Cab worth fixing?

[Bighead72]

Picked up an 81 c10 cab is the cab corners and floor pans worth replacing?

 

[RecklessWOT]

From those photos it looks like there's not really much wrong with those floor pans, a small patch here or there would be fine, then just sand and repaint. I see no reason to completely replace them. There's no pictures of the cab corners but if they look anything like those floors you posted then I'd say they probably don't need to be replaced either. But if they're rotted through then it's a pretty easy fix, cab corners aren't too expensive either

 

[Bighead72]

How tough to replace rockers?

 

[RecklessWOT]

How tough to replace rockers?

It all depends on your skill level, and how good you want to come out. I personally don't think it's hard at all, but a beginner or someone who's not comfortable with body work might think it's difficult. You can buy new rockers for cheap, cut out the old and weld in the new. Or if you really don't care too much you could use seam sealer and pop rivets, but that is not the right way to do it. Are you comfortable with welding? Have any experience with body work?

 

[TotalyHucked]

That cab is nice, I'd definitely fix the little bit of rot on that one. Check out autometaldirect.com, we've got everything you need for that job

 

[GTX63]

When I was 20, the best most of us could do was pack bondo in the holes and primer over the blobs.
Today, patch panels and replacement metal are cheap, real cheap. Harbor Freight sells Flux Welders for less than $200 and LV paint sprayers that can run off of small air compressors.
There isn't much that scares me off, and I am just a guy with some cheap tools.
Your pics look like those floors are in pretty good shape to me.

 

[Grit dog]

@Bighead72
Please be more specific. Not sure if you are asking if the cab is worth repairing as in it’s too far gone, or if it can get by without being repaired.
You posed the question strangely although recognize that you’re asking one or the other question with presumably little experience doing this.

Yes the cab is absolutely worth repairing if it’s your best option. It doesn’t look bad but you’ll have to cut and patch some metal. Not a lot by the looks of it but you didn’t mention the other areas like cab corners, body mounts, window frames.

But if you’re not comfortable with this type of body work, a cab swap is more difficult than replacing rockers.

 

[MrHorsepowerLSx]

I’ll buy that cab if your questioning not repairing it lol

But that cab is mint! Needs little to nothing. Check out my build thread, my cab should have been scrapped

 

[Bighead72]

I’ll buy that cab if your questioning not repairing it lol

But that cab is mint! Needs little to nothing. Check out my build thread, my cab should have been scrapped

The outside cab corner need good but the inside part is gone. Are they a inner cab corner replacement? Needs driver side rocker. How do I go about cleaning up the cab? Do i sand everything down to bare metal then primer? Never done any type of body work before.

 

[MrHorsepowerLSx]

Head over to AMD ( autometaldirect.com ) they have just about every replacement panel you could ever need.


For the cab floor I would use a cup wire wheel and knock off the loose stuff, then hit the floor with 180/220 grit sand paper on a DA and then clean the floor really well with wax/grease remover and then apply some quality 2 part epoxy to help seal out the elements.

As far as the rocker replacement goes, I usually recommend that people cut out only what they need, you can get in trouble sometimes if you cut out “too much” material, you can really loose the body line or have poor fitment and interference with the doors when final assembly is complete.



There are YouTube videos a plenty that cover most rust repairs on these trucks and most of them are pretty well detailed

 

[Bighead72]

Head over to AMD ( autometaldirect.com ) they have just about every replacement panel you could ever need.


For the cab floor I would use a cup wire wheel and knock off the loose stuff, then hit the floor with 180/220 grit sand paper on a DA and then clean the floor really well with wax/grease remover and then apply some quality 2 part epoxy to help seal out the elements.

As far as the rocker replacement goes, I usually recommend that people cut out only what they need, you can get in trouble sometimes if you cut out “too much” material, you can really loose the body line or have poor fitment and interference with the doors when final assembly is complete.



There are YouTube videos a plenty that cover most rust repairs on these trucks and most of them are pretty well detailed

should I replace cab corner? Outside seems solid inside is rusted out. Pics above

 

[MrHorsepowerLSx]

It depends, you need to remove some paint and expose the metal and see what lays beneath, usually on these trucks they “bubble” in that area they just “rot out”
But if you do go to bare metal you will need to protect it from the elements once repairs are finished. The same epoxy I mentioned for the floors can be used on the cab

 

[Bighead72]

It depends, you need to remove some paint and expose the metal and see what lays beneath, usually on these trucks they “bubble” in that area they just “rot out”
But if you do go to bare metal you will need to protect it from the elements once repairs are finished. The same epoxy I mentioned for the floors can be used on the cab

What replacement part is this? Is it the inner cab corner? Photo take from the back underneath, bed off.

 

[MrHorsepowerLSx]

Yup, if you have some fab skills you could make a patch panel yourself for that small of an area