Color Matched Door Handles

Adding color matched door handles is quite easy. It's actually

less expensive to buy the color matched handles than having

your stock handles painted. Simply remove the door panel and the

handles come off by removing a couple bolts.

Color Matched Powder Coating

There were several parts I wanted to color match to the truck.

Some of these parts did not lend themselves to being painted. The

best way to coat parts which see some use and wear is powder

coating. The parts are first sandblasted, primed, sprayed with the

powder coating, and finally they are placed in an oven to bake at

400°.



Some of the parts I had powder coated were the tool boxes, light

housings, Hi-Lift jack, trailer hitch, and the Kodiak step plates.

APC Grill & Shell

With the plans I had for the front bumper and addition of lights,

I wanted to add a grill that would simplify the look of the front

of the truck. By creating a uniform pattern behind the lights, the

front end looks less "cluttered". It also gives the illusion that

the added parts appear to "belong" where they are, as opposed to

just being "bolted" on. Having a single opening in the grill, instead

of three, like most shells, gives the illusion that the grill area is

larger than it actually is. The bars of the grill are allowed to

span from one side to the other without being interrupted. The APC

grill is just a standard billet aluminum grill. The shell, however,

is a single piece which acts as a "frame" for the grill. A lot of

trimming was necessary to get the shell to fit just right.



UPDATE — 06 - 19 - 04

The grill came with a black powder coating on all surfaces

except the front facing ones. These were just polishied bare

aluminum. To simplify the look of the front of the truck even

further, I decided to have the entire grill powder coated to

match the factory paint. I was already having several

suspension components and a bike rack powder coated, so this

was the perfect opportunity.

Painted Windshield Wiper Arms

The wiper arms are one of those pieces that, once painted, is one

more part that blends in with the rest of the truck.

24" Windshield Wiper Blades

This modification is a quick and easy one. Simply replace the stock

length wiper blades with 24" blades. The stock blades are 20" and

leave a lot of the windshield that could be cleared. The 24"

blades fit easily through their whole cycle.

Tailgate Handle Painted

The tailgate handle comes from the factory in a black plastic.

The type of plastic used does not inherently accept paint well.

For this reason, an adhesion promoter specially formulated for

plastic must be used before the paint is sprayed. Klean-Strip

makes the Bulldog brand name adhesion promoter. This seems to

be the best product available for this purpose. Without the use of

an adhesion promoter, the paint may peel or crack over time due to

the plastics properties. After several months, my handle has

held up very well.

Cowl Vent & Antenna Painted

These parts also come the factort in a black plastic. The antenna

has a boot on the lower half which is some type of flexible

plastic or rubber. The adhesion promoter was also used on these

parts. I also had the windshield washer nozzles painted too. You

just have to mask off the holes completely as to not clog the

path for the washer fluid.

Body Cladding Removed

The body cladding are long, hard, but flexible rubber strips that

span the lower portion of the door panels. I imagine their intended

purpose is to prevent scratches and dents in the doors from

other car's doors. To remove them, use some fish line to cut

through the double sided tape, then peel them off of the body. The

result is a smoother and cleaner look to the panels.

Badges Removed

The removal of the badges is also very easy. Using some fish line,

just "saw" through the double sided taped and the badges will

come right off. Some of the badges have locating pins though.

You have to work the fish line around the pins to get these badges

off. The holes in the sheet metal behind these badges will also

need to be filled, smoothed, and painted.



After the badges are removed it's time for the body shop to work

their magic! First, the largest holes and the Ford oval-shaped

indention in the tailgate are filled. The large holes are simply

filled with weld and the large oval is filled with a steel plate and

welded for future durability of the body filler and paint. Next

the holes are filled and smoothed with body filler. You can see a

large area needs to be used to properly blend the body filler to

the existing contours of the truck. Finally, the prepared areas

are shot with color and then shot with clear to match the

original paint. Ahhhh! Less "clutter".



One final step must be done to ensure the life of the body work.

The backside of the welded areas must be treated to prevent rust.

I used POR-15, which is great at stopping existing rust and

preventing rust from forming. Some tight areas in the tailgate

were difficult to access. Using a mirror was the only way to see

what needed to be treated. The small hole on the side of the

tailgate provided provided just enough sunlight to see in the dark

caviity.

Pinch Weld Covers

The area underneath the doors is cluttered with holes, pinch

welds, and fasteners which hold the Kodiak steps on. When the

truck is lifted, this area will be more noticeable and unsightly.

Many companies have started making a simple steel cover, which

uses the existing holes in this area, to attach to the truck. Once

powder coated, this area is much more disguised.