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Grill to fender assembly process?

borg

Jr. Member
Joined
Feb 22, 2007
Messages
93
I am starting to put all the pieces back together for a final tweaking before taking it all apart again for paint. Right now I'm wrestling with getting the grill and fenders back together. The grill and right fender are stock, the left fender is an aftermarket piece I picked up at a local swap meet. Needless to say the aftermarket fender needs some lovin' to fit...

Not much space to work in there, I wonder if pulling all 3 sections off and massaging them on the bench works better than on the truck? I'm thinking if it works I could do my final paint with the assembly already assembled and not risk scratching things as they go back together.

Is this a reasonable plan or is there a hidden issue I need to know about?

Steve
 

JohnJohn

Bronco Guru
Joined
May 6, 2005
Messages
2,157
Loc.
Richmond
I would get them to fit on the truck, then drill alignment holes so you can put them back the same way after paint.
This is what I did and it worked well for me. I also drilled alignment holes in the door hinges because they take the most time to align.

If you are going to all this effort you may as well have all the areas painted that can't be painted when these parts are together.

What about the aftermarket fender is not working for you?

Now is the time to weld, grind, and hammer it to what you like.
 
OP
OP
B

borg

Jr. Member
Joined
Feb 22, 2007
Messages
93
I pulled the whole assembly forward by removing the door pillar bolts and popping the fender flanges around the pillars, that way everything is supported on the inner fenders. This solved part of the problem. I am going to go looking for better u-nuts, the ones I picked up at ace hardware are a bit too big for the space allowed by the sheet metal.

The fender is close, most of it matches the grill's curves with the exception of the "high point" next to the hood. You're right, now is the time for hammer work. Also the flange that has the bolt holes into the inner fender may not be quite right, I 'm going to get the grill/fender alignment fixed up first and then work on the hood/fender gaps. I think it might be that the flange is spot welded on a bit high, but I won't know until I get the parts all lined up. Not much worse than trying to get the rockers to fit, there's just not much space in there to work the wrenches.

Because it is such a PITA to work in there I was thinking that once I got it all lined up I'd take it apart one more time to clean and seal the metal flanges (plus undercoat on the insides of the fenders and grill) then re-assemble with seam sealer in the joint. That way all of my final sanding work could be done with everything lined up.

The front corner is so visible on these trucks, it really needs to be "just right".

Steve
 
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