New Body - Prep for Paint

[fishinman78]

The new to me 76 has a fair amount of rust and I am considering a body replacement. I have an idea on what it will take to repair my tub and paint, but I am curious about a new body.

For those of you that have purchased and installed a new body on your Bronco, how much time was spent doing body work and prep to get it ready for paint??

 

[BruiserOutdoors]

The new to me 76 has a fair amount of rust and I am considering a body replacement. I have an idea on what it will take to repair my tub and paint, but I am curious about a new body.

For those of you that have purchased and installed a new body on your Bronco, how much time was spent doing body work and prep to get it ready for paint??

Chad, I am curious as well. Sad to hear the original paint and patina might not be able to be saved . I think that one is worth the TLC to preserve it!!

I have spent nearly the same cost to get my original tub up to my standards, I just about could have ordered a new tub. Some of the work had to be redone but still, my tub was nearly rust free when I started. The little stuff adds up!!

Majority of the big ticket items I had done.

- replaced both floorboards + tunnel (twice)
- replaced both inner front fenders
- replaced quarter panel and corner
- raptor lined inside and out.

no A or B pillar work. no apron work.

 

[Colo77Bronco]

I am about to order a new body and learned that the coating/paint all of the components of the body kits come with MUST be removed prior to prep for paint. Like down to the metal then primed. The factory coating that looks like primer is to protect it from rust but are not paintable as is even with sanding.

 

[purduerider]

How much was it gonna cost you to fix what you have? I have priced out new tubs and it ranges from $16k to $20k with a year lead time. Any better options? I’m in the same position. I don’t know if I should now repair my existing tub bc it takes so long.

 

[Allfab]

We are based in Southern California, our lead/turnaround time for a new Bronco body is roughly around 4-6 weeks. If you're interested let us know. Thanks

 

[Colo77Bronco]

My question is how much body work is necessary to get a decent, not show worthy, result. The factory did not do a bunch of panel prep, blocking, etc. What if you just got good panel alignment, good surface prep and primer and a good paint job without doing a ton of blocking to make it perfect?

 

[jeffncs]

My question is how much body work is necessary to get a decent, not show worthy, result. The factory did not do a bunch of panel prep, blocking, etc. What if you just got good panel alignment, good surface prep and primer and a good paint job without doing a ton of blocking to make it perfect?

I suggest you post pics of the rust areas and the others which you think need replacement. That’ll help us to offer some guidance.

Personally, I prefer saving the original body when it makes sense. That equates to grinding, cutting, fitting and lots of welding.

Also adding my $.02 - if you’re going to cut corners on the body prep, don’t spend $15k+ on a paint job. You’re throwing money away by not getting the body perfect. Instead, find a guy that shoots cars on the side, go to Maaco or shoot it yourself.

 

[Colo77Bronco]

I have no rust or problems. It is a brand new complete body from Rust Belt Broncos. It is already seam sealed and in epoxy. Trying to decide how much effort to put into making each panel perfect knowing it will be my daily driver and, off the factory line they did no extra panel prep and I think they looked great. Yes I know I will tweak panel alignment and such but I am debating on how much the extra hours of blocking, mud, sanding, blocking, mud and sanding will be worth it.

 

[Wild horse 75]

I have no rust or problems. It is a brand new complete body from Rust Belt Broncos. It is already seam sealed and in epoxy. Trying to decide how much effort to put into making each panel perfect knowing it will be my daily driver and, off the factory line they did no extra panel prep and I think they looked great. Yes I know I will tweak panel alignment and such but I am debating on how much the extra hours of blocking, mud, sanding, blocking, mud and sanding will be worth it.

That’s gonna be a personal decision. If you don’t have perfectly straight panels with perfect fitment are you going to look at it everyday and wish it looked better? Or do you not really care if it‘s not perfect so it can get some dings and scratches with use? Also the darker the colour you choose will help dictate how much time is spent in blocking everything straight. A darker colour is going to show more imperfections than a light colour.

 

[Colo77Bronco]

Tough decisions. With perfection every little ding is so disappointing and I want to use it. Probably will go for perfection and eventually get over the dings.

 

[markatherton]

From my experience, new bodies are not the end all be all... We have spent just as much time and money making a new body correct as a rusty one...plus add in the cost of the new one...

 

[Torkman66]

Put on three coats of high build, dry block with 180 220 320. Wet block with 400. That can all be done in about 5 work days if all you’re doing is blocking. Then paint it with a single stage paint. It won’t be perfect but will still be a beautiful body you will be very proud of.

 

[Gupster88]

Not to mention the time to correct gapping and aligning body panels after you set it on your frame from the cart. Learned the hard way that you are much better served by doing all that after your body is installed on your frame and not on the cart. .

 

[Colo77Bronco]

Not to mention the time to correct gapping and aligning body panels after you set it on your frame from the cart. Learned the hard way that you are much better served by doing all that after your body is installed on your frame and not on the cart. .

On the cart, they did all the panel alignment and gapping so I was debating installing my family cage while on the cart to brace it where I know it is perfect then shim it when I move it to my frame so the frame is shimmed to fit the body rather than vise-versa. Would you recommend transferring the body firs and starting over with panel alignment then install the cage?

 

[Wild horse 75]

On the cart, they did all the panel alignment and gapping so I was debating installing my family cage while on the cart to brace it where I know it is perfect then shim it when I move it to my frame so the frame is shimmed to fit the body rather than vise-versa. Would you recommend transferring the body firs and starting over with panel alignment then install the cage?

I would mount it on your frame supported by tires not stands on the frame. Then you can shim it back into alignment. And make sure you put whatever body lift you’re going to use in

 

[jamesroney]

On the cart, they did all the panel alignment and gapping so I was debating installing my family cage while on the cart to brace it where I know it is perfect then shim it when I move it to my frame so the frame is shimmed to fit the body rather than vise-versa. Would you recommend transferring the body firs and starting over with panel alignment then install the cage?

Why do you think that the cart is "perfect?"

1. You want your tub on your frame with your mounts as soon as possible. And there shouldn't be a shim anywhere on an Early Bronco. (maybe between the hood and the cowl...but other than that, Bronco's don't come with shims. @Wild horse 75 is giving you some great advice here.

2. There is no reason to build a Bronco and apply paint to it without performing appropriate surface preparation. That includes block sanding. I have never once heard anyone say that they wish they had spent less time getting their Bronco straight. Paint is an excellent magnifying glass. Every wave, or imperfection is amplified once you put shiny paint on it. It only takes a few more hours to get it right. If you don't block it, you will regret it. (and yeah, I've put countless hours of body work into my Bronco and my first camping trip I striped it with tree branches. But somehow it looks better to have trail damage over good body work.)

3. Who is telling you that you have to strip the body down to bare metal? NO ONE has sufficient intelligence or information to make such a claim. It is certain that a suitable surface can be achieved without removing the Chinese primer. I can also guarantee you that every painter will tell you something different. Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) is the basis for most automotive paint shop myths and legends. As soon as someone tells you that there is only one way to do something...it should set off red flags. There are always MANY best solutions. What normally happens is that someone will learn a method that works, and then they will promote it as if it were the only method that works. Then when you challenge them, it becomes: "Well, that's the method that works for me, and that's the only way that I will do it..." Arrogance and FUD is a very expensive combination.

 

[Colo77Bronco]

I would mount it on your frame supported by tires not stands on the frame. Then you can shim it back into alignment. And make sure you put whatever body lift you’re going to use in

My issues is that this is a complete fabrication build. I have 1 ton full width axles from 2008 Super Duty and a frame. Going Coyote w/10r80 so have 2" body lift and need to mount the body on the frame to start mocking up the 3 link front and 4 link rear once the body is mounted and we decide where to put the gorilla warflares to stretch the wheel base a bit. Probably a few inches forward in front and back in the rear. Then, once that is all mocked up, I can have the body sit on the frame on tires. I hoped I could stiffen the body well enough with my cage to be able to move it and shim less later. Amazing how these things get complicated huh?

 

[Wild horse 75]

The reason I said to have it sitting on the tires is cause the frame will flex differently sitting on its suspension with weight than sitting on stands. I don’t know if I’d worry too much about alignment just yet. Sounds like you’ve got a little ways to go still. Putting the body on the frame right now will give you the dimensions you need to build your links. If the body isn’t perfect right now it won’t really matter.

 

[stupidboy]

My issues is that this is a complete fabrication build. I have 1 ton full width axles from 2008 Super Duty and a frame. Going Coyote w/10r80 so have 2" body lift and need to mount the body on the frame to start mocking up the 3 link front and 4 link rear once the body is mounted and we decide where to put the gorilla warflares to stretch the wheel base a bit. Probably a few inches forward in front and back in the rear. Then, once that is all mocked up, I can have the body sit on the frame on tires. I hoped I could stiffen the body well enough with my cage wo be able to move it and shim less later. Amazing how these things get compicated huh?

This is what I like to refer to as the snowball effect.

 

[TheLimeRanger]

if it were me, id go to a one stop shop. the last thing you want is a body shop blaming the builder of the body, and then the builder pointing the finger back at the body shop. theres alot of work that goes into getting it right, you dont need any surprises along the way