1968 GMC - Ol' Blue

[Scurry67]

Definitely looking real good! I feel your pain with the sanding. Can be very tedious.
Looking forward to seeing some color

[sprint_9]

Originally Posted by MDPotter

I'm actually a little surprised at how straight everything looks and don't think I'll do any blocking.

Have you blocked the truck out at all besides filler?

[TA_C10]

Yeah man, looking good. I'm bout to finish my can here pretty soon and I'm trying to figure out how to turn my epoxy into a thin sealer. I thought the sealer was the easiest thing to spray IMO. But I may have just got lucky. Keep it up man looking forward to some color!

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by TA_C10

Yeah man, looking good. I'm bout to finish my can here pretty soon and I'm trying to figure out how to turn my epoxy into a thin sealer. I thought the sealer was the easiest thing to spray IMO. But I may have just got lucky. Keep it up man looking forward to some color!

With SPI epoxy, you can reduce it by up to 50% with their urethane reducer and I'm told it will spray thin and flat like base. I've never sprayed reduced epoxy, but I haven't had any issues with runs or texture spraying base so I feel pretty good about it. Unreduced epoxy is another story though, it's more challenging for me.

[MDPotter]

Sprint talked some sense into me and I blocked the epoxy. I actually got pretty aggressive with it as I had 3 coats on it and everything blocked down really well, but I did have a few spots on the roof that needed more filler and one door had a slight wave to it. I now have 2 coats high build on everything. I don't think I'll have time to get to base/clear this weekend, but should be able to the next weekend. Don't worry, I wiped everything down after taking these pictures.

[MDPotter]

[TA_C10]

[MDPotter]

I give you Voodoo Blue. Everything went well Saturday - the weather was warm, sanding went well, and sealer, base, clear all laid down well. I got a group of runs on one lower fender corner and touched one of the doors on the inside with my suit, but other than that it looks awesome. The pictures just don't do it justice, it's louder than it looks. Saturday was the last day of 80s temps that we will have until spring, so I am relieved that all these parts are painted now. Getting all the surfaces of the cab was a workout though - I was sore yesterday.

Next steps - brakes, exhaust, fuel tank, fuel lines. Then I can set these parts on the frame.

[MDPotter]

[MDPotter]

[MDPotter]

[1971Stepside]

Holy cow!! I bet you are stoked. That looks great. Congrats on the paint. Love the color.

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by 1971Stepside

Holy cow!! I bet you are stoked. That looks great. Congrats on the paint. Love the color.

Thanks, I am very happy with it.

[TA_C10]

Looks great man! Congrats. I like the color.

[Camaroguy]

Looks great, good job!

[cornerstone]

I don't know how I missed this... just an incredible paint job man! You, sprint9 and gringoloco have got me all fired up about spraying my own truck myself. If mine comes out half as nice as y'alls I'll be happy.

[MDPotter]

Thanks guys for the compliments. It was a huge relief when I shot the last coat of clear that day. I'm still as anxious to work on it, but not worried because I got all of that done just in time for the weather to cool off here.

cornerstone - spraying your own project is pretty rewarding. I don't know what kind of equipment you already have, but it does take some upfront investment. I've never had to deal with "paint jail", but it sounds awful from some of the stories I've heard. Doing your own bodywork and spraying is an awesome learning experience and it'll save you big time compared to sending it somewhere. You'll make mistakes, but you'll get better every time. If you're really interested in doing it yourself, I would recommend getting on the SPI forum and start reading. Great products at a great price and the best customer support.

[MDPotter]

I'll have a better update this week sometime. Saturday we worked on the rear brakes and we finished rebuilding one side and then were ready to do the other side when we remembered that I'm missing one wheel cylinder link. Back when I first bought the truck, there was a slight grinding noise in the rear driver side drum so we took it apart and found that link fell out of the cylinder and just sliding around on the inside of the drum and it was pretty much ruined. Fast forward to a few months ago when I bought new cylinders, springs, shoes, etc. and none of it came with new links as we found out Saturday. I called all the local parts stores and no one had one, eventually ordered it online. A small $5 part turned into $15 with shipping and held us up from finishing the brakes.

Once I accepted the fact that I wouldn't be able to put the rear end back together, we moved onto the fuel tank. I got a universal 16 gallon tank from Tanks Inc and I'm regretting not going for the Boyds. I didn't want to spend another $300 for the Boyds tank, but $300 didn't seem like much once we actually started looking at installing it. I had to trim about 1/2" off the bottom flange of the frame to get it in and we will probably use unistrut to run from the rear crossmember to the next forward crossmember so the tank has something to butt up against. The straps that came with the kit will be what actually holds it up. I had to modify the sender for the tank, still have to assemble the pump, and the filler is too short to get above the bed floor. The Boyds tank has those nice flanges on both sides for a positive attachment to the frame rails and it comes with the sender and pump pre-installed. I took it with a grain of salt since it is a universal kit so that's the price you pay to save some money. Just a bit of advice for others considering either of these tanks.

I'll take more pictures once I have the wheel cylinder link and the tank assembled.

[1971Stepside]

I didn't want to spend another $300 for the Boyds tank, but $300 didn't seem like much once we actually started looking at installing it.

I almost bought that set up. Glad I went with the Boyd's after hearing this. I then tried to save money on the radiator by buying the Cold Case when I knew I should have just ordered the Entropy. Ended up sending it all back and spent the money. I think I learned my lesson

[MDPotter]

I mean, this setup will work just fine but I'm not happy with the install. Installing the sender and pump isn't a big deal, I just wish the tank had flanges I could have used to mount direct to the frame rails. I didn't think it would be such a big deal when I was shopping.

[MDPotter]

Cadillac engine, Cadillac seats. Snuck out at lunch today and grabbed a set of seats out of an Escalade that are in pretty good shape. Now I have to figure out how to wire them in. I would think the yellow connector is for airbags and the other one is for lumbar/forward/back/tilt and memory.

[TA_C10]

Nice seats man. I will be interested in this install so please detail this one!!

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by TA_C10

Nice seats man. I will be interested in this install so please detail this one!!

I will!

[clay68c10]

Those should be comfy!
You are correct, the yellow connector is for the airbags.

[cornerstone]

Thanks for the tip on SPI. I've heard a ton of good things about them. Ill definitely get on their forums to see what else I can learn. As far as equipment goes I think I'm fairly set up. At this point I think I just need a quality paint gun and perhaps another drier for my air. I may want to rent a booth too, since my lighting and shop cleanliness are both not so great. Is that where you sprayed yours?