Salan's 1980 Something

[salans7]

Looking good, Shaun. You are getting there.

As for the rats, I've heard they don't like mint or Pinesol smell. We've at times saturated cotton balls with Pinesol and it seemed to help.

Thanks Gary!

I have some mint spray that I was using to keep them out until I pulled the interior apart.

But I'd like to do some sort of expanded metal at the A/C box entrances to not even allow them an entry. Something with small enough holes to keep them out, but large enough holes to not obstruct airflow. I wouldn't worry so much if I drove the truck often, but this one's going to be dormant for a couple more years and then probably sit for days at a time when I'm not driving it.

[salans7]

Looking good, Shaun. You are getting there.

As for the rats, I've heard they don't like mint or Pinesol smell. We've at times saturated cotton balls with Pinesol and it seemed to help.

Thanks Gary!

I have some mint spray that I was using to keep them out until I pulled the interior apart.

But I'd like to do some sort of expanded metal at the A/C box entrances to not even allow them an entry. Something with small enough holes to keep them out, but large enough holes to not obstruct airflow. I wouldn't worry so much if I drove the truck often, but this one's going to be dormant for a couple more years and then probably sit for days at a time when I'm not driving it.

After searching for around two years, I finally found a set of white, rust-free doors for my truck. I originally sought out a set of 1992-1996 doors without the lower holes so I could drill my own holes for my mirrors. However, that has come with it's own challenges due to the upper mounting points for the aero mirrors being different than the swing arm type.

These specific doors are the 1995-1997 variant, so they have the extra reinforcement and are a little heavier than the older doors. I also discovered that the wiring boots in the door jam are different, as shown in the last photo from Steve83. I will have to deal with that at some point as well. Both the doors and the cab have larger holes in 1994-1997, so it is not as simple as switching out the boots.

I had maroon overspray on the door jambs from a previous respray. This truck was originally Colonial White, but the new doors (and the rest of my parts) are closer to Oxford White. I don't care for the eggshell shade of white that is Colonial White, so I brought the door jambs to match the doors and other body panels. I sanded both door jambs down to the original primer and colonial white, and then prepped for new primer, paint, and clear.

There are quite a few differences in the doors themselves, and it is important to note that 1987-1997HD doors may not fit a 1980-1986 cab. My truck is actually a 1990, so the doors fit without issue. I have decided to go with the 92-96 vent windows and door glass as they are in much better condition than the bullnose ones I had. I'm not worried about originality on this truck since nothing about it is original anymore anyway.

[Gary Lewis]

After searching for around two years, I finally found a set of white, rust-free doors for my truck. I originally sought out a set of 1992-1996 doors without the lower holes so I could drill my own holes for my mirrors. However, that has come with it's own challenges due to the upper mounting points for the aero mirrors being different than the swing arm type.

These specific doors are the 1995-1997 variant, so they have the extra reinforcement and are a little heavier than the older doors. I also discovered that the wiring boots in the door jam are different, as shown in the last photo from Steve83. I will have to deal with that at some point as well. Both the doors and the cab have larger holes in 1994-1997, so it is not as simple as switching out the boots.

I had maroon overspray on the door jambs from a previous respray. This truck was originally Colonial White, but the new doors (and the rest of my parts) are closer to Oxford White. I don't care for the eggshell shade of white that is Colonial White, so I brought the door jambs to match the doors and other body panels. I sanded both door jambs down to the original primer and colonial white, and then prepped for new primer, paint, and clear.

There are quite a few differences in the doors themselves, and it is important to note that 1987-1997HD doors may not fit a 1980-1986 cab. My truck is actually a 1990, so the doors fit without issue. I have decided to go with the 92-96 vent windows and door glass as they are in much better condition than the bullnose ones I had. I'm not worried about originality on this truck since nothing about it is original anymore anyway.

It is amazing how many little details were changed along the way, many of which are a big deal when trying to swap parts.

[salans7]

It is amazing how many little details were changed along the way, many of which are a big deal when trying to swap parts.

I learn this the hard way just about every step I take on this truck. It's almost impossible to document them all and I surely don't remember them all.

One topic I forgot to mention is the cracking of the door skin below the door handle. 92-96 doors are susceptible to cracking due to the design of the handle "remote" and the cable used rather than a metal rod. Complete Performance sells a reinforcement kit to beef up this area and prevent the cracks from spreading, and that kit has been installed on the new doors.

[salans7]

It is amazing how many little details were changed along the way, many of which are a big deal when trying to swap parts.

I learn this the hard way just about every step I take on this truck. It's almost impossible to document them all and I surely don't remember them all.

One topic I forgot to mention is the cracking of the door skin below the door handle. 92-96 doors are susceptible to cracking due to the design of the handle "remote" and the cable used rather than a metal rod. Complete Performance sells a reinforcement kit to beef up this area and prevent the cracks from spreading, and that kit has been installed on the new doors.

Spent yesterday burning in patch panels to fix the spot where Florida Man cut the driver's door to get the window motor out. I will never understand why because I have removed window motors without doing any work on the door or it's internals, but Florida Man makes no sense so I'm not surprised they cut the door for such a simple task.

Luckily I have multiple rusty doors laying around. Unfortunately, my bullnose doors are slightly different than the aeronose doors, and the patch panel doesn't exactly line up with the indentations in the aeronose door. But this whole area will be covered by the door panel and map pockets, so I'm not worried about the difference on this old farm truck.

 

[Gary Lewis]

Spent yesterday burning in patch panels to fix the spot where Florida Man cut the driver's door to get the window motor out. I will never understand why because I have removed window motors without doing any work on the door or it's internals, but Florida Man makes no sense so I'm not surprised they cut the door for such a simple task.

Luckily I have multiple rusty doors laying around. Unfortunately, my bullnose doors are slightly different than the aeronose doors, and the patch panel doesn't exactly line up with the indentations in the aeronose door. But this whole area will be covered by the door panel and map pockets, so I'm not worried about the difference on this old farm truck.

Well done! The same guy cut out in that same area on Big Blue's doors to put speaker magnets there.

[salans7]

Well done! The same guy cut out in that same area on Big Blue's doors to put speaker magnets there.

I'm just glad Florida Man didn't cut into the bracing just to the right of the patched area.

[salans7]

Well done! The same guy cut out in that same area on Big Blue's doors to put speaker magnets there.

I'm just glad Florida Man didn't cut into the bracing just to the right of the patched area.

Finished welding in my patch panels on Friday. The map pockets and door panel will cover these patches, so appearance of the welds does not matter to me.

Today I re-installed the door, and put everything back together such as the glass, the regulators, lock assemblies, etc.

The Oxford White on the doors doesn't quite match the bed or fenders, but it's close enough for this old farm truck. I intend to remove the trim molding on the doors since that style wasn't offered on 1980-1986 trucks. I will also address the mirror situation at a later date, but I have a plan to use the 92-96 style mirror reinforcement to help prevent the door metal from cracking.

[Gary Lewis]

Finished welding in my patch panels on Friday. The map pockets and door panel will cover these patches, so appearance of the welds does not matter to me.

Today I re-installed the door, and put everything back together such as the glass, the regulators, lock assemblies, etc.

The Oxford White on the doors doesn't quite match the bed or fenders, but it's close enough for this old farm truck. I intend to remove the trim molding on the doors since that style wasn't offered on 1980-1986 trucks. I will also address the mirror situation at a later date, but I have a plan to use the 92-96 style mirror reinforcement to help prevent the door metal from cracking.

Looks great to me! Better than I did on Big Blue, that's for sure.

[salans7]

Looks great to me! Better than I did on Big Blue, that's for sure.

Thanks Gary! I'm happy with it. Now I need to focus on finishing the firewall and then move on to the floors and back of the cab. After that it's the bed.