Rusty cab roof

[RobertGray]

The leading edge of my 92 standard cab roof. that is from the windscreen up, especially the gutter or rainwater channel and first two inches are very rusty. I doubt whether there are any patch panels, does anyone have a solution? Its probably about time I changed the windscreen and its rubber as well. As I live in Spain the shipping costs and customs tax are more than significant. Thanks.

 

[Simplysmn]

your best bet would be to have someone over there cut the bad metal out and replace it with good stuff then prime and paint it to protect it from the weather .

 

[mysteryman]

The best thing to do is to get a rust free cab and Junk the rusty one. There are four panels that come together at the front of the roof. If you think the rust looks bad on the outside just wait till you cut it open... You could get just the roof section shipped to you . But it will still be a lot of work. I would check on what the duty and shipping would really cost. It might not be as much as you think. Cabs are really light when they are stripped down to the bare cab. It would really have to be crated by someone that know what they are doing. I am sure that either I or one of the other guys on the site could round you up a good rust free cab , crate it and drop it off at the dock. Think about it.

I have done severl of those roofs . I wouldn't wish that job on my worst enemy !

The leading edge of my 92 standard cab roof. that is from the windscreen up, especially the gutter or rainwater channel and first two inches are very rusty. I doubt whether there are any patch panels, does anyone have a solution? Its probably about time I changed the windscreen and its rubber as well. As I live in Spain the shipping costs and customs tax are more than significant. Thanks.

 

[RobertGray]

Many thanks for your offer of help mysteryman. I'll do some research into shipping and get back to you.

 

[DVolk]

Ive seen guys have there trucks sprayed with bedliner and they dont look too bad i almost bought a suburban completely done about 10 years ago

 

[RSchwarzli]

Yeah. Pretty standard issue on these trucks!

No one makes a replacment section that I know of and as mystery man said, doing the repair won't be fun!

Although a can change would be easy on one side, it becomes a huge repair. I would say see if any body hops can redo the section from new metal. Quality shops with the right skill can do it.

Cool to know there is a gen 1 in Spain!

 

[RSchwarzli]

Also a second though. If you had a section cut out leaving a small section if A pillar, it could be replaced on your end. Also customs duties would not be much on something worth $100-200.

 

[NJTman]

Ive seen guys have there trucks sprayed with bedliner and they dont look too bad i almost bought a suburban completely done about 10 years ago

I don't know about bed liner, but I sprayed the inside of my roof with a couple of gallons of rust converter. I plan to do this once a year or so, although just not as much needed...

Through the rear cab lamp
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And through the passenger side sun shield hole ]
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[Ncostello]

NJTman... . where does a couple gallon of liquid go? Does the excess drain away safely down the A-post? Wouldn't want it dripping all over the interior. And is that a fancy gas cap cover on your heater box to allow you cleaning access to the heater core and evap core?



My 91 roof has two quarter sized "soft spots" bubbling up in the paint above the gutter rail... . on what I call the leading edge of the roof. If I put a little pressure on them with my finger I can hear it making a little crunching noise. Not sure if it's all the way thru or just something I can scrape off and putty up. Either way I'll never do a cab roof replacement. Kinda hoping I can cut away the bad material around it and use rust converter... and some good body filler to smooth it back up and fill in the damaged area. The remainder of the leading edge sounds off pretty well like hollow metal.



Anybody ever cut a little out and just use some filler to get by several more years?

 

[NJTman]

NJTman... . where does a couple gallon of liquid go? Does the excess drain away safely down the A-post? Wouldn't want it dripping all over the interior. And is that a fancy gas cap cover on your heater box to allow you cleaning access to the heater core and evap core?

The liquid runs out the drain holes under the truck. Since I have running boards, most of it wound up there and removed the finish on the aluminum..... but then again I really didn't care...

The "deck plate" is there for just that reason... . to remove bugs, leaves, and anything else that got in there. When I cut the hole out for the plate, I was floored how much junk there was in there, as 19 years of build up made a mess. I've since installed 1/4" wire mesh under the vent cowl cover to prevent more stuff from getting in there..... at least large stuff anyway. The bungs are available at any boat supply, or on Amazon. I picked a "clear" cover so I could see what was going on, but if you want, they sell the black covers to keep it uniform.



http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wc...toreNum=50667&subdeptNum=50688&classNum=50690

Here's the grille installed.
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Anybody ever cut a little out and just use some filler to get by several more years?

I cleaned out all of the old crud in my gutter last year, refilled it after using a rust converter, then painted it myself. The paint work came out like crap, but it works for now until I can afford to have the truck resprayed.

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Yup... . This guy actually removed his rain gutter completely... .

http://www.dieseltruckresource.com/dev/showpost.php?p=2930239&postcount=12

 

[RobertGray]

Hi Mysteryman
I'm wandering how big the package would be and how much it would weigh and I think I should get a windscreen and windshield rubber in it as well. Also, where are you Maryland or Tenessee?
Can you help?
Regards Rob

 

[Ncostello]

Has anyone ever had little to no signs of rust up there... then removed the windsheild and found rot behind the glass trim/gasket?