Tailgate Painting Job.

[Fernando Mendes]

Yesterday I began to withdraw the tailgate.I broke one screw(left/down side).I will remove all the paint.

[SteveMelchiorre]

While you have the hinges off be sure to put follow this guide.

http://dodgepilothouseclub.org/know/bed/tailgate_hinges.htm

Makes a world of difference.

Steve...

[JBNeal]

I have not tried to install the bushings yet for that modification, so I don't know how tight a fit they are in the tailgate. I was thinking that if the bushings were a loose fit, that the tailgate pivot should be flattened a little bit so the bushing has to be driven into place. This way the tailgate clamps down on the bushing to keep it from rattlin' off the shaft.

(rattlin' off the shaft...sounds like the name of a Lynyrd Skynard album)

[Fernando Mendes]

Yes Steve.It is a good idea,because I noticed the original is very very primitive mechanism.I will think and try to do this idea too.I Liked very much.Thanks.*PS:It is because I like and love this PILOTHOUSE forum.Always helping the friends.Congratulations

[Fernando Mendes]

Today more pics showing the steps of the paints and all paint left side tailgate removed.

[tinlizzy]

I don't recall reading any of the past posts that suggested how to repair the rolled tube section of the tailgate. Has anyone ever tried to replace this section? Mine has rusted through in several places. You can buy new tailgates if you are well indowed with surplus cash but mine will have to settle for a repair providing I can come up with something to replace the rusted out sections.

[Young Ed]

Ive heard of people driving some gas pipe in there to straighten bent ones. I wonder if you could do that and then weld the holes shut

[Dave72dt]

I've replaced both upper and bottom rolled sections on a Ford tailgate several years ago. Tailgate had been used as a bumper. Removing the rolled sections allowed me to strighten the flat main section first and with some tubing and creative work with a brake and sheet steel made a good looking tailgate once again. There were no replacement tailgates available for this particular truck so I had to think out of the box to solve the problem.

Steel is steel and the fabrication is the same no matter what brand it goes on.

[JBNeal]

WOW that had a lot of paint on it...then again, maybe the extra paint was enough weight for some added traction.

The '49 tailgate is banged up & warped purty bad, but the 'repairs' that were done used angle iron & gorilla welds. As much work as it will take to get that back into shape, I'm tossin' back & forth on the idea of getting one of those Mar-K tail gates and scabbing on the script...but that's on down the road aways, I gotta fix the steering box first.

The '48 is a different story...it'll just need a few dents knocked out and straightened. But I'm gonna do the bushing installation on both of them.

[JoelOkie]

I don't recall reading any of the past posts that suggested how to repair the rolled tube section of the tailgate. Has anyone ever tried to replace this section? Mine has rusted through in several places. You can buy new tailgates if you are well indowed with surplus cash but mine will have to settle for a repair providing I can come up with something to replace the rusted out sections.

I ended up welding a new tubing on my gate. (1 1/4 inch I am thinking) Joel

[Fernando Mendes]

Tailgate had been used as a bumper.

It is a fact!

[grey beard]

My tailgate was in very rough shape. I had to lay it on my driveway and drive over it to get the bow out of it. After it was sand blasted, the metal was missing completely for the first foot on each side where the gate skin meets the tube for the hinges.

We drove a piece of 3/4-inch steel pipe inside the original tube on the bottom of the tailgate, and then mig welded it into the gate skin. This piece of pipe has to be short enough that when it is centered, you still have space for your hinges to fit into the tube.

After all the welding was finished, I repaired it roughly using DuraGlass fiberglass body filler, since it is waterproof. Once that was worked down, I finished it off using conventional body filler. kI think all told, I spent over a week just on this one panel, before I started to paint it.

It is now stronger than it was when new, IMHO.

Good Luck

[Fernando Mendes]

Head bolt mark(CIQ?) on tailgate.

[Fernando Mendes]

Universal Red Primer preparing to the job.

[Fernando Mendes]

Applied the red universal primer.

[Fernando Mendes]

Don't know which name is of this tool.Here we call it "MACHO":o

[Dave72dt]

That tool would be called a "tap".