Ram truck SLT to SRT in 329 easy steps!

[Cranky]

Needless to say, I spent time in the dumpster along with other items that cleared warranty but they didn't want back. I scored several transmissions, 42rh/46rh/47rh/nv4500's/t56/g56 plus some engines.

The company I worked for frowned on dumpster diving. Said the property in the dumpsters belonged to them....

The guys may have been lying dipshits but I can't prove it. One had a mullet so it is quite possible.

Hey, I resemble that remark! Well, did until about a month or so ago....

I thought hard about de chroming my 94 Ram but the chrome looks pretty good on the dark blue paint. View attachment 1500848

The chrome on my red 97 still looks good and so do the Hummer H2 chrome wheels but the red paint doesn't look so good on the top anymore. I installed the wheels around 05....and the tires still look new from back then too lol

If I’m not mistaken, I think the diesel trucks came with rear sway bars. If they did, I’m curious if they’re beefier than 1/2 ton trucks

My 97 diesel doesn't have a rear bar....

The 1500 series is what we used to call a 1/2 ton and used a Chrysler built 9 1/4” axle except for the SRT 10 models that supposedly used a Dana 60.
The 2500 and 3500 series used a much heavier axle made by some outside supplier. The frames are the same width but
They are probably taller for greater load capacity. The sway bars on those may be adapted to a lighter duty truck. I have not checked.

2500 Diesels came with the Dana 70 and the bigger trucks had the D80 but don't know how long that kept up.

 

[ckessel]

The painters used the grey Scotchbrite [finest one] to scuff the item plus a compound from SEM, I believe, which was the release agent remover plus it aided the scuffing. It's like gritty toothpaste. Comes in a big squeeze tube. Do all of this with some water sprayed on like you are wet sanding. Make sure there are no shiny areas when done.
Plastic Adhesion Promoter for Problem Plastics, 14.8 oz. Aerosol

SEM Soap, Remove Wax, Grease, Road Film, 15.7 oz. TubeSKU: SEM 39362$14.99 USD

 

[Bighouse]

What step are we at? __ / 329 ?…

 

[Kern Dog]

Yeah...I figured that with 10 pieces of cladding, the front bumper cover, the grille and insert, the hood scoop, rear bumper, all the sanding strokes to scuff it all so the paint will stick....329 steps may be a LOW estimate!

 

[Kern Dog]

In an UNrelated nugget, I've been dealing with a few issues that occur with high mile trucks.
At over 397,000 miles, I expect some things to be ready for replacement. For awhile, I was dealing with the persistent MIL codes.
Many people use the term Check Engine light but that is a GM & Chevrolet term.
In Dodge world, the MIL stands for Malfunction Indicator Light.
I changed a coil pack when the MIL sent a code for Cyl #6 misfire. The occasional rough idle went away.
Then it sent a code for right bank too lean so I changed the fuel injectors. Each time I'd clear the code and another would pop up a few days later. The idle would alternate between slightly rough to smooth as stock.
I got a code for the RH upstream O2 sensor, so I bought a pair. Check out what the old ones looked like!

Top is the LH sensor, middle is the RH one, bottom is new.

Strange, huh? The barrel below the threads are shredded.

With the new sensors in place, it idles great, has more power, gets a little better mileage and puts out NO codes!

Score!

 

[ckessel]

Some years ago I read in an automotive repair trade publication that they recommended replacing the various sensors at around 100k. O2, Coolant temp sensor, Temp sensor[ they are different], Crank/Cam, TPS etc. Your O2 shows just how wide of parameters it will compensate for and still run.

 

[Kern Dog]

Back to it.
I'm in a place that I never thought I'd be.
I never thought I'd be in a spot where my daily driver is old enough to see in the self serve junkyards.
I have decided that I want a spare rear bumper to paint and swap along with another hood scoop. I was also interested in taillight lenses and other trinkets that may be in better condition than what I have.
I was at 6 different junkyards yesterday....the self serve yards that cater to cars and trucks that are 10 or more years old.
I saw maybe 22-25 2002-2008 trucks and not a single one had a decent rear bumper. How can that be? Several were missing from the trucks, maybe those were nice enough that someone already beat me to it.
I can't believe how beat up and abused some of these trucks were. My truck could use a good deep cleaning but it is complete. Most of these trucks looked like they were stolen and thrashed, maybe even owned by scummy people with no pride...
The last yard I went to closed at 5:00 and wouldn't let me even walk the yard...it was 4:30 and they don't allow people in within 30 minutes of closing.
I drove almost 90 minutes to get there and got nothing.
I went back there this morning.
They have an online inventory that isn't always 100% accurate. One thing that helps is that they list the date the vehicle is set in the yard. The closer the date is to today, the better chance that it is still in the yard.

This was on the list:

I wanted the hood scoop. My truck has one but I wanted a spare to paint and swap when I do the rest of the SRT stuff.

I walked up on this:

They had another black truck, but...

The trucks there had trashed bumpers and wrong year taillights.
Ah well, on to the NEXT yard...

 

[Kern Dog]

Yard #2 was smaller and off the beaten path but had ONE truck that had some great parts left.
I got this bumper...

Only one tiny ding in a place that will get hidden by the corner of the right rear SRT cladding piece.

This bumper is otherwise straight. I'll sand blast and prime the chrome. It will get painted and cleared to match the body.
I also got this tailgate...

There is the two sided tape residue from the SLT emblem. I'll clean that off. I'm not sure if I'll add my own SRT emblem.

The back side was coated with that spray in bedliner stuff.

It is still in great shape. I'll prime and paint this and swap it in and save the original for a spare. The original has a few dings...

 

[Kern Dog]

Life gets in the way...
I'm easing back into this project after a few delays. I helped a buddy with a Tremec 5 speed swap, helped another with a Vintage A/C installation, did some stuff on my own cars and am now ready to get back to it.
To recap:
I have 16 pieces to prep, prime, paint and clear. 10 of them are the side cladding from a genuine SRT 10 truck.
Along with that, I have the hood scoop, two grilles, the front bumper cover, rear bumper and tail gate. I am trying to think this out to make sure I don't create obstacles for myself later. The rear pieces behind the wheel openings lay over the corners of the rear bumper:

I have the chrome bumper that will need to be painted so I'll need to paint and reinstall that bumper before the rear corner cladding goes on.
With all these pieces, I'm tempted to paint them on the truck. It sure would be easier compared to trying to paint that many pieces either laying on tables or hanging from wires. Metallic can be tricky too...you often need to paint them in the position they will be mounted to get the metallic flakes to land right. We have all seen cars with metallic paint where the door looks a different shade than the fender until you look at it from another angle. Often times, that is because of how the particles landed and dried. You can't paint the doors while laying flat and then hang the hood to paint it. At least I can't. Maybe someone with more skill can do it and have it turn out right.
Given my skill level, I may prep and prime the cladding and then install it for final finishing.

 

[69ChargerR/TSE]

Are you putting a HEMI sport scoop on yours? also doing the SRT10 cladding.
Have you located a SRT hood and front bumper?

 

[Kern Dog]

I could use an SRT-10 hood if I wanted. The place where I bought the cladding has 2 hoods but they want $1000 each.
There was a scoop on the truck when I bought it new. It is a Mopar/Dodge part. This truck was dolled up with all sorts of dealer installed trinkets including a carpeted bed.

Stuff like that looked great but degraded in a few years from the type of use I put the truck through.
I worked construction as a Carpenter and had all sorts of tools and ladders to haul around. To add, being a gearhead, I hauled tools and parts for the many junkyard visits. Engines, axles, brakes and other dirty/greasy stuff ....
I chose this truck because even then, a 2 door, regular cab truck was getting harder to find. I don't like the 4 door trucks. I had to take what I could find. This one was already lowered, something that I was going to do anyway. That carpet kit though....
Now that I'm retired, I wish that I'd have saved that carpet kit to put back in. It really looked nice when it was fresh and new.

 

[Kern Dog]

In total, there are 16 pieces that need to be prepped, primed, painted and clear coated. I sprayed most of the panels today with some high build primer reduced a bit with acetone.

Most of the panels here are clean enough, they will just need a scuff and wipe and be ready for paint.

I have two grilles to paint. I wanted to have a spare but I'm also looking to try three different styles. One will be ALL Inferno Red, slats and all. The other will be Inferno Red on the outer shell with black slats. I'm then saving the satin chrome slats from the stock grille:

I did buy a spare tailgate. It is straighter than the one I have.

Mine has a bent flap on the lower right and a couple of scrapes.

 

[Kern Dog]

The rear corner cladding on each side needed some work, the left side was the worst as you may recall...

I made a cage out of 18 gauge sheet metal to hold it together while the panel bond/bumper repair epoxy set up. It will also provide rigidity in an area where it might be needed.

This stuff set up FAST.

It looks sloppy, I admit but the dang thing is stiff and strong.

I spread some of the epoxy on the face side too. Within a short time, it was ready to sand.

Of course, nothing is perfect so out came the filler.

High build primer. This will block sand down to a smooth surface.

This was my first time repairing a bumper/urethane panel. It was easier than expected.

 

[Kern Dog]

I often jump into projects with no clear plan on how to get to the end but I do know what I want it to look like when it is done.
This is no different. I figure that these panels will need 3 or 4 coats of paint to cover.
I've thought of installing the cladding then spraying the paint and clear in place. That still may happen but I might switch it up a little.
I actually could spray 2 coats of paint on everything...install the cladding....then spray 2 more coats and the clear.
Why do it this way?
I have to paint some of the stuff off of the truck. The grilles, the tailgate, hood scoop and rear bumper all will turn out better if painted off the truck.
3-4 coats, whatever it takes.
If I am mixing paint, why not go ahead and spray what I can?

Prior to primer, I did a mock up on the right side:

The trick will be to hang the cladding so that the top edges all line up evenly.

The cladding is held on in a couple of ways. There are screws in the flange in the wheel openings, two sided tape at the edges and plastic pegs.

The rear corners have additional hangers that I don't have. If the dealer cannot get them, I'll have to make something.

 

[Kern Dog]

The side cladding pieces are supposed to cover this crease:

In fact, it rides up to just below the bottom of the taillight lenses.

See?

I may have to put the rearmost panels on, then the small one on the fender....then run a string line front to back to have a guideline to put masking tape for a border.
This is all subject to revisions as better ideas come along.

 

[Kern Dog]

I love the look of these trucks!

 

[multimopes]

Nice work Greg, I love the look of these trucks also. Single cab trucks are getting to be quite rare these days, but these are extra special!

 

[Kern Dog]

I saw a meme the other day with a Diesel Chevy truck with a homemade sign in the window:
Chevy, Ford, Dodge or Import....It is US VS the electrics now!
I'm sort of that way with the trucks on the road. I've always driven 2 door, regular cab trucks.

I almost considered buying a quad cab 4 wheel drive but just couldn't bring myself to do it.

 

[ckessel]

When you are ready to apply the cladding pieces permanently, wipe down the areas to be taped with alcohol. This will remove any contaminates that will cause the tape not to stick. The actual cladding parts should be done the same too in those to be taped areas. And get good tape, like 3M.

 

[Kern Dog]

A couple months ago, I sprayed the panels with 2-3 coats of base coat, then set them aside to work on other things here.

I have been undecided on whether I should mount these and do the finish of the paint and clear with them in place or do the final paint work with them laid out on tables. This stuff takes up a lot of space.