Frame paint arrived

My Eastwood paint kit arrived today. Hopefully I can use it this weekend.

More frame rail prep

I have spent the past several weeks scraping and wire brushing and degreasing the frame rails. Now that all of the suspension has been removed I have dropped the suspension cross member so I can work on it separately. They are almost ready for paint. Here is how the frame rails look today:

Choices for chassis paint

I have been trying to figure out what type of paint to use on the frame once I get it cleaned up. As luck would have it I went to lunch with a former co-worker (and fellow car guy) Steve Berry. My buddy Miguel and I call him 'Volvo Steve' because he is a Volvo nut. Just check out his web site and see for yourself. I was telling him where I am at on my project and he suggested I check out a company called Eastwood. He said that he used their chassis paint and rust converter on his car and was pleased with the results. I decided on their Satin Full Frame and Suspension Kit. It comes with a rust converter, rust encapsulating primer and a tough top coat called Chassis Black.

Suspension kit arrived

My disc brake and suspension kit arrived this evening. I kind of felt bad for the UPS guy. The kit came in seven boxes and some of them were heavy. Man I wish I could open them up but we are leaving on vacation to go up to Arkansas to see Cristy's family.

Started tearing down the suspension

Now that I have a plan for the suspension I started tearing it down. I had to go buy a ball joint separator. Sears had a nice one that can be used with a regular hammer or an air-hammer. The upper ball joints came apart easy but the lowers were a bitch. I ended up using the air-hammer to get the pickle fork wedged in place and then I had to hit it hard with a sledge hammer.

Ordering new brakes and suspension

After doing some research I have decided on Classic Performance Parts Grand Slam kit. It is a disc brake upgrade kit and a lowering kit. The kit comes with everything you need. I chose to drop the front of the truck 3.5" and 4" in the back. Merry Christmas to me!

Cleaning and more cleaning

So lesson learned. While the truck was still running (and puking oil) I should have taken it to the coin operated car wash with a gallon of degreaser. Instead I have spent weeks scraping, wire brushing and spraying Simple Green on the frame rails and suspension cross member. Here are the results so far: