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Good idea. I'm contemplating buying a new car for the wife before prices go up.

That's kind of like my 12,500 mile trip to Jim Carters and Mar-K. But a bit shorter. The stuff I picked up was stored for a long time before it got installed as well.

Shame about the weather . It still sounds like Y'all had a good day. "ROAD TRIP"

2/23/25: Being an “AD Addict”, I couldn’t stay away from my ‘52 for four months without some connection to my project, so I bought my steering wheel down for a repaint. The original top coat on the refurbished wheel fours years ago was Rust-Oleum Appliance epoxy paint and it chipped really easily. After taking a closer look at the affected areas, the paint chipped off of the primer, leaving the primer intact. Prior to applying the appliance epoxy, I sanded the primer down with 320 and cleaned it with mineral sprits, so I suspect the Rust-oleum appliance epoxy enamel isn’t flexible enough. I decided that a 2k epoxy should be better at resisting chipping.

I researched and called an autobody supply shop in Florence, SC over an hours drive away to make sure they did have gloss black in a 2k spray paint and they assured me they did. Upon arrival and asking for this 2k paint, the gentlemen apologized for running out of 2k spray cans but said he could have them the next day. He told me about some other options and one that he recommended. SEM Cover Coat gloss black, was formulated specifically for interior plastic trim and was flexible. Disappointed but having no desire to repeat this trip the next day, I decided to give it a try.

I spent a couple hours sanding down the steering wheel with 180 grit sandpaper. Since the chips didn’t go past the top coat, I didn’t have to use any filler. However getting all of the old finish off down to the primer to give the top coat the best chance of not chipping was not easy. I followed it with 320 to eliminate the 180 sanding marks. I had to wait for a day that was warm enough to paint and after reading the can, (should have done that sooner), it suggested using an adhesion promoter. A local trip to a hardware store solved that issue quickly.

I applied 3 coats as instructed, then started spraying the top coat. It started a to react immediately. I stopped spraying, let it dry overnight and started the sanding process all over “AGAIN”. I found that Scotchbright and alcohol removed the plastic paint and the adhesion promoter quickly. I applied three coats of high build primer, and ordered high gloss black 2k spray paint on line.

The 2k epoxy arrived two days later but the weather wouldn’t cooperate so I waited a few days to get a 60° day. Another round of sanding with 320 grit and a wipe down with mineral sprits and the wheel was ready for paint.

The 2k epoxy in a spray can didn’t disappoint. I applied three coats which went on pretty smooth. I did spot one small run which I’ll sand and compound out in a few days. Although it’s been a bit trying, I’m very happy with the results.

9/03/25: It's been a long while since I've updated anyone on the truck project, and for good reason! This summer, and really the first half of the year, proved to be an unexpected series of... well, life happening.

The most recent curveball was my wife's knee replacement about six weeks ago. Since then and several months before, I've been on full-time duty as chief cook, bottle washer, shopper, housekeeper, laundry attendant, and nursemaid. It's been a busy but necessary role, one that I gladly fulfill but forcing the project to take a complete back seat.

Prior to that, the first half of the year was completely consumed by selling our second home in South Carolina. This involved everything from preparing the house for sale, navigating the selling process, clearing it out, and then transporting the items we wanted to keep back home, while finding new homes for everything else we couldn't take. It was a massive undertaking that pretty much occupied all my spare time and energy.

But, I'm finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel and I'm itching to get back to the truck. My immediate goal is to get the cab painted before the really cold weather sets in. To do that, I'm planning to set up a temporary paint booth in the garage to extend my painting season.

That plan hit a snag initially because the garage had become the repository for all the belongings and family heirlooms we passed down to the kids and grandkids. After several three-hour trips downstate, I'm thrilled to report that the last of those items have finally left the garage! However, there's still a massive cleanup ahead – think overspray and sanding/grinding dust everywhere from bodywork last fall. My strategy is to erect a temporary party tent just outside the garage. This will allow me to do the final block sanding and apply the epoxy seal coat outdoors while I tackle the big cleanup inside and set up the temporary paint booth.

On the equipment front, my trusty old Sears compressor, which has served me faithfully since 1977, just isn't up for the task of modern paint application. With the cost of paint these days, I'm not taking any chances, so a new, more capable compressor is definitely on the shopping list.

Then there's the paint itself. We settled on Washington Blue, but finding a jobber who can mix it has been incredibly challenging. I did a ton of research and gathered a lot of paint codes from different manufacturers, but most have gone by the wayside due to new low VOC regulations. It was recommended that a 1988 Isuzu Cavalier blue was a close match. My local auto body supply mixed up a spray can for me to do a spray out, but it turned out way too dark – not what we envisioned at all.

Today, however, I had a breakthrough! I took a trip to Albany and found an auto body supplier who was able to use the original color code and mixed up a 4-ounce sample. The sample looked really promising, so I had him put it into a 2K spray can so I can do a proper spray out. The catch with 2K, as you know, is that once you release the activator, you only have about an 8-hour pot life.

Rather than just doing a small spray out and effectively 'wasting' $35 worth of paint, my plan is to paint my dash and whatever else I can get to in the interior with this sample. Even if it doesn't turn out to be the exact final color, it will still act as an excellent base coat, meaning less paint will be needed later, and it won't go to waste.

So, that's where things stand! It feels good to finally be making tangible plans again. I'm really looking forward to getting some significant progress done before the snow flies. I'll keep you posted as things develop!

Cooler weather is coming and I hope to open the garage door and get a breeze through the garage all day. Only problem seems that cooler fall weather heads right into winter pretty quick. My neighbor had a knee replacement earlier this year and she is back to riding bikes and hiking. She said it was the best thing she's done. Hope your wife is getting more mobile every day.

She is but we still have a ways to go. Total rehabilitation for total knee replacement is about six months. She just started using a cane which make her much more mobile that the walker. Still amazing what Doctors can do these days. She walked out of the surgery center (with the aide of a walker) a few hours after the 35 minute operation.

9/08/25: Good news! I finally got some dedicated time to work on the truck, tackling a bunch of loose ends I needed to wrap up before I can even think about spraying the interior. It felt great to make some solid progress.

First up was the battery box cover. After replacing the floor, the vertical lip was just a hair too wide, preventing it from latching properly. An easy fix with the die grinder and a cutoff wheel, and now it snugs down perfectly.

Then I moved on to the transmission cover. Of course, with the new floor in, the hold-down screw holes were completely covered. The passenger side was straightforward – easy enough to run a drill up through the existing holes on the support bracket. But the driver's side was another story. My newly installed power master cylinder was right in the way, meaning I had to try and locate and drill those holes from the top. As you can imagine, lining them up was a real challenge. Two of them were thankfully right on target, but the third was way off. A bit of persuasion with the die grinder and a burr got it aligned.

To top it off, all three front and two back holes that would secure the cover needed to be drilled due to the new floor. I located them using the cover and a drill centering punch and used the screws to cut their own threads.

One unexpected snag I hit was with the gaskets I bought specifically for this cover. They're just thin tar paper and the sealing area on the cover is indented about a quarter inch, so they won't seal a thing. I'll need to swap them out for a proper foam gasket, probably around 5/16” thick. Should be an easy fix with some foam weather stripping.

Next, I got the new battery box bottom welded in place by plug welding, using the old rivet holes in the battery box brackets.

I also managed to get the bottom 8 inches of that windless channel bottom installed – you know, the piece I cut off when I replaced the lower inner cowl. Drilled a few holes and plug welded it onto the inner cowl – feels good to have that back in.

The very last loose end of the day was installing the final screw to keep that access cover closed – the one I fabricated for the brake master cylinder. Another small but satisfying detail.

All in all, a productive two days getting a lot of those fiddly bits sorted. Slowly but surely, it's coming together for paint! I'll keep you updated.

Sounds like good progress. 👍

Your mention of the battery box cover reminded me that I still need to find the one I bought from a ‘Bolter way back when. It’s eluded previous searches so far and I cut a piece of plywood to cover the hole last year. It’s hiding somewhere in my garage. 🥴

Looks good nice job on the retainer channel I saved the old ones and they were difficult to straighten and weld back on.

Even the new ones were difficult to bend without kinking. I purposely didn’t run the channel down to the floor as I believed it would have kinked way too much preventing the windless from sliding in.

Making good progress Phil!
Stay at it!