1992 Ford F150 Project Fiery Redhead - Body Paint

After: Our rust-free truck has a new lease on life and it looks darn good to boot.

Before: Cracking body filler was partying with the corrosion on our F-150.

Last month, we detailed how Erick Wells and the hand-selected team of gonzo body techs at Vintage Iron & Design in Monroe, Wisconsin, repaired or replaced all of the rusty cab panels on our project F-150 with new panels from LMC Truck and a new cowl hood from Stylin' Concepts. We also described how they utilized refinishing supplies from Keystone Automotive to get the cab of the vehicle prepped and primed in preparation for painting. This month, we delve further into the Redhead's rebirth by detailing the painting of the cab, application of the work-ready Vortex bedliner, and the restoration and painting of the cargo bed.

1. After the cab was shot with the Keystone Automotive PPG K36 primer, it was lightly sprayed with TECHnique Painters Coat Guide. This material is used to ensure that the body is smooth. The Painters Coat Guide was block-sanded with 320-grit sandpaper and then the entire area to be painted was DA'd again with 400-grit sandpaper. Any areas that couldn't be sanded with a machine were sanded by hand. The cab was ready for paint once Erick Wells and his crew were satisfied that the body was smooth.	2. Painting the cab was actually a three-step process. First, it was sprayed with PPG sealer. Then it was shot with three coats of PPG Vermillion Red paint. Finally, three coats of PPG DCU 2002 clearcoat with PPG DCX61 clearcoat hardener was sprayed on. Wells applied all of these coatings while wearing a VOC-approved respirator and a hooded paint suit. The paint booth featured an explosion-proof exhaust fan with filters.	3. The bed restoration began by removing the factory bedsides. This is painstaking work that requires drilling out each factory spot weld with a spot-weld drill bit. To make the job easier, we cut the majority of the bedsides off with a Sawzall and then went to work removing the end panels. Here, Chris Gerrits removes the last of the spot welds on the driver side of the box. The trick is to remove the spot weld from the outer panel without drilling into the box itself.
4. With the bedsides removed, we could go to work on the rust in the cargo box. We used a grinder to remove the larger areas of surface rust, and then a sandblaster was used to knock off any remaining rust. All bare metal was covered with acid etch primer to help fight corrosion.	5. Spot welds are also used on the inner wheel arches, so like the bedsides, they had to be drilled out so the rusty inner arches could be removed.	6. We found that rust had destroyed the rear bedside bracket on the passenger side. This was a problem because this is a major mounting point for the rear of the passenger-side bedside. Using the driver-side bracket as a guide, Chris Gerrits fabbed a new piece and welded it in place.
7. To guarantee longevity of our new bedsides, we coated the inside of both of them with rubberized undercoating before they were mounted to the cargo box. Here, Chris Gerrits sprays on the undercoating after taping off the area where the new inner fender will be welded to. Before taping that surface, it was sprayed with weldable primer.	8. After the old bedsides were removed and the cargo box prepped, it was time to mount up the new LMC Truck bedsides. It is critical that before the bedsides are welded on, they be aligned perfectly. If even a slight miscalculation occurs, the tailgate may not fit correctly or the cab-to-bed body lines may not line up. Getting all of this right is a long, painstaking process that requires experience and patience. After everything was aligned perfectly, Wells welded the new bedsides to the cargo box.	9. To install the new LMC Truck inner wheel arches, we flipped the bed upside down so it would be easy to access the work area. Each inner arch was positioned and then tack-welded to the inside of the new bedside and the cargo box. Each inner arch was then liberally coated with rubberized undercoating just like the inner bedsides. Our cargo box was now ready to be positioned right side up and lined with Vortex bedline