• Jack-it Night: April 2024 RS Meeting Hey Guest: Wed. April 3rd is the next Rising Sun meeting, and you won't want to miss it. We're doing our annual offroad recovery equipment demonstration and trail skills training aka "Jack It Night." Meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. (early) Click here for all the details.

gx470 touch-ups

nakman

Club Secretary
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 23, 2005
Messages
14,551
Location
north side
I have had enough watching the clear coat fade on the hood. What started out as just a few spots quickly grew in size in really only about a year's time, and quite a few rock chips are rusting a little bit also. Just looks terrible....

IMG_4980.jpg


You can see above the fender flare is starting to flake as well. My other main cosmetic issue here is more self-induced... I had a load of steel slip forward on my trailer and slide into the back door, which scratched it up pretty good. So my plan is to fix the hood first, then if I feel good about those results worry about the fender and the back door.

IMG_4981.jpg


The scratches on the bumper are also self-inflicted, but I'm still holding hope that I'll have an aftermarket bumper on here someday so they should be able to disappear naturally. On to the hood.
 

nakman

Club Secretary
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 23, 2005
Messages
14,551
Location
north side
With the help of my son I got the hood removed and onto some saw horses, where sanding could commence.

IMG_4986.jpg

IMG_4987.jpg


And then some primer, and more sanding.

IMG_4988.jpg


And then some more primer, and some more sanding.

IMG_4989.jpg


And then we set up the booth again and start spraying...

IMG_4990.jpg

IMG_4991.jpg
 

nakman

Club Secretary
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 23, 2005
Messages
14,551
Location
north side
First time I have sprayed a 2-step paint, with the clear coat afterwards... the 40, 40 trailer, 60, were all single stage. But true to form, my result is generally decent, not pro level, but a solid 10-footer... there are always a few spots that could be better. The NAPA guy pulled the paint code from the VIN, so it should be dead on... it's a tiny bit dark but I think that's more the 15-year fading of the surrounding fenders. And it's a little orange peeley, I am going to let this bake out in the sun for a couple of days, then see if I can polish it down with some compound... but for now at least it's green again.

IMG_4996.jpg


IMG_4995.jpg


I somehow misplaced the little connecting arm to the hood latch, so until I find it I can't install the grill as I need the direct access to the hook to open the hood. I'm sure it's in the garage somewhere, I just need to clean up a little bit more...
 

nakman

Club Secretary
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 23, 2005
Messages
14,551
Location
north side
Found the hood thingy... and then installed a new grill that I purchased from Matt aka urj150. It's a little blingy, but I kinda dig it, I think it's a nice update. what do you think?
IMG_4997.jpg
IMG_4998.jpg
IMG_4999.jpg
 
Last edited:

Romer

RS Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 22, 2005
Messages
10,007
Location
Centennial, Colorado
Nice job on thee hood. I just ordered one of those grill things for Rachels GX470. I think they look cool
 

nakman

Club Secretary
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 23, 2005
Messages
14,551
Location
north side
@Romer let me know if she ever wants a color matched shovel or something, I had to buy a quart of this green paint and the hood barely put a dent in it.
 

Notyourmomslx450

Cruise Moab Committee
Cruise Moab Committee
Joined
Aug 4, 2014
Messages
3,202
Location
Westminster
looks great! good job Tim
 

Hulk

RS Webmaster
Staff member
Moderator
Cruise Moab Committee
Joined
Aug 22, 2005
Messages
16,431
Location
Centennial
Found the hood thingy... and then installed a new grill that I purchased from Matt aka urj150. It's a little blingy, but I kinda dig it, I think it's a nice update. what do you think?
View attachment 98748

It looks like an uber-rare European model now. I really dig it. Great work on the re-paint!

FYI: you can upload bigger photos with the current version of the forum. You don't need to resize to 640 x 480px in 2021. ;)
 

DaveInDenver

Rising Sun Ham Guru
Joined
Jun 8, 2006
Messages
12,950
Location
Grand Junction
But true to form, my result is generally decent, not pro level, but a solid 10-footer... there are always a few spots that could be better.
Yeah, I'm all about function regarding the body cosmetically.

Did it not displace a ton of beer money? Check.
Does it look passable? Looks great to me, so check.
Have you kept the rust at bay reasonably well? Definitely check.

Done and done!

FWIW I think the grill is, uh, interesting. I think it looks better than the toothy grill they put on Prados overseas. That one you put on looks to me a lot like a 3rd gen Tacoma TRD Pro but better simply because it's not comically huge.
 

nakman

Club Secretary
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 23, 2005
Messages
14,551
Location
north side
It looks like an uber-rare European model now. I really dig it. Great work on the re-paint!

FYI: you can upload bigger photos with the current version of the forum. You don't need to resize to 640 x 480px in 2021. ;)
Cool thanks. I always email myself the pictures, and then select "medium" on the phone... not really aiming for a number. I just hate it when the picture is larger than the box it's supposed to fit inside, especially when someone sticks one into an email on gmail. don't get me started on that... :rant:
 

subzali

Hard Core 4+
Joined
Aug 22, 2005
Messages
10,311
Location
Denver CO
Nice Tim! I’m all for the DIY but for the hassle and time of prep, tools, materials, skill development etc. I wonder what something like this would have cost at Maaco. My 80 hood is badly faded and I just can’t spend a day like I used to doing this sort of thing and expect to not get interrupted by somebody crying.
 

nakman

Club Secretary
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 23, 2005
Messages
14,551
Location
north side
Nice Tim! I’m all for the DIY but for the hassle and time of prep, tools, materials, skill development etc. I wonder what something like this would have cost at Maaco. My 80 hood is badly faded and I just can’t spend a day like I used to doing this sort of thing and expect to not get interrupted by somebody crying.
You should get a quote sometime, I'd be curious also. Not counting the new grill I'm into it for about $350 and maybe 5 hours. But I already had the gun, the compressor, even all the sandpaper.
 

DaveInDenver

Rising Sun Ham Guru
Joined
Jun 8, 2006
Messages
12,950
Location
Grand Junction
Nice Tim! I’m all for the DIY but for the hassle and time of prep, tools, materials, skill development etc. I wonder what something like this would have cost at Maaco. My 80 hood is badly faded and I just can’t spend a day like I used to doing this sort of thing and expect to not get interrupted by somebody crying.
Speaking as a childless nobody, guessing Nakman's found the other side of the cycle where the boy can help ... and still wants to. To me seems like this would be the ideal sort of thing to do. I know I still remember times working on the cars with dad, like the time we painted the VW squareback in highway department orange in the driveway.

ETA: Thread jack with an old bright orange Type 3.

DSC03798_mid.jpg
 
Last edited:

nakman

Club Secretary
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 23, 2005
Messages
14,551
Location
north side
@DaveInDenver yeah truth be told I'm trying to find some engagement here. I did about have to pry him out of his room to help me remove the hood though, and he really didn't have much interest in sanding but did some anyway. Spraying paint a little more fun... but by the time it was ready for clear coat he was back upstairs. Can't push too hard though, as you risk pushing them away. I'm just hoping he's got some amount of ownership in this thing which just might still be in the back of his mind when he's out on his own, which ultimately leads to better decision making.
 

Hulk

RS Webmaster
Staff member
Moderator
Cruise Moab Committee
Joined
Aug 22, 2005
Messages
16,431
Location
Centennial
I don't know that Charlie was very engaged in vehicle repairs before he turned 16 and got his license, but he's super into all things mechanical now. He's a pretty good welder and knows how to use all the tools that I've shown him over the years. I think you've got it exactly right, Tim.
 

DaveInDenver

Rising Sun Ham Guru
Joined
Jun 8, 2006
Messages
12,950
Location
Grand Junction
By the time I graduated from high school it was unfathomable how much of an idiot the old man was.

I could not wait to get out of the house to prove how smart I really was.

It was sure amazing how much he'd learned a few years later when I ended up back at home to get back on my feet.
 
Top