SCFlareside Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 And so it begins again. My last truck that some of you may know, was a styleside that we put a flareside bed onto. It was rougher than I'd like to admit when I started. Thanks to many of you on here, for advice, brainstorming and even some parts now and again, it's close to finished. The other day i made a trip to look at a flareside that was near us... long story short I brought it home a week later. This is the start of its project thread, and for now I've just named it "Silver". Silver just turned 140,000 miles this weekend on a run to Lowes. For all its sun burned paint and surface rust, it's a super straight truck. All the panels appear to be original and it even has the original wood bed... the truck was in California for its first 23 years and about 100k miles, before it came to North Carolina and a farm. We are the fourth owners. Here are a few pics. I have to let it live in the shop a bit before I can spend much on it, so mainly doing cleanup and basics. The truck drives well except for some weak brakes and shocks. Despite all the effort put into the black trucks steering, silver feels smooth by comparison. Someone installed heavier springs in back so the truck has a lot of rake... leveling springs are probably in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethobling Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 Only 140k? Nice. What are your plans to do for Silver? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCFlareside Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 It's been sitting a bit, so for now the focus will be on brakes, fluids, belts and the like for reliability. And tires unfortunately As good as they looked, I got a flat this weekend. Felt it wobble hard about four miles from home, pulled over and watched the left rear go flat. It split at the sidewall due to some dry rot or damage from driving at low pressure maybe. I still have some well worn but reliable BFG ATs from the last build that I'll need to put on. My understanding wife came to the rescue. We got some looks with one flareside helping another, looked like a bullnose meet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 Hi-Yo, Silver! Away! I'm on board for the ride. How 'bout adding a signature to tell us about your trucks? I don't remember the details on the black truck, and will soon lose them on Silver. To figure out where the 300 came from, check the valve cover to see if there's a calibration label on it, as explained here: http://www.garysgaragemahal.com/calibration-codes.html. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 It's been sitting a bit, so for now the focus will be on brakes, fluids, belts and the like for reliability. And tires unfortunately As good as they looked, I got a flat this weekend. Felt it wobble hard about four miles from home, pulled over and watched the left rear go flat. It split at the sidewall due to some dry rot or damage from driving at low pressure maybe. I still have some well worn but reliable BFG ATs from the last build that I'll need to put on. My understanding wife came to the rescue. We got some looks with one flareside helping another, looked like a bullnose meet Yep, dry rotted tires are a problem waiting to happen, and it didn't take long. But that's a cool pic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCFlareside Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 Only 140k? Nice. What are your plans to do for Silver? Ethnobling, I learned a lot and made some mistakes in my last build... it turned out fine but I had to redo some things. This time I'll try to be wiser... Silver is a good survivor except for the paint...and I'd like to respect that and keep it close to factory, or maybe slight "80s era" mods like I did with the last truck. I'd really like to hear brainstorms and suggestions, we are open - one of the reasons I appreciate this forum Color: I'd like to return it to the factory silver with a medium or dark blue stripe. The stripe will be a question: original factory pattern as it is now, or a single stripe down the bodyline? I also am debating whether a matte silver paintjob like SEM Hotrod silver would look good or just devalue it Here's an example of how it would have looked new The bed will be a question too. I'll stay with the '85 era plywood, but... could do a real wood finish and varnish or oil...with stainless bed strips... OR go total factory and paint it body color. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCFlareside Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 Yep, dry rotted tires are a problem waiting to happen, and it didn't take long. But that's a cool pic! For you that have done flareside beds before: do you take the bed to the body shop in pieces fo paint, and then reassemble with the wood bed floor? That may be the way to go... I wonder if leaving the "patina" on the inside of the bed would be cool. Not so sure about that. OR... One could do the inside of the bed with trim black paint, like a matte finish. Done well, with chrome bed strips and real wood maybe that would look sharp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCFlareside Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 Hi-Yo, Silver! Away! I'm on board for the ride. How 'bout adding a signature to tell us about your trucks? I don't remember the details on the black truck, and will soon lose them on Silver. To figure out where the 300 came from, check the valve cover to see if there's a calibration label on it, as explained here: http://www.garysgaragemahal.com/calibration-codes.html. Thanks Gary! I'll add a sig line... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCFlareside Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 Thanks Gary! I'll add a sig line... And also thank you for the calibration code info! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rembrant Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 For you that have done flareside beds before: do you take the bed to the body shop in pieces for paint, and then reassemble with the wood bed floor? I just assembled mine this summer Ken, and that's what I did. I then assembled the box upside down. And then flipped it over and set it on the frame to do the wood. I went with plywood again in the 3 sections same as the original. I left mine plain, but had the strips painted body color. I'm not sure this is 100% my favorite, but I like it, and it will probably stay this way for a while. And after it was all fitted and drilled, I took it all back out and did three coats of marine varnish, sanding between coats. What year is the bed on your other truck? One thing to be aware of is that the bed strips on the trucks with the plywood floors are different than the earlier ones with the planks. They're not available anymore, and nobody makes replacements in the aftermarket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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