Inner door panels restored for cheap !

magnumpi said:

Dude, thats awesome. My door panel also look like complete crap. I think im gonna try doin that.

About the paint....how did you get it to match the rest of the interior? I know you said something about a "custom" blend. Can you buy exact matches in rattle can form? :toothless (my door panels are dark blue color)

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Thanks Magnumpi

It'll be even easier for you, being an American. I didn't want to pay $25.00 CDN ($17.50 American) for a custom blended shaker can to be mixed up for me.

If I'd have had my way I'd have ordered 3 cans of vinyl paint/dye in my colour from VHT. Sherwin Williams has a line of the same stuff too, as do several other competitors and all of them were only $7 CDN a can !

Problem is Purolater has gotten all snarky about transporting aerosols over the border and just won't do it for any cost ! All my suppliers were in the same boat.

So, this tight wad (me) finally broke down and walked into my local autobody paint supply store (MPS up here) and took my glove compartment door in for them to match to.

To their credit they did a great job and one 13 oz. spray can (they make it up and put it in the can for you) was more than enough to do both door panels and their speaker grills several coats. I don't think I'll have enough to do my dual gauge podded driver's side A-pillar though.

If you don't have any automotive paint supply stores in your town, go to Summit racing's site and do a search for VHT vinyl paint, bet they've got your blue in stock !

I didn't want the downtime with my panels off the bronco so I scored a pair of similar panels at a yard for $25 CDN each and brought them back to life. I'll be using the arm rests and door handle grommets off my original panels when I swap them, as mine are better. My panels are rougher at the top where your arm sits though.

If you want to do the same, don't settle for just good enough, score a set from an XLT or Eddie Bauer and move up to the chrome trim and "fine corinthian velour" insert. Doesn't matter what colour you get from the yards as you can spray them blue, just go for the least scratched up.

I already bought a yard of new automotive velour from an auto upholstery place, thinking this stuff would be too shot to keep. Looking at the finished photo it looks like the upholstery(carpet) shampoo I gave the inserts on the picnic table did wonders ! Guess I'll re-do the inserts from my original door panels and store them for later.

My upholstery guy said Ford had a major UV ray problem with their vinyl on the pre-87 models and judging by all the panels I've seen he's right. Who cares now that we can get vinyl paint !

Sixlitre

magnumpi said:

Thanks Sixlitre,

I just got a buttload of graduation money, so I'm def. gonna give this a shot. I already have an XTL with all the chrome stuff and carpet panels. But the sun did some major damage to 'em. I'm gonna go to a local boneyard and try to score a decent set and restore them.

Did you do any sandin beforehad? and how did you polish you chrome insert thingy? i've tried it with good ole polish and elbow grease, but it just hazes back over

Thanks Man
Josh

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Josh

Save your bucks, this cost me next to squat.

The only reasons I got the extra panels was I can't stand to have my Bronco(mobile concert hall) off the road for even one day or my plan to be deaf by retirement is in jeopardy.

Also mine were not only UV damaged, the tops were pretty scratched up too. Having said that the new ones were faded, but less scratched, so no I didn't rough em' up with sand paper first.

The guy painting my new door shells and fender told me to clean it first with a soap based cleaner and scrub it with a brush to get the dirt outta the simulated grains.

After that the prep he let me check out smelled to me like isolpropyl alcohol, which I had, so I wiped them down with that and then let loose with the spray can.

I used three types of chrome polish just to try them. They all worked pretty well. Good old Turtle Wax brand chrome/bumper polish. Mother's metal polish and that new stuff Flitz in the tube. Just make sure you take the chrome off the panel first as it leaves a lot of residue when you buff it up. I intend to wax them before final re-installation.

Sixlitre