Big Blue's Transformation

[Gary Lewis]

I definitely used a step drill to make a hole in either front corner of my bed when I replaced some of the bed floor about 5 years back.

Well, I'm scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. He can't get me in until then. Here are the answers to the questions:

• Holes: Don't sweat the holes that are in there. They'll handle them. As for drilling holes later, don't worry about that. Just use some primer on the edges of the holes to prevent rust.

• Rust: Clean the bed and scrub the rust. Then hit it with a rust-preventing primer.

• Color: To do a color match they need the neutral base, which they cannot get at present. But if they could it costs $400 extra to do that. He recommended just going with the black Premium.

So I have a bit more time to get things ready. But one of the things I'm going to do before then is to install the fender-mounted starter relay. I swapped out the cube relay and that worked better for a few starts and then it gave the same symptoms.

And I need to clean the bed, paint the rust, add the drain holes, etc. So the time will be used.

[rcarlisle]

I definitely used a step drill to make a hole in either front corner of my bed when I replaced some of the bed floor about 5 years back.

Ok, thanks - front is where I would put them. I have a little rake, as it should be on 2wd. And parked in driveway, quite a bit of rake due to slope of drive. It sits there most of it's time. Then make sure to paint the holes good. Was thinking of some of that Rustoleum roll on bedliner to finish it.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Well, I'm scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. He can't get me in until then. Here are the answers to the questions:

• Holes: Don't sweat the holes that are in there. They'll handle them. As for drilling holes later, don't worry about that. Just use some primer on the edges of the holes to prevent rust.

• Rust: Clean the bed and scrub the rust. Then hit it with a rust-preventing primer.

• Color: To do a color match they need the neutral base, which they cannot get at present. But if they could it costs $400 extra to do that. He recommended just going with the black Premium.

So I have a bit more time to get things ready. But one of the things I'm going to do before then is to install the fender-mounted starter relay. I swapped out the cube relay and that worked better for a few starts and then it gave the same symptoms.

And I need to clean the bed, paint the rust, add the drain holes, etc. So the time will be used.

I wonder why you're having problems with the starter relay, and I'm not?

Personally, I think I'd go for any color except black.

[Gary Lewis]

I wonder why you're having problems with the starter relay, and I'm not?

Personally, I think I'd go for any color except black.

I'm running a Powermaster starter and you are running one from DB Electric. Powermaster said DO NOT use a cube relay for theirs. Only the fender-mounted one.

[kramttocs]

I'm running a Powermaster starter and you are running one from DB Electric. Powermaster said DO NOT use a cube relay for theirs. Only the fender-mounted one.

It's interesting that they are aware of that consideration but haven't addressed it. I get that most of their customers are switching from the old style to the new so would have the fmr but still seems like it eliminates some potential buyers. I can't recall if you've mentioned it before but did they say why?

That's a clever idea on taping under the holes

Why the colored bedliner, Jim? Not that I disagree - I was really close to going with a color but backed out into the end. For BB, personally I could see the dark blue looking real good. The upgraded black is really nice as well and seems to be well worth the upcharge. I would get one of the heavy rubber mats as well.

[Rusty_S85]

It's interesting that they are aware of that consideration but haven't addressed it. I get that most of their customers are switching from the old style to the new so would have the fmr but still seems like it eliminates some potential buyers. I can't recall if you've mentioned it before but did they say why?

That's a clever idea on taping under the holes

Why the colored bedliner, Jim? Not that I disagree - I was really close to going with a color but backed out into the end. For BB, personally I could see the dark blue looking real good. The upgraded black is really nice as well and seems to be well worth the upcharge. I would get one of the heavy rubber mats as well.

Many companies are like that. Its like people are doing PMGR starter upgrades on old fords but yet they dont offer one that functions like the old starters where all you need is a battery hot hook up no they only go with the solenoid forcing you to use your OE solenoid as a rewire point and trigger for the starter solenoid.

Just like the PMGR they make one for old Ford Y blocks now for $800 but yet they still have the solenoid on them.

Its sort of like this guy that converts generators to alternators internally but yet he does them as one wire internally regulated units where your charge light wont work. But yet refused to build one custom utilizing the OE external regulator citing external regulators dont last even though I got the original ones on all my cars and even my old tractors that sit more than they are used has their original regulators as well.

[Gary Lewis]

It's interesting that they are aware of that consideration but haven't addressed it. I get that most of their customers are switching from the old style to the new so would have the fmr but still seems like it eliminates some potential buyers. I can't recall if you've mentioned it before but did they say why?

That's a clever idea on taping under the holes

Why the colored bedliner, Jim? Not that I disagree - I was really close to going with a color but backed out into the end. For BB, personally I could see the dark blue looking real good. The upgraded black is really nice as well and seems to be well worth the upcharge. I would get one of the heavy rubber mats as well.

Scott - They didn't say why. Just said it emphatically.

On the spacer to support the toolbox via the bed's floor instead of the sides, a 4x4 w/a 2x4 on its side on top is just right. That measures 4.89" and raises the box 5/16" off the driver's side of the bed top, and 1/4" off the passenger's side.

So I'm thinking I'll use a treated 4x4 down against the floor since the chemicals won't bother the Line-X, and a plain 2x4 on top of that to keep the chemicals away from the aluminum tool box. THOUGHTS?

And I got the bedside tops and the top of the tailgate cleaned up this morn. The bedside tops are in remarkably good shape, but the top of the tailgate has been slightly damaged at one point and there's a bit of rust showing. So, with Janey as my consultant, the plan is to have them Line-X the tailgate down just past the rust on the tailgate, but not put any on the bed sides. I'll treat all of the areas with rusty-metal primer, and that way the bit you see on the bed top will be protected, even though it is hidden below the cover's track.

[Nothing Special]

.... Randy - There aren't any factory drain holes in a Bullnose bed....

Really? I was remembering (maybe incorrectly) that my '85 had drains in both front corners. Not round holes, or tubes or anything, just a section about 1" - 2" long where the bed floor wasn't welded to the front of the bed and there was a 1/8" - 1/4" gap

On the color, I had black RhinoLiner in my '95 F-150. It got hot in the sun and it got marked up when stuff was slid across it (the scuffs showed up as light colored lines). On the plus side it didn't ever look dingy.

I lined my Bronco with a medium gray Durabak. Nowhere near as hot. It hasn't gotten as marked up (but it's a Bronco, not a pickup...). But it started looking dirty pretty soon and has never cleaned up well. (It's also faded, but that's a different issue).

Neither of those are Line-X, so YMMV. But those were my choices and experiences.

In the end I'm pretty happy with what i did in the Bronco. I wish it had been more UV-stable, but the temperature / looking clean tradeoff seems good to me.

And I've had three pickups since my '95 and haven't bedlined any of them. I'm not particularly against it, but I've decided that, especially for the price, I prefer a rubber bed mat loose on the floor and nothing else covered.

[Nothing Special]

.... the plan is to have them Line-X the tailgate down just past the rust on the tailgate, but not put any on the bed sides. I'll treat all of the areas with rusty-metal primer, and that way the bit you see on the bed top will be protected, even though it is hidden below the cover's track....

I think what you are saying will do this, but I'd make sure that anything your cover will touch gets coated.

As an example, the topper lift gate on my truck has a rubber seal that contacts the tailgate. The tailgate has no pint left where the seal touches it. If i had had my truck bedlined I'd have wanted the bedliner to be taking that guff rather than the paint. (On the plus side, the bare metal doesn't rust because the rubber seal keeps buffing it out!)

[1986F150Six]

Scott - They didn't say why. Just said it emphatically.

On the spacer to support the toolbox via the bed's floor instead of the sides, a 4x4 w/a 2x4 on its side on top is just right. That measures 4.89" and raises the box 5/16" off the driver's side of the bed top, and 1/4" off the passenger's side.

So I'm thinking I'll use a treated 4x4 down against the floor since the chemicals won't bother the Line-X, and a plain 2x4 on top of that to keep the chemicals away from the aluminum tool box. THOUGHTS?

And I got the bedside tops and the top of the tailgate cleaned up this morn. The bedside tops are in remarkably good shape, but the top of the tailgate has been slightly damaged at one point and there's a bit of rust showing. So, with Janey as my consultant, the plan is to have them Line-X the tailgate down just past the rust on the tailgate, but not put any on the bed sides. I'll treat all of the areas with rusty-metal primer, and that way the bit you see on the bed top will be protected, even though it is hidden below the cover's track.

Gary, this is what the tailgate will look like...