Rust Repair...your thoughts?

[Drey]

I have a 91 K5. Its pretty clean except for the floorboards and rockers. Its gotten bad enough that I have to address it now before it goes any further.

Ive narrowed it down to 4 options.

1.) Let a body shop do it. Probably the most professional yet also the most expensive.

2.) Get LMC panels and do the patch work myself then have a body shop paint it or spray color coated bedliner on it(what I would like to have applied no matter what I decide on.

3.) Total redneck...use steel plate for the floors and 2x4 inch tubing for the rockers. Had a buddy do it to his K5...extremely solid but one of those...you really did that things.

4.) Do it with LMC panels and just hit it with some cheap roll on bedliner.


I would like to put my sound deadener and carpet back in afterwards as well.

Heres the rig in question

 

[Merv]

Option 2. Cut out whats bad, see whats goin on inside, then seal that **** back up. It doesn't look real bad compared to what the norm is.

Next year hopefully the I.H is gettin some sort of treatment. The funds aren't there right now gettin married in Sept. and all.

 

[max 02]

If you got the tools and the time do it your self,nobody cares about your truck like you! BTW ITS FUN!!

 

[Drey]

Yeah I agree Max! Only problem is Id love to get it done as quick as I can and not drag it out. I redid this truck when I was in highschool...then took it to college and joined CK5 now its in the middle of major surgery haha. Ive got a buddy that already told me he'd be more then willing to help for bud light haha.

 

[tRustyK5]

The question is can you weld, fabricate, etc...and do you have the tools to do so? Trust me if you can already 'see' problems with the floors and rockers it's much worse than you think. Rust is sneaky, and relentless, and pervasive, and begins where you can't see it.

That being said I'm 65% through doing the same to my '90. I'm not using any patches from LMC. The truck did come with some Good mark replacement rockers, other than that I'm making all my own patches from some OEM bedsides i have here.

Pic's of what I've been dealing with here:

http://coloradok5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=263098&page=2

Starts at post #163

Rene

 

[Ck1500]

i am using all LMC sheetmetal for mine, and so far so good, and where they didnt make a repair piece i have had to fab up my own with some 16 guage steel, no big deal.. i say do it yourself.. and you will always know the status of your truck!!! if someone else does it, theres no telling what will be done. and not to mention HOW EXPENSIVE!!!!

i have found it to be peace of mind, doing it all myself.. and i am looking forward to the completion of it. but i am not rushing it. Rene brought up some good points, in the right tools to do it!! if you dont have them i wouldnt plan on doing it, or buy some of them, and have them forever.. i wished i would of bought a welder sooner in life!! i use it all the time, and love having it here at my disposal.

it also comes down to, are you planning on keeping the blazer? if so that will play a factor on your decision of repair.

hope this helps

 

[Drey]

Ive got a smaller 220 mig welder and previously said buddy has a 110 mig welder.

Blazer is going to get up kept as long as possibly. Waiting for my C10 to finally die then Ill most likely geta nice Z71 for going places and the K5 and K10 get kept for hunting and what small amounts of wheeling I do.

 

[496truck]

Do it yourself, it's not too bad if you have an idea on how to make metal fit. If you've never done it before, get the patch panels. I think it's been easier to have the preformed panels. Keep in mind they may not fit perfect and you may not need the entire piece. Some basic metal working skills will be needed to reshape some things for proper fit. If you are replacing rocker panels, don't forget you need drain holes for water to escape.

Use some seam sealer in the corners and seal both sides of any lap joints. I like to use POR Patch on mine, but that's me. Brush on some Rustoleum after the repair and then DIY bedliner will seal it all up good. Be sure to get some paint on the underside/backside of the patch panels. I usually do this before putting things together. Then get some undercoating on the bottom. There's also some oily undercoatings you can get and spray it up inside the rocker panels through the drain holes. One I like to use is available at your local Volvo dealer, part #9510227. Comes in a spray can and has a nozzle with a hose on it.

In the end you'll be much happier knowing you did it yourself.