Blue Ribbon 4x4 Build Thread

Seriously... I wish Geno was closer.
Have a safe drive!

 

Dude I’m wiped out. No more headlights!

 

Installed some Diode Dynamics SS3 Sports. So much better that the POS Spyders.

 

Score!! I built some Barcelona Red retrofit headlights for a friend a while back, she had some Mammoth Guards sitting around that she won in a raffle and handed these over!! Gotta strip em, paint, and make some rears.

 

Painted these Mammoth Guards cobalt blue and bedliner rattle can. Couple days and they’ll get installed.

 

Mammoth guards installed. These were kind of a pain, only because I had the wrong installation hardware. Got a compliment first time out to Autozone to get some bumper pins.

 

Looks good!

 

Thanks!!

 

Painted the fairlead the same color as my calipers, so no more chrome, haha. Used self etching primer and engine enamel.

 

Yanked the rear sway bar off the truck and gonna freshen her up. Maybe the same blue as the front accents? Maybe the same current color? I’ll sleep on it, but black hardware is a must.

 

Getting that hardware prepped. Hit everything with a red Scotch bright pad and got the self etching primer down.

 

I went with repainting the existing color, Rustoleum Cobalt Blue Metallic. The hardware is Rustoleum Professional flat black, so I can touch it up after installation.
After pulling off the bar, I noticed the old paint came off at the mounting points. So did a lot of the red powder coat in a bunch of areas. The bar is really beat up from rocks and such. I was going to use 2K clear on the bar, but decided on Rustoleum 2X clear. It’s just going to get beat up again, and the last time I painted this it had Rustoleum clear, which in the exposed areas lasted just as long as the TRD red powdercoat.

 

That looks clean.

 

Thanks!

 

Glossed up. Hardware painted. I’ll put her on tomorrow.

 

That looks awesome. So random question, how much of the paint work you do come from a spray can? It all looks good, didn't think it all was done that way. A testament to your work. It also provides hope for someone like me, who wants to ball on a budget

 

Thanks Tom! Most of my work comes from a spray can. If it saves me money, I use a sprayer. The 2K clear comes in spray cans for about $25. But I can spray it from a sprayer and pay $50 for a quart, which lasts so much longer and is good for multiple spray sessions. I wanna ball on a budget too! I save cash by finding paint that is super close to my color code and using it in places that isn’t going to be easily visible (sway bar). This paint is $5, and is super close to my Blue Ribbon color, when I buy a color matched can, it’s about $35. I’m not rollin in dough, so I gotta save cash everywhere possible.

 

Ok! Installed a day early, everything is dry, so why wait?!

 

Looks really good with the fresh coat of paint and the black hardware

 

This is awesome. I'll end up doing black on the hardware, not sure about the sway bar yet. I'm not the biggest fan of red, but I can deal with a splash of red here and there I suppose. I'll justify it by saying its my college colorway lol. Great work as usual!

 

Thanks Robert!!

Thanks Tom! Everyone has red. Dare to be different!

 

I like your little office/ shop/ man cave

 

Thanks! It’s my woodshop, configured in the smallest space available, but it’s also my hideaway.

 

Katzkin leather with blue stitching got installed today. Wife is a helluva gift giver! I did not install these myself, we had the upholstery shop do it.

 

Fantastic look for your truck!

 

Thanks Robert!! Rated PG!

 

Working on the Mammoth Guards. The ones I have don’t have the upper piece. It does look like something is missing. So I fabbed some up from plexiglass. I cut some cardboard for templates, then cut out the plexiglass. Then while holding the pieces in place, I heated them with a heat gun to form them in place. Then I put the first coat of blue and I’ll decide what the bedliner spray design will be.
I also got a big enough piece of plexiglass to do the rears. In time.

 

Got the stripes going on the upper guards. Pretty happy with how they turned out. I’ll see if I can fab up the rears tomorrow.