Follow along as I show you how to remove the grill shell from my 1978 F-150, strip the anodizing off of it and polish it. Then I install it onto my 1974 F-350 and give it a facelift!
Amazing transformation. I completely agree that the 78/79 gill looks so much better! Now get on that 460 build. Lol You can never have enough 460s. Lol
I actually like the split grills better myself but they all look good! Quite the transformation! My first truck was a 78 150 XLT and I used to get in a lot of arguments about the year cus of the square headlights lol. Something I’ve learned from 35 years of welding/fabricating is whenever you need to grind/sand/cut with a zip disc aluminum spray the grinding or cutting disc with WD or really any similar lube and it’ll cut/grind MUCH better and faster cus the aluminum doesn’t load up the disc. You need to reapply quite often but it works really well. Love your vids you inspire me to keep my old junk goin! Dentsides, old tractors and labs are the best things goin! And maybe a cold Hamms once in awhile.
I think the 77 split grill was the best looking of the split grills but there is something about that 78-79 front end that I just prefer over the others. I have to keep my old stuff going. I’m not like a lot of other channels. I don’t have a new powerstroke hidden away to do work with. These literally are my work trucks that I depend on! I love my dentsides, my tractors, and my labs. I’ve never had a Hamms before. I’ve never seen them for sale here. I usually go for a Miller. I’d definitely try a Hamms if I could find any. Thank you for your kind words!
Easy off heavy duty oven cleaner also works well for removing the anodized coating I found out. I always preferred the 76/77 grille myself. It does look good though!
@@BlackLabGarage I took the anodized coating off the trunk lid trim on my galaxie with it. I sprayed it, let it sit for 10 minutes, scuffed the piece up with a scotchbrite real quick, wiped it off and resprayed it and let it sit for like a half hour or so. It came right off after that.
@@MattsRageFitGarage I’ve heard of other people using oven cleaner to remove anodizing but I tried it twice and scuffed it in between but it didn’t work for me. Maybe oven cleaner is weaker these days?
@@BlackLabGarage It depends on the oven cleaner. Some cheaper cleaners don't contain lye and that's the main ingredient that works on the anodized coating.
Looks like harnesses have to be changed to right since light is on bottom on square headlight setup and top on split grill im doing it with my truck but im switching to the split grill
It would depend on what year your harness is that you are using? The harness should be long enough since you are moving them from them bottom to the top and 1975 to 1977 uses the same bulb socket as 1978-1979 but 1973-1974 uses a different socket. In that case you could always just change the socket which is usually a good idea anyway as old as these sockets are getting to be they can be quite problematic these days.
Well it's all subjective, like saying what kind of music is better or what girls are prettier. But for me, I'd take the uncle Jesse grill over 78/79 any day. Another great video though!
Oh I know there are people that prefer the split grill front end and that's fine. I think 1977 was the best looking of the split grills but I've always preferred the 1978-1979 front end.
What’s your thoughts on rattle can clear coat? Just not comfortable using a spray gun, not much experience with ‘em. Maybe you could do a video on spray guns? 🤔😃
Well you are in luck because Eastwood does offer the DTM clear in a spray can! You will probably see me doing some paint spraying a little later on on my 1978 F-150 4x4.
But I wouldn't use a regular parts store spray can clear coat on it because it will turn loose of the metal very fast. Only DTM (direct to metal) clears are made to spray over bare metal and adhere to it
Long wheel base dentsides are much easier to find than a short wheel base. That green bed/trailer you could see in this video I literally found sitting in the weeds! They are still out there but a lot of them are being boarded up.
