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How to keep running board painted??


Dodgeed

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My '51 pickup was restored in the 90's, and then stored for 20 years (the owner died, and the son didn't do anything w/it). So, when I got it this year, it had a few very minor dings, but was pretty much close to perfect, including brand new paint on the running boards. But, now, after only a few times of me stepping on it going in and out of the cab, the paint is starting to look scratched up. How do you all protect the paint on the running boards? 

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There is a product called XPEL sold and installed my my window tinting folks.  It is a clear film that is used on fenders and grills to protect the paint from rocks and bugs.

 

I had the window tint people use this stuff on the running boards of my '37 Chevy coupe.  Although the car is not quite running yet the application is invisible.  The drawback?  My running boards are smooth but I don't know what the surface of a '51 pickup is so this idea might not work.  

 

Other options would be undercoat spray or bed liner spray.  Very tough stuff but is textured.  If the film doesn't work for you I would simply paint them every winter.  It can't take too long and it would give you something to do.

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really if you want stock your options are (in my mind):

  1. don't step on it 
  2. step VERY VERY carefully on it with care to not twist and such with CLEAN footwear
  3. use a towel (have to pick and place each time a challenge in itself and potentially a fall hazard with it slipping)
  4. use it and repaint periodically
  5. use it and don't care

You are lucky your truck isn't a one ton, FEF rides taller and it's a stretch to climb in and NOT use the RB...at some point in life I won't be limber enough to do so and will be FORCED to use the RB.  TODD I plan on non stock SS running boards that I can step on and polish as needed.

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14 minutes ago, Todd B said:

I will never forget the look on Marks face when his nephew stepped on the running board on our way to back to the fifties. “Priceless”

Yeah, I'll bet his nephew hears about it every time he sees Mark

I was give a three minute tutorial on getting in and out of FEF when I was given a ride. LOL, 

it was worth it but, I don't think I ever got my deposit back

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Jeez my passenger running board is in decent shape but my driver’s board is swiss cheese by the door. Must have rubbed off the paint there pretty well by the 1960s from getting in & out. 

 

Yours is a good problem to have!

 

Maybe powdercoating would be a good solution?

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26 minutes ago, Brent B3B said:

Yeah, I'll bet his nephew hears about it every time he sees Mark

I was give a three minute tutorial on getting in and out of FEF when I was given a ride. LOL, 

it was worth it but, I don't think I ever got my deposit back

 

when it's his truck he can do what he wants!

 

deposit?  I don't know nuttin bout no deposit.....<whistles and saunters away>

 

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On more than one occasion, I attempted to climb into the '48 and '49 with a little moisture on my boots, and what happened next could be described as an awkward attempt to avoid doing the splits, which included banging my knee into the running board.  This no doubt happened to other folks back in the day, prompting Dodge to change the running board stamping to include knobby indentations in the late 50s as opposed to the parallel bars of the early 50s, to improve wet-weather grip...

 

I thought about putting the roll-on bedliner on the whole running board, but didn't think it would look too sharp.  Then I noticed that the wear on the paint was restricted to a small percentage of the board surface, so then I considered restricting the liner to step pad areas, similar to the adhesive-backed sandpaper ones used on boats, swimming pool steps, etc.  But I also noticed that the paint was wearing on the edges of the boards, and that means any film application will just peel off if located there.

 

I recall from my tractor restoration practice that one of the old timers told me to bump up the hardener content when painting the bottom half of the tractor, to increase abrasion resistance.  This helped on the cast iron, but sheet metal paint would chip rather than wear off.

 

Looking at the rims on the '48, I have been impressed with my budget approach to cleaning them up back in '99.  I had the rims sand blasted and cleaned per the primer instructions, then applied Rustoleum rattlecan primer and semi-gloss black.  Twenty years of being outside, and these rims still clean up decent...there's a few nicks, scrapes, and surface rust spots on them, but a thorough cleaning and rattlecan top coat could address this for a very reasonable cost.

 

So my plan for the running boards is to go the rattlecan paint + liner step pad route.  Powdercoating can be an expensive option, and if it chips or wears, touch-up can be difficult.  Paint, for the most part, can resist corrosion, but abrasion, not so much...it will take effort to maintain the running board appearance if it is used as it was intended.  The annual touch-up approach is par for the course; it allows the truck to be enjoyed not only in operation, but in maintenance :cool:

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8 hours ago, lonejacklarry said:

There is a product called XPEL sold and installed my my window tinting folks.  It is a clear film that is used on fenders and grills to protect the paint from rocks and bugs.

 

I had the window tint people use this stuff on the running boards of my '37 Chevy coupe.  Although the car is not quite running yet the application is invisible.  The drawback?  My running boards are smooth but I don't know what the surface of a '51 pickup is so this idea might not work.  

 

Other options would be undercoat spray or bed liner spray.  Very tough stuff but is textured.  If the film doesn't work for you I would simply paint them every winter.  It can't take too long and it would give you something to do.

Yeah, I was thinking along the lines of painting them myself every now and then. 

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6 hours ago, JBNeal said:

On more than one occasion, I attempted to climb into the '48 and '49 with a little moisture on my boots, and what happened next could be described as an awkward attempt to avoid doing the splits, which included banging my knee into the running board.  This no doubt happened to other folks back in the day, prompting Dodge to change the running board stamping to include knobby indentations in the late 50s as opposed to the parallel bars of the early 50s, to improve wet-weather grip...

 

I thought about putting the roll-on bedliner on the whole running board, but didn't think it would look too sharp.  Then I noticed that the wear on the paint was restricted to a small percentage of the board surface, so then I considered restricting the liner to step pad areas, similar to the adhesive-backed sandpaper ones used on boats, swimming pool steps, etc.  But I also noticed that the paint was wearing on the edges of the boards, and that means any film application will just peel off if located there.

 

I recall from my tractor restoration practice that one of the old timers told me to bump up the hardener content when painting the bottom half of the tractor, to increase abrasion resistance.  This helped on the cast iron, but sheet metal paint would chip rather than wear off.

 

Looking at the rims on the '48, I have been impressed with my budget approach to cleaning them up back in '99.  I had the rims sand blasted and cleaned per the primer instructions, then applied Rustoleum rattlecan primer and semi-gloss black.  Twenty years of being outside, and these rims still clean up decent...there's a few nicks, scrapes, and surface rust spots on them, but a thorough cleaning and rattlecan top coat could address this for a very reasonable cost.

 

So my plan for the running boards is to go the rattlecan paint + liner step pad route.  Powdercoating can be an expensive option, and if it chips or wears, touch-up can be difficult.  Paint, for the most part, can resist corrosion, but abrasion, not so much...it will take effort to maintain the running board appearance if it is used as it was intended.  The annual touch-up approach is par for the course; it allows the truck to be enjoyed not only in operation, but in maintenance :cool:

The annual touch up approach will probably be the way I go; in addition to trying to use a cloth of some type when getting in and out, to minimize the wear and tear 

 

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My grandfather had polio when he was a child so stepping over his car running board wasn’t an option for him. He cut out a square piece of rubber backed carpet, punched a hole in the edge of it, and tied a piece of cord to it. He would lay the carpet on the running board before he got in. After he was in and seated, he would pull up the piece of carpet with the cord. Before he got out he would just drop the piece of carpet onto the running board before climbing out. It may be a little more challenging dropping the carpet onto a truck running board since it’s further down than a car, but you could probably use the cord to lower it into place. 

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I painted my 4 tonner in 1985... .I didn't worry much about the running board paint after a couple years.

The drivers running board has held up pretty well.

I don't grind muddy shoes on the boards.

IMG_3881.JPG

IMG_3883.JPG

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I painted portions of my Power Wagon's running boards with stuff called Wing Walk.  It is used on planes, on those areas where pilots and maintainers have to walk.  I masked off the areas where I didn't want it and brushed it onto the unmasked areas, and it has really held up well.  I probably scuffed the underlying paint before applying it, but I dont recall for sure now.  I did that in 1993 or 94 and it still looks good.  It has a grittiness to it, so you won't slip, and I think it looks good as an accent to the surrounding paint, but if complete originality is what you are looking for, then it won't fit the bill.

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I use mine daily.......and I almost always step on the running board. It is what they are for.

Stop fretting over normal wear and tear and use your trucks like they were meant to be used. (You car show guys just crack me up)

I sprayed mine with a black bedliner product to help reduce slipping. Guess what it works....and I bet if it were around back then Dodge would have used it on our "Job Rated" trucks.

These are Trucks...not cream puffs.

Jeff

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My son's friend just bought a brand new 2019 Chevy 1/2 ton.

My son got in and was promptly berated by his friend for stepping on the door sill.

The next time he picked my son up, there was green painter's tape covering the rubber door sill.

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19 hours ago, Jeff Balazs said:

I use mine daily.......and I almost always step on the running board. It is what they are for.

Stop fretting over normal wear and tear and use your trucks like they were meant to be used. (You car show guys just crack me up)

I sprayed mine with a black bedliner product to help reduce slipping. Guess what it works....and I bet if it were around back then Dodge would have used it on our "Job Rated" trucks.

These are Trucks...not cream puffs.

Jeff

Running boards are one of those parts that are hard to avoid using and about twice as hard to keep looking nice. I'd just use them and try not to worry about it. Its part of what makes a truck a truck. The good thing is , if it gets to the point where it really.... really bugs you, running boards are easy panels to remove. You can always take them off and give them a good going over and a fresh coat of paint.Put em back on and in no time your good to go. 

                              John 

Edited by John Rogers
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On 1/26/2019 at 2:09 PM, Matt Wilson said:

I painted portions of my Power Wagon's running boards with stuff called Wing Walk.  It is used on planes, on those areas where pilots and maintainers have to walk.  I masked off the areas where I didn't want it and brushed it onto the unmasked areas, and it has really held up well.  I probably scuffed the underlying paint before applying it, but I dont recall for sure now.  I did that in 1993 or 94 and it still looks good.  It has a grittiness to it, so you won't slip, and I think it looks good as an accent to the surrounding paint, but if complete originality is what you are looking for, then it won't fit the bill.

In the Navair....Naval Aviation we called it walkway compound and it was the precurser to commercial bed liner

Look at the black strip on the wing near the fuselage, fuel probe, and the tail fins of the drop tank, it is basically a real gritty bed liner....so much of it got stolen by sailors in the late 70s and early 80s to protect pickup beds it spawned a niche in the aftermarket for trucks....lol.

TA-4J_Orange-00.jpg

Slang word for it was non skid, we thinned it with MEK or Naptha Alphatic......nasty stuff along with the Imron we were spraying, suprised I can still breathe with all those ISOs in the air.

Edited by Frank Elder
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Running Boards:

Epoxy primer (high resin, very tough, Urethane primers are softer, great for shaping body panels)

Single stage color (tougher than 2 stage)

Hardener (additive, help resists impact failures)

 

Same thing I do for Door Jams/Frame and Rims.

Body panels and interiors panels I use 2 Stage (base coat/clear coat)

 

Epoxy primers are used as sealers mostly. They are high in resin (tough) and usually are the first coat over bare steel. Hard to shape and hard to sand smoothly 

Etching primers are different. Mostly used if you can't clean or sand the surface very well (tough spots to reach) the acid in it will "sand" and seal the surface with a thin primer coating 

Urethane primers (surfacer) are soft in nature and can be sanded easily ie "shape" a panel. A few coats are used so you can sand out surface imperfections.

Epoxy isn't easily sanded and is used to seal the final "shaped" Urethane primer just before the color goes on. 

 

Its important to note that a lot of paint companies have spent a fair amount of time developing hybrid primers that act as both a sealer and a shaping primer.

I still prefer the two to be separate, but I do like DTM 2004.....its a hybrid that has epoxy and acrylic polymers.

 

This is of course just tip of the ice berg....a general over view. Each paint company has its own mixing approach, additives etc., but these are just some of the basic ideas.

 

Your running boards may have only been painted as you would a body panel. No bueno.

 

48D  

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17 hours ago, Jeff Balazs said:

I use mine daily.......and I almost always step on the running board. It is what they are for.

Stop fretting over normal wear and tear and use your trucks like they were meant to be used. (You car show guys just crack me up)

I sprayed mine with a black bedliner product to help reduce slipping. Guess what it works....and I bet if it were around back then Dodge would have used it on our "Job Rated" trucks.

These are Trucks...not cream puffs.

Jeff

 

Jeff, just as I always say to others: your truck, your rules.  But don't bag on those of us who have a vehicle we don't use for every day.  Some have a bit more history to us personally then something we picked up and fixed up.  I ask you to please respect other's use of their vehicles.  Don't tell others how to live their lives or use their vehicles...not very kind to do so.  I may not like rat rods and will kid with people about "crap rods" but if that's what they want to do, that is THEIR choice.  Your truck isn't restoration, you wouldn't want to drive a resto as a daily driver/user, just not safe enough to do so in today's world.  So if one CHOOSES to do a resto, don't get upset and bag on them that they want to keep it nice.

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