how to work/fix the seams on the bed and roof

[randyj68]

i'm wondering what the best way is to work/fix the seam tjhat runs down the side of the bed and along the roof above the back glass 9hope this describes what im tryin to) i have a 68 ranger long bed, hoping to get everything done before messing with the body, but in trying to plan ahead i was curious what i was up against. i can do some minor body work but didnt know if the caulk or whatever was used in those seams needed to be dug out, sanded or what and what needed to replace it....

[randyj68]

Heres a picture to better show what im looking at

[SmoothJ69]

I just asked a similar question about that seam a couple threads down (bedside bump)...72BahamaBlue produced this link talking about it http://www.fordification.com/forum/view ... 15#p596136

So after reading thru that and doing a search thru the forums for 'welding bed seam' I have come to the conclusion that you can either
1) clean it all out, prime\rust reformer\paint the hell out of the gap and leave it.
2) clean it all out, prime\rust reformer and put some sort of sealant back in. or
3) clean it all out and weld the seams, deal with warp-age and having to grind the weld back out.

Personally I'm leaning towards number 2.

[Art]

On my 69F100, I sandblasted that seam to remove the sealer/paint/minor rust. Then gave it several coats of Eastwood Company's Rust Encapsulator. Then a little of Eastwood flexible seam sealer to get the contour right.

MOST IMPORTANT: I made liners for all four wheel wells out of 77-79 Dentside front wheelwell liners. The cancer problem starts in the rear wheelwell when water (and salt here in the Midwest) gets into the welded seam's exposed edge inside the box. Then it eats away and propogates horizontally towards the outside of the truck bed. By the time the cancer has eaten its way to the outside, it is too late....

Those liners do wonders up front for preserving the cab mounts and front fenders' inner fenders - especially around the hood hinge area.

[72BahamaBlue]

MOST IMPORTANT: I made liners for all four wheel wells out of 77-79 Dentside front wheelwell liners. The cancer problem starts in the rear wheelwell when water (and salt here in the Midwest) gets into the welded seam's exposed edge inside the box. Then it eats away and propogates horizontally towards the outside of the truck bed. By the time the cancer has eaten its way to the outside, it is too late....

Those liners do wonders up front for preserving the cab mounts and front fenders' inner fenders - especially around the hood hinge area.

[Ranchero50]

R+R for me... I killed my F250 longbed because it was just too rusted to bother with. if you can't get rid of it completely it'll come back faster than you want it to.

I couldn't justify the time and money to fix it for how long the repair would last. For the cab I would find a better one even if you have to invest a lot of time in a rusty floor, it's far better than roof rails or cowl repair.

Jamie

[F100builder]

I've heard of people welding in small diameter rod for the bed (after cleaning it all out of course) and it should take less weld and produce less heat distortion. The rod would absorb a bit of the heat but it would still be about a bazillion tack welds. The seam along the back of the cab would just be a bunch of tacks as well. Both areas can take just a bit more heat than flat sheet metal due to their rolled over flanges. I'd also use gas if possible for softer welds and less heat grinding too.

[69SCJ]

I just dealt with this last weekend. The best way I found to get rid of the seam sealer was keep my propane torch going, heat some, scrape with a screwdriver to get the bulk out, heat some more and hit it with a wire brush. It cleans it up spotless this way. Goes pretty quick also.