Lessons learned

[thejunkman]

So, I just finished my cab repairs tonight, minus some paint and such. I learned many things, that I though I might share with other newbies. Here are some :

- Don't try to repair the cab on the truck to save time and work.(in the long run you'll end up spending as much time and work trying to work around the frame and tranny as you would Pulling the cab. Plus the result won't be as nice.

- butt weld... I mean it

- seam sealer.... Sucks. It's a necessary evil though, have fun.

- replace the least amount of sheet metal possible. Nothing you can buy repro is as good as what ford gave us. Plus the more OG sheet metal you have to fit up against, the easier it will be.

- use the best consumables you can afford (cut-off wheels, sanding disk, etc.)

- buy good cab mounts! Seriously! I spent days making the cheapo Taiwan ones fit. In the end, it's not as nice of a job as it could have been, had I used good ones.

- whatever amount of time you have allocated for this project, multiply it by four and you may be close to accurate.

I learned a bunch more, but you will too.

[Mancar1]

Thanks for sharing. Helps us all when we share our experiences.

[67nukeford]

I agree completely. Especially on the aftermarket sheet metal. As good as some of it is, it will never match exactly as the original. I got lucky, a buddy cut out some cab corners for me, they fit so much better than the ones I bought aftermarket.