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CK5
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83 k10 shorty - rust repair
- Thread starter 76k5blazerr
- Start date
what's in it? 350/th350/208?
Nice! 
body man for a living?
No. Just a hobbyist trying to do a halfway decent job! That photo was not in my shop.
Well as of today the k10 has a totally rust free front clip. On Saturday I went and picked up a passenger side fender and what I thought was a passenger side inner fender, but I didn't look at it closely and the guy said it was a PS so I didn't think anything of it, but turns out it was a driver side. So I figured I would just put it in anyway. Then after pulling off the driver side fender to install my new inner, I realized that the bottom inner brace where the fender bolts on near the rocker was completely rusted out. So today I went and from a different guy bought a driver side fender and passenger inner fender. The DS fender I bought is rust free and straight except for a dent in the bottom where the lip is that meets the rocker. I got it banged out most of the way. Today I installed both new fenders and inner fenders. The driver side is lined up OK but the passenger doesn't line up with the door. Probably going to have to grab some more shims. Overall I'm happy with what I've got and glad I was able to find original Gm sheet metal. Now I just have to replace the cab corners and my cab/front clip will be rust free. Then I'll move on to the bed. I would love to hear suggestions/tips on fender alignment from you guys.
Pics from today.
Driver side door gap. OK?
Bottom is pulled in just a little to far-
The dent I was talking about-
Passenger side, hopefully you can see how the fender line is lower than the door line-
And a shot of the truck
Pics from today.
Driver side door gap. OK?
Bottom is pulled in just a little to far-
The dent I was talking about-
Passenger side, hopefully you can see how the fender line is lower than the door line-
And a shot of the truck
Oh, this evening I also figured out the truck is an 83, not an 84. Weird. Guy advertised it as an 84 and even wrote 84 on the bill of sale. Title says 83 and the vins match so I guess he was just mixed up. They had several trucks out there. So I've changed my thread title, lol.
I like it! The body work is coming along and surprisingly not much rust.
Door gap looks a little tight, and the fender isn't pulled in as much as the door is "out" at the bottom by a fair bit. I'd be really careful opening the door...it looks like it'd catch the fender edge and mess it up.
I have a pair of 83's now...
I have a pair of 83's now...
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing, but I have no shims except what was on the truck before. I guess I'll have to pick some more up before I can finish adjusting them. I know they definitely need more adjusting. I am just unsure of the exact process to do it and get it perfect. Never messed with body panels much before this. Any advice I would love to hear... Maybe I will start a panel alignment thread.
Use the rocker under the door as a guide, you can see in your pic the fender and the rocker are lined up very nicely. The rocker is a fixed part...Whatever shims you are using for the fenders are good from what I see. You can loosen the bolts top and bottom and use a come-a-long to pull the fender forward to increase the gap at the door, then tighten it up to keep it there.
Then loosen the bottom hinge bolts and all but one top hinge bolt and let the door rotate inward to better match the fender. a 1/4" gap is good there and will allow the door edge to tuck in behind the fender edge without fouling.
Then loosen the bottom hinge bolts and all but one top hinge bolt and let the door rotate inward to better match the fender. a 1/4" gap is good there and will allow the door edge to tuck in behind the fender edge without fouling.
Well here's where I got today. Pulled the driver fender back off and then adjusted the door, scooted it back some and the also pushed the bottom in toward the rocker a little bit. Man that bolt inside the truck for the top hinge was a bear to get at. I had to remove the whole lower air duct to get at it. Then I put the fender back on and shimmed it some to get it lined up with the door. I think I'm happy with the gaps I have now. Going to do the passenger side tomorrow.
Got the passenger side door and fender lined up pretty well this afternoon. It doesn't 100% match the driver side but you can't look at both sides at the same time so I figure it's good enough. I don't think perfection is possible on these old trucks. Also threw the hood on and aligned it as best I could. Still need to tweak it slightly to make the hood/fender gap totally equal on both sides.
Looks like you have them lined up pretty dern close.
Nicely done!! I bet your gaps and stuff are better than when new!
I appreciate that. I looked at my 89 jimmy this morning to try and get an idea of what I wanted to accomplish with the panel gaps and stuff, then I looked at my buddy's 89 blazer, both of which are all stock and original. And both had different size gaps here and there, they were all even per that specific truck but it looks like the trucks are not consistent with each other. Ready to start sanding and priming the front clip now and then on to the patch panels. I'm liking this rig.
I think in the end this will be a keeper instead of a quick flip 
might have to find one for myself
might have to find one for myself
Got the bed pulled off tonight, going to try my hand at replacing the cab corners this weekend. Ordered good mark cab corners and they seem pretty thick and solid.
It always gives me an eerie feeling welding those cab corners by the tank. 
...... I've always covered them and haven't blown myself up yet.
...... I've always covered them and haven't blown myself up yet.
