Full body restoration...

[philo_beddoe]

Well, i'm starting the research on how to get this truck painted to look good, without spending 10 grand. Spending 10k on bodywork/paint on a pickup truck daily driver is not an option for me. Besides, one micron size nick or scratch and i'd freak.

If you have wealth and no debt whatsoever and could pay cash, and owned a classic whatever, then ok.

Perhaps i'll at least have the bodywork done right, get a quality sprayer, practice and read some how to books on painting and do it myself, in a spray booth. Pull the bed off and do it right. Any thoughts??

[SomeTexan]

You could cut it down to a lot less than 10k. A cheap HF flux core welder is enough for bodywork, just give it a shot. Stripping the trim, interior, pulling the bed, removing wiper arms etc, all stuff you can do yourself to save a few bucks. Call a few local paint shops and ask what you can do to save on labor costs. If you bring it in torn down, sanded with bodywork done, just a prime and paint would cost closer to 2k around here. Every hour of work you do is an hour of work you don't pay to have done.

[brewster]

^ exactly what he said bring the truck to your local, good body shop have them estimate the price and then ask them how you can help save yourself some money.  I'm sure they will work with you.

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[philo_beddoe]

I will certainly start researching that option, thanks.

[1967KaiserM715]

POR15, or Chassis Saver is for sand blasted metal, or surface rusted / tightly adhered rusty surfaces.
The roof on my 55 was all surface rust. I sanded it with 80 grit, brush painted it with Chassis Saver, let it flash for about two hours, sprayed it with high build urethane primer. Sanded it, sprayed it with paint. The roof has never rusted since, that was 10 /12 years ago.

be careful with coating certain products, with either topcoats or primers, as lifting can occur(pretty much follow manufacture recommendations for paints-and try to stay with the same brand through out the project)

I know that is sometimes hard with products like POR(I hate this product on anything-never have gotten consistent/or good results), Chassis Saver or any other rust encapsulating paints, so testing may be needed

Do you have any closeups of the infected areas?

[philo_beddoe]

I will post some pics of the cancerous spots, as soon as it gets above 15 out. Some spring were having!!

[philo_beddoe]

This is pretty much as bad as  it is.

[Blazin]

Only problem I have ever had with Chassis Saver lifting is if I got a little self etching primer for bare metal on it. I have used many brands of urethane primers, and paints over POR / Chassis Saver. Have used many brands acrylic enamels over it 100s of times, no issues. Have used spray bombs over it. Sprayed SEM brand bed liner directly over it.

All a flux core welder is good for is the scrap metal pile!

[philo_beddoe]

Duly noted...

[Engineer]

Well, i'm starting the research on how to get this truck painted to look good, without spending 10 grand. Spending 10k on bodywork/paint on a pickup truck daily driver is not an option for me. Besides, one micron size nick or scratch and i'd freak.

If you have wealth and no debt whatsoever and could pay cash, and owned a classic whatever, then ok.

Perhaps i'll at least have the bodywork done right, get a quality sprayer, practice and read some how to books on painting and do it myself, in a spray booth. Pull the bed off and do it right. Any thoughts??

That is what I did on my '77 monster truck build. Never painted before in my life. It has flaws, mostly in the clear coat, but I should be able to fix them as the project winds down before I take it out into public for the first time.

[philo_beddoe]

How about a couple pics?

[Captain Swampy]

You've seen what we did to Brooke's pickup. I've never attempted body work before. We started her truck with flux core wire and switched to solid wire with gas. Flux core will work, but MIG is cleaner and welds a little easier. Buy some books and DVD's. Then buy some tools. When it's all done you'll still have the tools! Eastwood has some reasonable priced welders, but I'd do some research and compare them to Miller and Lincoln. There's a line between cheap and cost effective. My 1 inch drive socket set came from Harbor freight, but my 1/2 inch impact gun I use frequently is a Matco.

Air tool CFM ratings are an average over an 8 hour day (something like that anyway). When buying an air compressor, triple the CFM rating of your highest consumption air tool if you can afford it. Otherwise you'll be waiting for the compressor to catch up. A cheap way to cheat a bit is to buy a 100# LP gas cylinder and plumb it in for more volume. $120 at Menards

Here's our welder. I would love a bigger one, but it works on sheet metal.

[philo_beddoe]

Was looking at this one of these...seems ok.

[brewster]

Hey those are esab's, I saw those at the sema show, I have no clue how well they work but the saleman was really nice

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[Blazin]

ESAB makes nice welders.