Silverado #2 😎

[Backlash]

And this is looking up on the passenger's side. Again, nothing anywhere close to the lock assembly.

After staring at this mess for a bit, I figured the best solution would be to try and create some type of bracket that the lock could actually latch onto when turned in the direction of the bedside.

 

[Backlash]

I had a piece of 1" aluminum angle and managed to conjure up an idea that I think (Hope!), may work.

I cut this down to size and fit it up against the bedside in the area where the bedcover locks are located. A few rough cuts, a quick pass with the grinder and voila'!

It looked as though this could work. Once I got this piece to fit, I knocked out a mirror image bracket for the passenger side. (I'm simply holding this in place in the above photo.)

 

[Backlash]

I spent some time going over these brackets with a random orbit sander and 120 grit followed by 220 grit. I knocked down the rough edges and rounded out the corners to minimize the chances that I'll skewer myself on these.

Here are the finished brackets.

Off to the store to grab some hardware to install these. That's it for now!

As always, thank you for checking in and following along! Have a wonderful evening!

 

[sonicss31]

Just a suggestion, how about shooting the brackets with some rattle can clear coat? Might keep them looking good for some time?

 

[Backlash]

Just a suggestion, how about shooting the brackets with some rattle can clear coat? Might keep them looking good for some time?

Thank you Sonic for the input! I'm not 100% sure these are going to work in the current configuration. I still need to install them and check to make sure they'll do the job. If they do, I may take them back out once I decide on what type of finish to put on them. I have an illness and a sickness and seem to always find ways to make my life more difficult than it needs to be. I like shiny things.

I have a coating specialist nearby and I've had clear powder coat applied to polished finishes on other projects. The end results are fantastic, albeit, not very shiny. I may go that route later on down the road.

 

[Backlash]

Good evening!

I was able to wrap this little project up and now have an actual locking tonneau cover!

I simply taped my homemade brackets up against the bedside and checked the clearance with the arm of the lock assembly. I also made certain the brackets were relatively flush. I couldn't recess them too deep down inside the bed or else the cam on the lock wouldn't swing underneath the lip of the bracket.

I was able to line up the bracket and drilled mounting holes using the same location where the struts are attached. That way I didn't add any unnecessary holes in the bed rails. I knew the fasteners would be visible, but I did my best to make them look "OK."

Stainless hardware of course.

 

[Backlash]

I installed both brackets and reattached the lift struts for the cover. I closed it and double-checked my work. So far so good!

And just like that, this little project is completed.

All in all, I'm pretty happy with the end results. These brackets aren't perfect, but they should work just fine, especially considering I whipped them up using some scrap aluminum.

Now, what else can I get myself into.....

 

[Backlash]

Good evening!

Well, that didn't last long.

I opened up the bed of the truck and half of one of the lock assemblies was laying in the bed.

I'm sure glad I spent the time and money getting new keys made for these suckers.

Walking out the door so I'll have to deal with this nonsense later. I just found this humorous and thought I'd share.

 

[Cooter01]

I was going to comment man need to polish up the locks to match the bracket with whipped up lol

Making great progress!

 

[Backlash]

I was going to comment man need to polish up the locks to match the bracket with whipped up lol

Making great progress!

Thank you for the motivation @Cooter01

I've been working on the exterior of the tonneau cover and I've been trying to fix the million little nicks in the paint. I can only explain it like this. It looks like someone parked this truck under an oak tree where it sat for some time. It looks like acorns fell onto the cover, nicking the paint when they landed. That's probably not what happened, but that's what it looks like. So, I decided to work on the finish of the cover which has taken forever and a day.

I started this lengthy process by using a DupliColor Fix All color-matched touch-up paint. I dabbed a small amount of the red paint into each of the tiny craters. I tried not to "Overdo it," and did my best to fill them level with the surface. After these cured for about a week, I began the laborious process of sanding down the filled craters. I started with 1,000 then 1,500 grit.

Here is a close-up showing a filled craters in relation to the surrounding painted surface.

Once I sanded majority of the filled areas down, I started polishing out the surface using a polisher and various polishing compounds. I have a lot left to do, but so far, the results are decent. While the color isn't an exact match, it looks a helluva lot better than the bleach white speck that I filled. Once I finish, I'll add some pictures to show the final results.

 

[Backlash]

I've been bouncing back and forth with how to "Outfit" this truck to suit our needs. I've tossed around the idea of replacing the tonneau cover with a shell, but I'm not convinced I want to pull the trigger on one just yet. I like the way this truck looks the way it sits, and I like that the tonneau cover can now be secured. Anything in the bed should remain safe and dry.

We have a number of trips planned in the future and our goal is to take some things along with us. Majority of our gear can be secured in our trailer and in the bed of the truck. As folks with kids already know, some things just won't fit. So, that leads me down this new path of "How can I solve these issues?"

Years ago, I was involved with a small group of cyclists that @Skinny Tire AH might be able to relate to. I was, and never will be, at the level he is. That being said, I was putting mileage in on a daily basis with longer rides scheduled during the weekends. I enjoy cycling and still have a classic road bike, but I haven't been as active as I once was.

During those younger years, I became affiliated with Thule and have been an avid fan ever since. Needless to say, I have acquired a decent collection of Thule products including racks, cargo boxes, various carriers, miscellaneous hardware, etc. Safe to say, it's another one of my many addictions.

The plan is to now utilize the parts I already own, to conjure up a way to safely and securely transport our belongings wherever we go. Stay tuned.

 

[Backlash]

Good afternoon!

During some random sleepless nights, I ordered some hardware online because I wasn't able to find what I wanted locally. I couldn't justify spending the extra coin on "Thule" hardware, so I jumped on eBay and found what I was looking for. I slapped the "Buy now" button and waited for the parts to arrive.

The first few pieces were delivered today. My wife thinks I'm crazy because I get excited about stupid things like nuts and bolts. I guess that's why we balance each other out.

I grabbed some mounts for this rack project and sat down at the table to fondle my new purchase. The hardware is stainless with a shiny black anodized finish. I was surprised at how "Nice" everything looked. Out of the small order I received, only one bolt was defective and slipped past QC.

Well, I THOUGHT everything was going to work out smoothly. LMAO!!! Just my luck.

After asking for some recommendations from the Mrs., it was decided to trim down the hardware and avoid messing up the mounting rails. She is definitely the looks and brains of this operation!

A few passes over the grinder and a couple shots of gloss black, and I think we have some winners. I doubt anyone will ever notice these once the tracks are installed.

Now they are basking in the warm Southern California sun waiting to be installed.

On to the next part of this project......

 

[Backlash]

The goal for this part of the project is to install the brackets and Thule mounts in a "Clean" fashion, while at the same time, trying to source hardware that is both inexpensive and readily available. Essentially, my goal is to utilize more common hardware versus the one-off Thule-specific and outrageously expensive hardware.

I was able to find stainless lag bolts that should work for my intended purposes. I grabbed a handful of lag bolts, washers, lock washers and nuts, then headed home. Grand total from the local hardware store was $30.

These lag bolts will be used in the T slot on the tops of the aero load bars to mount a mid-plate to the tops of the bars. Stay with me, Ill get more in to that later.

 

[Backlash]

As you can see in the above pictures, these bolts almost fit into the slot. The issue is, the button on top of the lag bolt it too tall. The bolts won't slide into the T slot the way I had imagined. LMAO! Strike two!

No worries, back outside to the grinder.

The plan was to simply shave a small amount from the crown of each bolt, taking off about 1/16". Easy peezy!

 

[Backlash]

After some trial and error, I found the sweet spot and removed enough material from the heads of the lag bolts to allow them to slide into the track. Problem solved!

Well, as you guessed, simply grinding the heads down on these bolts wasn't good enough for me. Even though nobody will ever see this hardware, leaving the rough finish "As is" bothers me. I had a few minutes and decided to waste more of my time cleaning these up more than necessary. I mean hell, the Baldor polisher is literally steps away.

 

[Backlash]

Overall, I spent about an hour grinding these heads down and polishing this hardware up. Yes, it's COMPLETELY unnecessary and a total waste of time! But it makes me happy, so there's that!

@Brokeboatin221 already saw this nonsense and surely thinks I've lost my mind!

Overall, I'm really happy with the slow and painful progress I've made. I've been able to save a bunch of money by sourcing "Common" hardware for this project, and that should prove beneficial later on down the road.

 

[Cooter01]

Making progress! I am like you, the small things excite me aka hardware in the mail and polishing things to make em nice and shiny! I would rather tinker in the garage and make progress then sit and watch the boob tube haha. Looking good! Will be looking forward to the finished results for the tonneau cover. I never had a hard cover or camper shell, yet if you are fine with the hard tonneau cover, I would think a camper shell would be a touch more beneficial as have more height room to store things for trips.

I go back and forth on a fifth wheel trailer or not, either do a 28' bumper pull toy hauler or a 37' fifth wheel toy hauler. Be nice to buy both to have options and a roll up tonneau cover lol

 

[Brokeboatin221]

I will run those 42 coffee cans of bolts I need done… No rush, pace yourself

 

[Backlash]

Good evening!

I've been busy with work and other commitments which has prevented me from wrapping up a few small details on this truck. I filled a bunch of "Nicks" in the paint on the top of the tonneau cover and then sanded most of them down to be flush with the surface. Many spots turned out pretty nice, while others could still use a little more work.

I started with 600 grit and worked my way up to 1500 grit. All wet sanded with minimal pressure. The paint doesn't have any clear over the top, so I tried not to remove much material. The goal was to simply smooth out the filled nicks as best I could.

In the picture below, you can see one of the spots I filled. The paint isn't a perfect match, but it's better than white showing through.

 

[Backlash]

This part of the project was more of a PITA than I really wanted to deal with. For that reason, I didn't get every single nick filled and sanded smooth. This was a trial run to see what the job entailed and how much work it was going to take. Well, it took quite a bit, believe it or not. LMAO!!

Once I was at a point that I could live with, I went ahead and buffed out the surface with several different compounds, pads and polishes. I finished that up this afternoon and got a quick coat of wax on before it got dark.

It isn't perfect by any means, but I'm pretty happy with the end result! Not bad considering what I started with.

 

[Cooter01]

Looks great!! I am sure it is much easier on the eyes now with the voids filled.

 

[Backlash]

Good afternoon!

I got majority of this cover buffed out and looking good. It's got several coats of wax on it and is as smooth as my wife's ass!

Imagine her surprise when she saw me walking around the truck with a drill in my hand. Well, there is a method to my madness.

I like the look of the truck with the tonneau cover, but still may need to carry a few other larger items from time to time. I picked up these Thule rack rails some time ago, and set out to get them installed. During the last few weeks, I've been squirreling away miscellaneous hardware that would be used to install these rails. I measured and estimated and marked things up preparing for the installation. Boom, 20 holes later, I was ready to bolt these rails down.

If you look back to post #112, you can see all the bolts I ordered that I modified to fit the rails. Well, as luck would have it, they weren't long enough to go through the rails, the fiberglass skin, the core material and the glass layer on the inside of the tonneau cover.

Back to the hardware store....again.

I picked up another 20 bolts, slightly longer, and rushed home to modify those bolts in the same manner. My wife thinks I'm nuts (No pun intended!). Once I got those bolt heads all chopped down, I gave them a quick spray with gloss black Rust-Oleum and waited for them to dry. After FAR too much work, here are the end results.

Overall I'm REALLY happy with the end results! I need to finish a few little details, but these are essentially done and ready to go!

 

[Cooter01]

Can you take some pictures further away from the cover to see the freshly installed rails?

You are polishing a diamond my friend!

 

[Backlash]

Thank you for the compliments!

I've got a fairly narrow driveway, so it's a little hard to get much further back. See if these help give you a better idea.

 

[Cooter01]

That helps paint the picture! That looks sweet!

 

[Backlash]

That helps paint the picture! That looks sweet!

Thank you! I REALLY like the way cover looks and having it on helps protect whatever you might have in the bed. The previous owner didn't do too much to preserve the paint on the cover, which gave me more to work on. But that's OK, it's been fun and I don't mind.

The racks (Sorry, "Load bars" as Thule refers to them..... LMAO!), are next to be addressed. I'm starting on those and the end result should look pretty good. That's it for now, time to get to work!

As always, thank you for following along and for the feedback.

 

[Cooter01]

I like the load bars, gives it some style!

 

[Backlash]

Good evening!

I took a break from playing around with this thing and loaded up the trailer, the little lady, the kids, the dog and headed out!

We took our time cutting through the L.A. traffic and slowly worked our way west. We followed I-10 out to PCH then headed north along the coast.

 

[Backlash]

My wife made reservations at a nearby spot about 9 months ago, and it was finally time to enjoy the finer things in life. It seems like we packed everything including the kitchen sink, so this was far from camping in my book!

When we made the reservations, we picked a spot that was close to the main entrance and central to the store and other facilities. It turned out to be PERFECT for us!!

 

[Backlash]

Once we got everything situated, we headed over to the beach to take in the sights. I can't help but share these.....I think my wife is STUNNING and these pictures of her are great!

 

[Backlash]

I knew Space-X had a launch scheduled for this evening, so we skipped our pre-planned dinner and went to a local spot to eat. I wanted to have a front row seat if the missile actually went up.

I like this spot because of the movies made that were filmed here. If you know, you know.

If you haven't tried their sourdough bread bowl and clam chowder, you're missing out!

 

[Backlash]

After dinner, I parked across the street from Neptune's Net and waited for the sunset. It absolutely delivered!!

 

[Backlash]

After the sun dipped down over the horizon, we headed back to the truck to wait and see if the launch would go, or if it would get scrubbed once again.

At 7:30 on the dot, she took off from Vandenberg!

 

[Backlash]

After the missile launch faded, we headed back to our little piece of paradise and built a campfire to finish off the evening. The weather was absolutely perfect! Not a cloud in the sky!!

My wife brought out "The goods" and passed them out to each of us. A few moments later, we were gifted with one of the best campfire treats known to man!

 

[Backlash]

The following morning began with another cloud-free sky!

After a quick breakfast, we headed back down to the beach to take in the sights. I brought some lightweight fishing gear and had the intention of catching one small surf perch. As hard as I tried, I didn't have any luck. I was fishing an outgoing tide, so that may have played a role in my lack of success.

 

[Backlash]

This beach is near the intersection of PCH and Mulholland Drive, and has been used for filming movies dating back to the 50's. This week was no different as there were film crews in various parking lots and coves all along the coastline. The crews were respectful and allowed us access to the beach via the limited access points near the parking lots. We were told the filming was for a movie based on a serial killer nicknamed "The Doodler." Hard to believe the identity of that killer has never been learned.

That afternoon, we headed over to another well-known spot to again take in the incredible scenery. Parking in this area is extremely limited, so we parked in a residential area a few blocks away and enjoyed the short walk.

 

[Backlash]

The views were absolutely stunning! We truly couldn't have had better weather!

Note......

If you happen to travel with dogs, like we do, they are not allowed at Point Dume. The area is open to the public, but is considered a preserve due to the birds, lizards and snakes who inhabit this area. The dogs leave behind a scent that can take weeks to dissipate. So do this reason, they are prohibited.

Parking enforcement is on the prowl in this area. If you park in an area that has a red curb, or is marked "No parking," you WILL get nailed with a citation or worse, have your ride towed. They have volunteers with the Sheriff's Department who are quite dedicated. You've been warned! Hahahaa!!

 

[Backlash]

We finished off this evening with a fantastic dinner and another toasty campfire. It was a perfect ending to the day!

The following morning, we planned on doing a local hike, but found out dogs were also prohibited from the trail! Strike 2 with the dog situation. So, we switched gears and spent the morning exploring the coves along the coast. It turned out to be a lot of fun for all of us!

Yes, again, there were film crews everywhere we went.

 

[Backlash]

As you can see, she is far more attractive and a LOT more photogenic than I am. I'm OK with that too.

As Blake Shelton says, "I'm just a guy with a girl....."

We wandered down the beach and at some point, managed to leave the teenagers behind. It was nice to walk along the beach, listening to the waves, hand in hand with the woman you love. It doesn't get much better than that!

As we reached the end of the beach, I told my wife "I'm shocked we haven't seen many shells here." No less than I finished that sentence, I saw a big shell sitting up on the beach! I walked over and picked it up. A Turban Snail, aka California Conch! He was a hefty little guy!

I carried him back down the beach until we found the kids, and shared the treasure with them. We talked about the similarities to the conch I'm familiar with in South Florida and the Bahamas, and how you can cook and eat them. There isn't a lot of meat in these, so it takes half a dozen to make it worthwhile. After showing the kids and twisting their arms to "Touch it," I decided to return him to the waters edge in hopes he would return to the depths and grow a little larger.

 

[Backlash]

All in all, this was a fantastic getaway and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay. We had amazing weather and we were treated with sights of birds, seals, rabbits, lizards and everything in between!

 

[Backlash]

We woke up on our last morning to slightly overcast skies. It wasn't cold, but there was a chill in the air. We broke camp and loaded everything up and headed south. Before you know it, we were back in the swing of things and the hustle and bustle of big city living.

Our truck didn't skip a beat and handled this load like a champ! Four people, a dog, several days worth of food, firewood, fishing gear, tools and about 5K worth of trailer. What a wonderful getaway that we won't soon forget!

As always, thank you for following along! Have a wonderful evening and stay safe!

 

[crzy2bealive]

Great job!! I’m in the process of cleaning up my truck.

 

[Backlash]

Great job!! I’m in the process of cleaning up my truck.

Post up some pictures of what you're working with! I'd love to see it! Mine is definitely a work in progress..... I still have a LOT left to do.

 

[Cooter01]

Looks like a great time was had! Amazing pictures!

 

[Brokeboatin221]

Heck yeah man! Glad to see you realigning your hemodynamics!

 

[Backlash]

Heck yeah man! Glad to see you realigning your hemodynamics!

It was a nice little getaway and one that we were overdue for. I don't know how we did it, but we timed the weather window perfectly!! Other than the occasional breeze, it was perfect outside!! Now that these toys are tucked away, it's time to get back to reality. Thanks for checking in on us! Hope all is well with you guys up in God's Country!

 

[Backlash]

Good afternoon!

Not much of an update on the truck itself, other than driving and enjoying it!

I stopped off at a shop this morning and dropped off some random parts to have them "Cleaned up." Just like everything else I seem to be focused on.....this too is completely unnecessary.

These should be ready for pickup in a day or so, and then I'll have them finished appropriately.

I've also been working on some mounting brackets and I should have those cut out fairly soon. All it takes is time and some money.

 

[Backlash]

I picked up the parts from the shop pictured above and have been working on cleaning them up. I didn't grab any pictures, but will take some later on today.

I had some time to kill and I managed to get one of the factory wheels stripped of the peeling clear coat. I used three different grits of scuff pads which work well. I still need to get a little more out of the tight nooks and crannies which I'll do during the sanding process..... Fun times for sure!

This is the inside of the wheel after the first pass with the coarse grit. The pads start out quite a bit larger than what's shown below. Once I finished the inside, I flipped it over and did the outside.

After this picture was taken, I hit both sides with two softer grits of scuff pads.

 

[Backlash]

There is still a little more left to do, but considering the condition of the wheel when I started, it's not half bad. Next up will be several rounds of sanding to remove the last of the clear along with the marks left by the scuff pads.

Oh yeah, the tires are junk so don't worry about those. I was too lazy to pull them off before I started this mess.

Time to "Keep on keeping on."

 

[Brokeboatin221]

Clear coats for the birds