Big-Red131
New member
- City
- Central
- State
- MO
Looks like fun was had by all!
Another Scrambler Purchase/Road Trip - UPDATE- BODY ON FRAME AGAIN
- Thread starter spankrjs
- Start date
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Stripping the Scrambler down to repair a PIA water leak I've had since I rebuilt the whole Jeep.
The bulkhead seal I made had always leaked when washing the Jeep or during a heavy rain.
No rust on the floor or bottom of the bulkhead.
The rubber seal I made/used is actually still in great shape. It's biggest issue is it only had adhesive to stick to one side, so I stuck that to the bulkhead. Maybe gooping it on both sides would have helped.
The biggest, and maybe the only leaks, were at the two ends. This picture probably explains why it leaked there.
This is the driver side, passenger side is the same. You can see the grime line where the seal on the flat flange of the bulkhead stops short of the sidewall/door striker post. Picture is from bed looking into the cab. I bought some 3M body caulk strips I might use instead of my rubber gasket. I can run this all the way to the ends. Will still need to caulk/RTV up the vertical joint on both sides a couple of inches, too.
I am also going to redo the metal strip attachment method at the front lip of the hard top, and that front seal. And the brown paint is flaking off on the inside of the top, so I might repaint the interior, and reseal the rear window/swap in a slider, repaint the outside of the top......
Sidetracked with concrete/carport construction in the yard, so will be a spotty work schedule on this.
The bulkhead seal I made had always leaked when washing the Jeep or during a heavy rain.
No rust on the floor or bottom of the bulkhead.
The rubber seal I made/used is actually still in great shape. It's biggest issue is it only had adhesive to stick to one side, so I stuck that to the bulkhead. Maybe gooping it on both sides would have helped.
The biggest, and maybe the only leaks, were at the two ends. This picture probably explains why it leaked there.
This is the driver side, passenger side is the same. You can see the grime line where the seal on the flat flange of the bulkhead stops short of the sidewall/door striker post. Picture is from bed looking into the cab. I bought some 3M body caulk strips I might use instead of my rubber gasket. I can run this all the way to the ends. Will still need to caulk/RTV up the vertical joint on both sides a couple of inches, too.
I am also going to redo the metal strip attachment method at the front lip of the hard top, and that front seal. And the brown paint is flaking off on the inside of the top, so I might repaint the interior, and reseal the rear window/swap in a slider, repaint the outside of the top......
Sidetracked with concrete/carport construction in the yard, so will be a spotty work schedule on this.
Last edited:
- City
- Rockville
- State
- VA
I just put my bulkhead back in last week, I use that 3M strip caulk too. I run 2 strips along the bottom and up the sides a few inches. It seems to work okay for the most part.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Removed the glass and rubber seal from the hard top this morning. Used some plastic tools made for working on newer car plastic panel clips, worked well, no pictures. Threw the hard top in back of the Scrambler and hauled it to my old job's shop, drug out this pressure washer.
Not sure on the PSI, but it is a beast. The paint was flaking off on the inside of this hard top around the windshield channel and the door openings.
Using widest fan tip about an inch away, removed the paint very easily from the interior of the top.
Probably about 30 minutes and the interior of the top was completely stripped.
Outside was stuck better, but still came off easily on the sides and back with the same tip.
The middle of the top of the top was stuck a bit better, narrowest fan tip took care of it.
Removed almost all of the paint with minimal effort.
I had this top repainted at an automotive body shop right before the Moab National, so it lasted a good while. Not sure why the interior paint was flaking off so easily. Once I blasted the interior decided to do the whole top. Will paint the interior white for sure, might just paint the exterior black. Might just paint it myself.
Not sure on the PSI, but it is a beast. The paint was flaking off on the inside of this hard top around the windshield channel and the door openings.
Using widest fan tip about an inch away, removed the paint very easily from the interior of the top.
Probably about 30 minutes and the interior of the top was completely stripped.
Outside was stuck better, but still came off easily on the sides and back with the same tip.
The middle of the top of the top was stuck a bit better, narrowest fan tip took care of it.
Removed almost all of the paint with minimal effort.
I had this top repainted at an automotive body shop right before the Moab National, so it lasted a good while. Not sure why the interior paint was flaking off so easily. Once I blasted the interior decided to do the whole top. Will paint the interior white for sure, might just paint the exterior black. Might just paint it myself.
- City
- Farmington
- State
- NM
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Decided to paint the top myself. We will have good weather this week, so why not.
About $200 in supplies.
I returned the big rollers, handle, and trays. Way too big for this.
Used Rustoleum products, including their primer. Will paint the inside white and the exterior black. The paint is gloss, wish it was not, will have to see how it turns out. Hoping for a less glossy more flat finish.
I used a small brush on the interior of the top and a 2" brush for the rest of the interior. It worked really well. This top really soaked up the primer. For the exterior, same small brush for the rain gutters, but used a 3" roller, 3/4 nap for the larger areas, and the 2" brush to hit any thin spots and for any blending. Again, worked better then I thought. I used the whole quart of primer on this top, it really soaked it up. Hopefully the primer will insure better paint adhesion. For a primer coat, very happy with the outcome.
A few drip spots on the interior, and some previous/existing damage to the texture, gonna let it ride. The interior roll cage blocks most of this.
About $200 in supplies.
I returned the big rollers, handle, and trays. Way too big for this.
Used Rustoleum products, including their primer. Will paint the inside white and the exterior black. The paint is gloss, wish it was not, will have to see how it turns out. Hoping for a less glossy more flat finish.
I used a small brush on the interior of the top and a 2" brush for the rest of the interior. It worked really well. This top really soaked up the primer. For the exterior, same small brush for the rain gutters, but used a 3" roller, 3/4 nap for the larger areas, and the 2" brush to hit any thin spots and for any blending. Again, worked better then I thought. I used the whole quart of primer on this top, it really soaked it up. Hopefully the primer will insure better paint adhesion. For a primer coat, very happy with the outcome.
A few drip spots on the interior, and some previous/existing damage to the texture, gonna let it ride. The interior roll cage blocks most of this.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
I did not try to strip the old paint out of the rain gutters. It is stuck down well and I did not want to risk damage here.
Had a few small pieces of the old brown flakes up when I was brushing on the primer, will take a look at these areas before the finish coat.
Only real exterior damage is here. Not through the substrate. I was going to epoxy it but the primer covered it up.
Most of the brown spots that are still present are down inside little indentions. These spots are stuck down so they can stay.
The exterior primer job came out great, no real tiger stripes or thin spots.
If the brown would not have been flaking off I would have left it. Oh well, time for a change.
Will try to get two good black coats on the exterior tomorrow, let it cure a day or two, flip it over and paint the interior white on Thursday before the rain comes.
Had a few small pieces of the old brown flakes up when I was brushing on the primer, will take a look at these areas before the finish coat.
Only real exterior damage is here. Not through the substrate. I was going to epoxy it but the primer covered it up.
Most of the brown spots that are still present are down inside little indentions. These spots are stuck down so they can stay.
The exterior primer job came out great, no real tiger stripes or thin spots.
If the brown would not have been flaking off I would have left it. Oh well, time for a change.
Will try to get two good black coats on the exterior tomorrow, let it cure a day or two, flip it over and paint the interior white on Thursday before the rain comes.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
I decided to use this stuff to seal the bulkhead to the bed floor. Maybe not the best idea?
It comes cut into thin strips, but it is sticky as all get out. I ended up making a ball of it in my hand, then smoothing it out into a snake, like Play-Doh. Stuff is sticky and messy. Acetone takes it off then soap and water on skin. Anyway, made a big long snake like this.
Ran it past the end of the bulkhead on each side.
Stuck the bulkhead down, bolted it in place, ran a blob up the side of the bulkhead on the bed side.
In this picture, before the bulkhead was bolted tightly into place, you can see daylight along the vertical joint. This is why I ran some goop a couple of inches up this joint to keep floor water out. Some water may trickle in above the goop line, but no way to goop any higher with the roll bar in place.
Once you tighten up the bulkhead side bolts this gap closes. But, only painted metal on painted metal along this vertical joint, not an ideal seal.
It comes cut into thin strips, but it is sticky as all get out. I ended up making a ball of it in my hand, then smoothing it out into a snake, like Play-Doh. Stuff is sticky and messy. Acetone takes it off then soap and water on skin. Anyway, made a big long snake like this.
Ran it past the end of the bulkhead on each side.
Stuck the bulkhead down, bolted it in place, ran a blob up the side of the bulkhead on the bed side.
In this picture, before the bulkhead was bolted tightly into place, you can see daylight along the vertical joint. This is why I ran some goop a couple of inches up this joint to keep floor water out. Some water may trickle in above the goop line, but no way to goop any higher with the roll bar in place.
Once you tighten up the bulkhead side bolts this gap closes. But, only painted metal on painted metal along this vertical joint, not an ideal seal.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
So, once the bulkhead is installed and bolted down, the goop snake kind of oozes out.
You can kind of trim it off with a plastic blade. If you wet your finger you can smooth it out.
The bed side is the same, not as bad.
Well, that's all fine and dandy, except it's not. This stuff stays sticky, never dries. So, if anything rubs on it, some goop could transfer or stain it. I would imagine dirt and sand will stick very well to it, also. This stuff is petroleum based, so sure it will stain things. It can be painted, so I might get a small hobby brush and paint the exposed edges black. If this will seal up the stickiness, great.
So, might paint the visible goop edge to avoid stickiness, might pull the bulkhead back out and remove all the goop and come up with another plan.
If the goop seals out water, great. But not sure if the negatives of stickiness/staining out weighs this potential benefit.
I do not regularly remove the bulkhead, this is the first time in 15 years!! But, I do not want to permanently install it or use a super duper caulk to permanently install it. More research/thinking needed.....
You can kind of trim it off with a plastic blade. If you wet your finger you can smooth it out.
The bed side is the same, not as bad.
Well, that's all fine and dandy, except it's not. This stuff stays sticky, never dries. So, if anything rubs on it, some goop could transfer or stain it. I would imagine dirt and sand will stick very well to it, also. This stuff is petroleum based, so sure it will stain things. It can be painted, so I might get a small hobby brush and paint the exposed edges black. If this will seal up the stickiness, great.
So, might paint the visible goop edge to avoid stickiness, might pull the bulkhead back out and remove all the goop and come up with another plan.
If the goop seals out water, great. But not sure if the negatives of stickiness/staining out weighs this potential benefit.
I do not regularly remove the bulkhead, this is the first time in 15 years!! But, I do not want to permanently install it or use a super duper caulk to permanently install it. More research/thinking needed.....
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Thanks!! I only pressure washed it. Did not wipe it down with acetone or anything like that. The remaining paint/stains were stuck down good, no chalking.What did you do for prep (besides the pressure washing) before the primer coat?
Looking really nice.
Thanks for the pics of all the products.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Got the first coat of black on this morning, came out pretty good.
Used a brush to paint inside the rain gutters and the door surround, used a 3" 3/4 nap roller for the rest, worked out great.
Before the next/final coat, I need to dab some paint down inside the deeper divots, the 3/4 nap won't reach down inside. Dab, then roll.
Humidity over 95% today, so not ideal painting conditions, but the paint seems to have performed well. Have something else to do tomorrow, so will put the final coat of black on Thursday morning.
Used a brush to paint inside the rain gutters and the door surround, used a 3" 3/4 nap roller for the rest, worked out great.
Before the next/final coat, I need to dab some paint down inside the deeper divots, the 3/4 nap won't reach down inside. Dab, then roll.
Humidity over 95% today, so not ideal painting conditions, but the paint seems to have performed well. Have something else to do tomorrow, so will put the final coat of black on Thursday morning.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Second and final coat of paint went on great, no issues. The second coat took way less paint then the first.
I used the small hobby brush to dab some paint into the little white spot areas I had, worked wonderfully.
I decided to pull the bulkhead back out and remove the strip caulk. I just didn't like the fact that it stays sticky. I like to drop shirts and jackets behind the front seats and I don't want to risk staining everything that goes back there.
This was not a fun project.
This stuff was a major PIA to remove. I used wooden stir sticks, penetrating oil (like WD40), Tub O Towels, and lots of patience. Four hours of my life I won't get back.......
I am going to use sealant here instead.
So, the bottom flange is easy to seal. But, it is about impossible to seal up the vertical sides of the bulkhead to the door strike posts with the rear bed roll bar in place. So.........
Let's pull out the rollback, too!!! I just love how my little projects spiral out of control!!
When I rebuilt the Jeep 15 years ago I had a body shop replace three of the four bed corner panels. I left the original front driverside panel. So, all 16 of my roll bar bolts have loose nuts on the bottom (the original front corner panels four weld nuts were long gone by the time I purchased the Scrambler). Slight PIA but I am able to remove them all by myself, just requires some awkward stretching.
I used the small hobby brush to dab some paint into the little white spot areas I had, worked wonderfully.
I decided to pull the bulkhead back out and remove the strip caulk. I just didn't like the fact that it stays sticky. I like to drop shirts and jackets behind the front seats and I don't want to risk staining everything that goes back there.
This was not a fun project.
This stuff was a major PIA to remove. I used wooden stir sticks, penetrating oil (like WD40), Tub O Towels, and lots of patience. Four hours of my life I won't get back.......
I am going to use sealant here instead.
So, the bottom flange is easy to seal. But, it is about impossible to seal up the vertical sides of the bulkhead to the door strike posts with the rear bed roll bar in place. So.........
Let's pull out the rollback, too!!! I just love how my little projects spiral out of control!!
When I rebuilt the Jeep 15 years ago I had a body shop replace three of the four bed corner panels. I left the original front driverside panel. So, all 16 of my roll bar bolts have loose nuts on the bottom (the original front corner panels four weld nuts were long gone by the time I purchased the Scrambler). Slight PIA but I am able to remove them all by myself, just requires some awkward stretching.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
At first I was shocked when I pulled the roll bar out, everything looks terrible!!
Driver front corner, OEM panel, note the I am assuming factory drain hole drilled in the center.
Passenger front corner.
Driver rear corner.
Passenger rear corner.
The bottom of the rear rollbar feet don't look much better.
The two front feet bottoms look much better.
I am assuming the body shop did not paint the bottom of the roll bar feet and I never checked. Pretty bummed BUT....
Driver front corner, OEM panel, note the I am assuming factory drain hole drilled in the center.
Passenger front corner.
Driver rear corner.
Passenger rear corner.
The bottom of the rear rollbar feet don't look much better.
The two front feet bottoms look much better.
I am assuming the body shop did not paint the bottom of the roll bar feet and I never checked. Pretty bummed BUT....
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
A little penetrating oil and a few Tub O Towels cleaned most of it up. Most of the stuff on the floor boards was just old dirt and rust stains, no damage.
Driver front corner.
Passenger front corner.
The two rear corners.
Some bare metal and black stains, maybe primer showing through?
Front feet bottoms not too shabby.
Rear feet bottoms will get a visit from Mr Angle Grinder wire wheel!!!
One of my friends is going to come by in the morning to help me get the rollbar completely out the bed.
Since I'm this deep, might as well:
Drill the drain holes in the floor that I never did
Clean up and prime/paint feet bottom
Clean up the floor corners a bit more, maybe just wax the hell out of the four areas where the rollbar feet rest
I'm thinking a full soft top would have been easier!!!
In all seriousness glad to see that the primer/paint has held up well after 15 years and over 100k miles of use.
Driver front corner.
Passenger front corner.
The two rear corners.
Some bare metal and black stains, maybe primer showing through?
Front feet bottoms not too shabby.
Rear feet bottoms will get a visit from Mr Angle Grinder wire wheel!!!
One of my friends is going to come by in the morning to help me get the rollbar completely out the bed.
Since I'm this deep, might as well:
Drill the drain holes in the floor that I never did
Clean up and prime/paint feet bottom
Clean up the floor corners a bit more, maybe just wax the hell out of the four areas where the rollbar feet rest
I'm thinking a full soft top would have been easier!!!
In all seriousness glad to see that the primer/paint has held up well after 15 years and over 100k miles of use.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Bunch of little projects knocked out today.
My buddy came by and helped me remove the rollbar from the bed. I decided to drill all my missing bed holes: roll bar drain holes and all the 1" floor drain holes.
Meaure, mark, drill a bunch of holes. I used my green Scrambler for reference. I drilled 1/2" holes under the roll bar feet, pretty sure the 2" hole under the driver side front was a previous owner deal.
Passenger front, roll bar drain and two floor drains.
Passenger rear, only a roll bar drain hole.
Two floor drains at rear of bed near tailgate.
And driver side rear, one floor drain and one under roll bar drain hole.
Cleaned up all the shavings and mess from all the new holes, moved outside to work on the bottom side of the roll bar feet.
About 20 minutes with the angle grinder and drill motor wire brush, ready for primer and paint.
And then about an hour of masking the rest of the rollerbar up!!
My buddy came by and helped me remove the rollbar from the bed. I decided to drill all my missing bed holes: roll bar drain holes and all the 1" floor drain holes.
Meaure, mark, drill a bunch of holes. I used my green Scrambler for reference. I drilled 1/2" holes under the roll bar feet, pretty sure the 2" hole under the driver side front was a previous owner deal.
Passenger front, roll bar drain and two floor drains.
Passenger rear, only a roll bar drain hole.
Two floor drains at rear of bed near tailgate.
And driver side rear, one floor drain and one under roll bar drain hole.
Cleaned up all the shavings and mess from all the new holes, moved outside to work on the bottom side of the roll bar feet.
About 20 minutes with the angle grinder and drill motor wire brush, ready for primer and paint.
And then about an hour of masking the rest of the rollerbar up!!
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
I used rattle can Rustoleum Self Etching Primer on the bare metal.
I let the primer dry 30 minutes, then sprayed three light coats of Rustoleum Gloss Black, about 10 minutes between each coat, worked well.
And with that, Operation Black Feet complete.
Moving on, time to reinstall and seal the bulkhead.
I dry fit the bulkhead and then masked up the surrounding areas.
I marked up both vertical sides, but this was for naught right now. I'm not sure how you can seal these vertical joints with the roll bar in.
I used this sealant.
It is a neutral cure so shouldn't attack the paint. Hopefully it works well. My only issue with this product is that it skins over and sets up fast. I'm pretty sure the over 80% humidity here today sped things up, too.
It is a bit loose out the tube, not terrible, but not sure if I could make it work on a vertical joint. I pooped a bunch of it down like so.
Maybe a bit much but I'm tired of this damn thing leaking!!!!
I did not put any goop on the vertical sides before installing it. I will have to goop both vertical joints later on.
I let the primer dry 30 minutes, then sprayed three light coats of Rustoleum Gloss Black, about 10 minutes between each coat, worked well.
And with that, Operation Black Feet complete.
Moving on, time to reinstall and seal the bulkhead.
I dry fit the bulkhead and then masked up the surrounding areas.
I marked up both vertical sides, but this was for naught right now. I'm not sure how you can seal these vertical joints with the roll bar in.
I used this sealant.
It is a neutral cure so shouldn't attack the paint. Hopefully it works well. My only issue with this product is that it skins over and sets up fast. I'm pretty sure the over 80% humidity here today sped things up, too.
It is a bit loose out the tube, not terrible, but not sure if I could make it work on a vertical joint. I pooped a bunch of it down like so.
Maybe a bit much but I'm tired of this damn thing leaking!!!!
I did not put any goop on the vertical sides before installing it. I will have to goop both vertical joints later on.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Happy with how the interior side turned out, not too much excess goop squeezed out.
The exterior is OK at best.
It took me about 20 minutes to install all the bulkhead bolts, I wanted to insure it was in the right place before the goop set up. The seven lower bolts are easy enough to install, but the six (three on each side) vertical bolts are a PIA to install due to the in cab cage rear bar partially blocking access to them.
So, by the time I got to the bed side the goop was already skinning over. I worked it over the best I could with a wet finger. It looks meh, but if it doesn't leak I'll be happy as a pig in poop!!
Once it fully cures I might skin over the top of it with some black RTV just to pretty it up some. Not terrible, and it is a pick up truck bed floor, but I wish it wouldn't have skinned over so fast.
I am going to come back and use Permatex Ultra Black RTV to seal up the two vertical joints on either side of the bulkhead.
I left the side bolts a hair looser so that when I goop this joint I can force some sealant inside this joint. You can see light in the joint right now. I can't get a caulk tube back here, but a small tube of RTV with a tip can be used no problem. The Permatex Ultra Black is also neutral cure so no paint worries.
Loaded the rollbar inside my paint drying booth. I am going to wait a week or so before reinstalling the roll bar to allow the paint plenty of time to cure and get hard.
Still need to goop the bulkhead sides, paint the inside of the hard top, install the hard top, reinstall the hard top rear glass, make new hardtop bottom and front seals, paint the raw edges of all my freshly drilled holes........
That's it for now!!
The exterior is OK at best.
It took me about 20 minutes to install all the bulkhead bolts, I wanted to insure it was in the right place before the goop set up. The seven lower bolts are easy enough to install, but the six (three on each side) vertical bolts are a PIA to install due to the in cab cage rear bar partially blocking access to them.
So, by the time I got to the bed side the goop was already skinning over. I worked it over the best I could with a wet finger. It looks meh, but if it doesn't leak I'll be happy as a pig in poop!!
Once it fully cures I might skin over the top of it with some black RTV just to pretty it up some. Not terrible, and it is a pick up truck bed floor, but I wish it wouldn't have skinned over so fast.
I am going to come back and use Permatex Ultra Black RTV to seal up the two vertical joints on either side of the bulkhead.
I left the side bolts a hair looser so that when I goop this joint I can force some sealant inside this joint. You can see light in the joint right now. I can't get a caulk tube back here, but a small tube of RTV with a tip can be used no problem. The Permatex Ultra Black is also neutral cure so no paint worries.
Loaded the rollbar inside my paint drying booth. I am going to wait a week or so before reinstalling the roll bar to allow the paint plenty of time to cure and get hard.
Still need to goop the bulkhead sides, paint the inside of the hard top, install the hard top, reinstall the hard top rear glass, make new hardtop bottom and front seals, paint the raw edges of all my freshly drilled holes........
That's it for now!!