant, screws, wrench, stool, and damp/dry cloths), I could begin.
Pic2 - Applied a small stream of the sealant.
I decided on using Lexel, it was the best stuff I could find. I hope this stuff will do the trick. It will "gelatinize" pretty quickly when worked.. when it got on the wrench I was using in motion, it would form globules.I put the sealant on as show in the picture, with a little extra on and around the holes. Should I have put them on the screw-threads as well? I would think the screw would catch some as it passed through the hole.
Pic3 - Installing the DR.
Taking off the red tape film, I quickly put a dab of Lexel on the bottom screw-hole of the DR (see PIP) and inserted a screw. I held the DR against the body, keeping it a couple of inches or so from touching.. except on bottom edge. Gently lined up the screw and found the hole in the body. Tediously managed to get the screw partially tightened with the wrench's open end. (This was probably the most difficult part, and sometimes the screws didn't want to find the holes on the body.)Still holding onto the DR with one hand, I grabbed the caulking gun with the other and put another dab on the 2nd screw hole from the bottom on the DR, got another screw and screwed it in.With these two screws partially tightened and holding the rail in place, I now had two hands to work with for dabbing Lexel onto the remained screw-holes on the DR. (
Again, be VERY careful here. Work VERY lightly.. No pressure whatsoever. With the DR attached by only two screws, it is very much like a springy, floating record-player-arm and a slight bump can send the upper forward edge tearing across your paint.. However, the double-sided tape did help a bit as a barrier. Thank goodness for the masking-tape outline too.. When the DR's front edge had to rest on something, it was there.)I then proceed with installing the rest of the screws, starting from the bottom of the DR then up, over and forward. Always holding tight to the DR with one hand, and inserting/tightening the screws with the other. Once the screws were all in place, I could go around and tighten them fully. However, the bad news is that none of them could be tightened snug.. they would all start to strip. I even bought a larger screw size for the left DR, but even they started to slip at the end.Once finished, I removed the Painter's Tape which saved me a lot of mess and possible scratches.
Done - Finished at last.
It may look a little messy from the picture, but they turned out OK. Even though the screws started to strip, the fully-attached DRs are rock-solid. Except for in the DR canal itself, there is little to no mess on the body of the truck. If there are any globules left over, they'll be taken care of over time.There are some gaps between the rails and the body that are big enough to drive a truck through. In some places it is almost like the DRs were bent or not meant to fit my truck. But they were the rails I took off the truck. There were a couple small pin-holes were some sealant my not have been put down adequately and so water my pass through from the top to the bottom, but this to can be fixed in time.
The biggest issue of all out of all this is preventing evil, rust-causing moisture from reaching those screw-sockets. And I sure hope it works out.
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