Project "My Happy Mess"

[Low Elco]

Oh, Lite, you done done it now! I liked this idea so much, I called Boppa last night, and we gonna do a lil sumpthin special for ours. It should be cool!
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[litew8]

Originally Posted by El Campo

Those body panels look great man!!!! Did you tape before Sean sealing so you didn't get it everywhere? And how was the ease of use of it? Iv been wondering also what to put on the inside of the door bottoms.
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Thanks! Yep, tape around the seam, leaving a small channel to fill with seam sealer. The heavy bodied 3M sealer is easy to spread at first and starts to set up each minute it's down. Having two people working it is best, one to place a bead and the other to smooth out. A little spreads out good, too much and it can get messy.

[litew8]

Originally Posted by Low Elco

Oh, Lite, you done done it now! I liked this idea so much, I called Boppa last night, and we gonna do a lil sumpthin special for ours. It should be cool!
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[bundeber]

Originally Posted by litew8

Got your explanation of cheap vinyl. Sounds good. Also your suggestion for doubled back tape sounds
like it'd pull better than string. As for the text, if I'm understanding correctly - The Chevy emblem outline,
and the text inside, would be the bedliner? Or, the emblem outline and the text would be the basecoat/clearcoat
of the original paint?

I'll try and get something made up tonight w/Photoshop just to see if I can bring ideas
to life a little.

I may not have the colors just right, but this is what I was thinking. Outline and letters in paint color, the rest in black bedliner.

[litew8]

Cool, the only thing that may be of concern is the lettering, and the coverage of the bedliner (being thick) - how the two may not conform together. That may be why companies like Line-X spray colored bedliner onto a stencil instead of just using an overlay. I'll mess around with some pictures later and superimpose stencils into a bed front panel. I'll take your graphic above bundeber and make two stencils.

If anyone has any other stencil ideas they'd like to see, now would be the time for requests!
Let me know the colors, etc... and a link to a truck pic to example.
I'm no PhotoSlop expert, but I should be able to digitize the idea.

[litew8]

These are for you bundeber. Not sure how they'll display on different
monitors, they were sort of dark on mine. Black bed liner with red logo.
Mine will take a considerable effort due to me needing to alter colors,
not sure if I can pull it off but I'll try later.

[edit: Deleted. I can see on another monitor the logos are set too high.]

I'll get some better ones up in a few.

[litew8]

ok, better renditions:

[litew8]

Round 2

Not sure where this truck picture came from, but here's what
it looked like before I altered it:




Then after:



^ Not the best Med. Bronze, but the best I could do. It's more like
a brown I think. Oh well... good enough.

Only after I finished them did I realize that the bed front panel is actually
sitting crooked :/ Just a generalization of what it could possibly resemble.

Front panel only with bed liner in recessed area. Logo is actual basecoat/clear
that would have been applied with the rest of the truck's paint.








Pictures with all the sides and tailgate bed lined.
Selected, brightened and added "noise" to give a grainy effect.

[litew8]

If I were to go ahead and shoot bed liner on the tubs, gate and
bedsides - I wouldn't wast paint on them first. They'd just be primed,
scuffed and shot with the liner. If I were to only shoot bed liner
on the front panel, it'd be primed and painted as usual, then the
logo taped off and paint scuffed where I wanted to shoot the liner.

[bundeber]

nice photochopping litew8

Here's what I'm thinking on mine. Do the sides and tailgate in black bedliner but have the painted strips on the floor in truck color. I'm not sold on the colored bedliner. Seems like the coloring gets CLOSE. HGS did a great job of matching his. Drews looks good too, but it is a little lighter. SO why not just go with black and pull a little color back in with the bed strips. I think a true matching color would look sweet but I am actually digging how this looks with the black too.

[litew8]

wow, great job bundeber! That does look nice.
I'm starting to like the outlined logo alot after seeing it here.
I colored my strips, but they are stainless, not polished.
Couldn't get them colored to a good silver so I painted them.

I figured tintable liner because the bed is suppose to be the same.
I had read you can add more tint to darken it up, but I'm not sure
how that'd affect the hardener etc... chemistry in the end.
I'm still not sure what I'm going to do yet. I think I'll spray the
undersides of the wheelhouses with the black and see what the
texture turns out like and then make a decision with the tintable stuff.
I'll spray the undersides of the wheelhouses with HIGH air pressure
so the liner hits harder and lays flatter since I have no need for
too much texture there, I just need durability.

I might photoslop another truck later if I have time.

[Low Elco]

Truck, schmuck, you got mad photoshop skillz! You oughta get into the rendering bidness!

[litew8]

Thanks, but I don't have the patients for it to make it a career.

[litew8]

Have a nice Memorial Day. If you get a chance, thank a Veteran.

[litew8]

[litew8]

I think I've hit my mark.
Steve Hafner's picture/truck, my reinterpretation.

Before:




After:

Personal favorites -




Bedsides included -


Bottom of wheel tubs and gate included -


I'll do one last one with a solid

[oldman3]

They all look great, can't go wrong with whatever you decide....Jim

[litew8]

Thanks Jim. I don't think I'd do the last rendition, but maybe the 2nd or 3rd,
if I do. The second rendition (front panel only) is simple, and I'm finding the
third rendition (bedsides included) interesting.

[bundeber]

I think doing all the inserts in the bedsides looks great. Nice way to tie it all together.
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[Mike Bradbury]

This is just my opinion so take it for what it is worth; I love bed liners weather tinted or black, I think it makes a truck able to be used for what it is designed for. I am going to be putting one on my '69 soon so I will not worry about parts clunking about in the bed. I also like the polished and varnished look of the wood and S.S. pristine bed that the trailer queens have. My dad and I are in process of putting one of those on the '29 roadster p/u that we are hot rodding. Combining the two is mixing two medias that are polar opposites. The part that the bed liner is for (the floor), you are actually putting the nice wood and S.S.. and the part that usually does not get that much abuse (the bed sides) you are putting the liner. My question is; What are you planning to do with the truck? If I spent that much time making the bed floor look so good, I would not be putting anything in the bed that required bed liner protection. Is this just for looks? Because I think nice paint looks better than nice liner.

My intention is not to devalue your work, I think you are doing a great job on it and if this is what you want to do then I think it is the best for the truck, I am simply stating my opinion from an outsiders point of view.

[litew8]

Hey Mike, no problem man. My ideas aren't really for anything in particular, just simple ideas I'm considering on the way to putting the truck back together. The bed wood being replaced is just that, being replaced because that's what its suppose to have. Bed wood was implemented in our trucks for being easy on livestock's hooves etc..., not for a showy appearance. I know they are suppose to be painted and not have a natural wood look, and maybe someday down the road I'll actually paint the boards.

I went with a satin finish for the wood, not a gloss finish - so it isn't for looks as much as it is to be used from time to time. I know it isn't going to last forever so whatever becomes of it becomes of it over time. The liner, just thinking of ideas to mix it up a little - trying to see if I can achieve that "custom" idea/design to put a stamp of personal customizing on it.

Of the all the trucks I've seen with bed liner and stencils, I haven't seen one where the logo/etc... is the underlining basecoat/clear. This isn't going to be a show truck, or even attempting, but just maybe it'll be clean enough to drive to a small local show every once in a while to relax and kick back a few cold ones after having actually used it.

[litew8]

Originally Posted by litew8

"Only after I finished them did I realize that the bed front panel is actually sitting crooked"

Correction... the front panel isn't crooked, the bed wood is actually an overlay.
Called a "show deck". Sits on top of a stock steel floor.
The one corner on the front / right is sitting higher than the other.

[litew8]

Originally Posted by bundeber

I think doing all the inserts in the bedsides looks great. Nice way to tie it all together.
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Thanks It does seem to add a neat, simple (subtle) change/difference.
Still haven't really made up my mind though
When push comes to shove (soon), I'll be forced to decide.
If you want to still make up the vinyl cutouts bundeber, that'd be awesome.
Maybe two? One of a solid bowtie and the other an outline?
I can get measurements later this week, let me know.

[bundeber]

Happy to. I leave Saturday for mn so let me know ASAP. I will probably ship from mn. Two is no problem just pm me an address with measurements. Heights and width would be great
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[litew8]