Crossbreed

[stangtjk]

Originally Posted by chewychevy67

So is the gate electric now? I Didn't see anyone opening it. What vehicle is the set up from? Gm truck?

Not electric. I was just holding the tailgate at the corner and let go. The damper came from the 14-19 gm trucks however they are not installed in the tailgate as I have done.

On the new trucks the damper in the bedside under the tail light and the shaft goes through the hinge. Wouldn't work that way on the 67-72 trucks because the damper would hit the twilight housing. I had to modify the 67-72 hinge by welding a socket in the center. Then cut down the shaft that came from the 14-19 hinge and ground a hex on it to fit in the socket.

[chewychevy67]

Wow I love that. I may look into doing that. Did you do it on both trunions or just 1 side?

[stangtjk]

Passenger side only. The damper only provides resistance in one direction so it won't work on the driver's side. I'm also installing the lift assist torsion spring inside the tailgate which will interface with a modified trunion on the driver's side.

[chewychevy67]

I was researching this tonight. Can't find much on the easy lift part. Post pictures when you get to it. I am interested in these mods.

[stangtjk]

This is the lift assist torsion rod setup. I believe it came from the 07-14 gm trucks. I drilled a hole in the tailgate for it to slide into but should probably place a bushing in there. Also modified the trunnion. I still need to fabricate a block to hold the opposite end inside the tailgate. I'll probably make it so it slides into the pocket I cut out for the damper then plug weld it in place from the bottom of the tailgate.

[stangtjk]

Been a while but I finally got around to putting the torsion spring in the tailgate. Made the tailgate open softer and took a little load off closing it up. For the block that holds the end of the torsion spring I just took a thick chunk of metal and cut it to shape with a portable band saw. Made the half moon hole by cutting the block in half and filing a notch in one side then welding it back together. See it in action here link

I still need to adjust the hinges and strikers but it worked pretty good.

[litebulblsc]

That is pretty slick

[Thealien]

If you could come up with a "kit" I bet it would sell?

[stangtjk]

A kit would be doable but with all the parts and modifications it would probably cost more than most would be willing to spend. Probably close to $200 in parts, couple hours to modify and it's not a direct bolt on so whoever buys it would have to be willing to cut into their tailgate.

[chewychevy67]

Ive been looking for the torsion rod parts new but I can't seem to find them. I am definitely going to do that to mod to my gate as well. I'll have to go to the wrecker in spring. I'll bet I'll have to buy a full tailgate thougb

[stangtjk]

All parts are available new. Below are the parts I used.

GM part #s
25889654 (torsion rod)
23115812 (damper)
23439650 (right side hinge)
15192282 (left side hinge)

[chewychevy67]

I will look those up. Thanks for that

[cornerstone]

Now that's using yer noggin. Hard work but super cool upgrade. I remember anytime someone other than myself would open my tailgate and I'd hear that slam it'd make me cringe. I know it can handle it but why be so hard on it?
Very cool!

[kehstr]

Did you have to wind the torsion bar or dampener up so it would work properly?
And did you end up using a bushing? If so what style?
Definetely doing this!

[Last_Paladin]

Thanks for the tail gate idea.

[chewychevy67]

Anything new lately?

[ochre 72]

Originally Posted by stangtjk

Fixed the double wall top.... Cut out each of the 6 sagging sections on top, glued in some rigid foam insulation and glasses over it all... It also got a coat of epoxy primer followed by raptor liner. As much of this stuff that I've used they should be sponsoring this build lol.

Turned out great! what glass did you use ? You made new top sections?

[stangtjk]

I used woven fiberglass cloth with total boat epoxy resin. I don't remember the weight of the cloth but it wasn't real thick.. probably somewhere around 6oz and I used 4 layers.

[ochre 72]

Originally Posted by stangtjk

I used woven fiberglass cloth with total boat epoxy resin. I don't remember the weight of the cloth but it wasn't real thick.. probably somewhere around 6oz and I used 4 layers.

Thank you. Looks great. Maybe that was 1708. did you do piece per section or 1 large sheet to cover the whole top? Sorry, trying to learn as i go

[stangtjk]

Originally Posted by ochre 72

Thank you. Looks great. Maybe that was 1708. did you do piece per section or 1 large sheet to cover the whole top? Sorry, trying to learn as i go

Im not a fiberglass expert... this is really the only big fiberglass project I've tackled. I Googled 1708 and that is not what I but I'm sure any cloth or mat you want to use would be fine. I chose normal cloth over mat so it wasn't necessary to sand flat before applying the raptor liner.

In the pictures I posted I did two sections together to test out the method.... I was satisfied with how it turned out so I ordered enough cloth to cover the whole top in one sheet.