Awesome KCW restored '59 ute is now mine!

[KombiMadness]

That looks shit! I wouldn't have it in my shed......



Well done, old chap. 1 down, 1 to go...

Yeah, much too nice for your dirty old shed....

How's the Drover coming along?

[KombiMadness]

I've slowly been hand sanding the wood slats I bought from WW and with that now done, have begun oiling them. After a lot of research, I decided on Tung oil. I'm using a 50:50 mix of pure Tung and citric terpene which is a natural drying agent. It has the advantage of leaving a nice citrus smell instead of the usual chemical smell when doing jobs like this.
I've oiled 5 slats and am happy with the result. Tung oil darkens the wood but upon subsequent reapplication doesn't keep darkening further like Linseed oil does.
To fasten the slats, I've decided to use nutserts. Easy to install and stronger than self tappers, which in thin metal will eventually strip out or vibrate loose.
I'll post some photos when I get a chance.

[68BUS]

Good decision.
I am waiting for my creative rack to arrive with Linseed oil.
I spoke to the guys at Carbatect and they said the citric turps mixed with the tung will penatrate into the linseed oil too.
I am going to recoat before they go on

[KombiMadness]

Good decision.
I am waiting for my creative rack to arrive with Linseed oil.
I spoke to the guys at Carbatect and they said the citric turps mixed with the tung will penatrate into the linseed oil too.
I am going to recoat before they go on

Brad, post up photos of the rack when it arrives.....

[KombiMadness]

As always, what seems like a little job is actually very time consuming. Each slat needs sanding, first course then fine, then oiling the Tung oil, first, second and third coats, both sides, drying time, etc.
That's the easy part. The hard part is drilling all the holes in the slats to line up with the existing holes in the ute tray.....
I further complicated things by choosing to install aluminium nutserts and in hind sight it was a mistake..... Why?

Because this ute has its original tray, nearly 57 years old and full of dents which is all part of its history and character. The problem is, unless you have perfectly square and plum metal, the installed nutserts angle with the metal. Even the slightest offset angles the nutsert thread. After drilling the first 2 holes in the first slat, I realised my mistake. There is no way to accurately align a hole through 25mm of wood slat for a screw for each and every nutsert that is angled every which way. Being aluminium makes it worse because it doesn't take much to strip the ally thread with the stainless screws.....

So if you have a brand spanker Gerson ute tray, fantastic, use nutserts. If you don't, stick with self tappers (early Utes) or rivets (later Utes).

Anyone advise on drilling out the nutserts? Is there a technique, is it easy? I think I will still use the screws but with a nut underneath, which was actually my first idea!!! Should have stuck to that first plan.....

If any clever dicks out there have any suggestions........ Shoot.

[spl65t]

Not familiar with Utes, but nut and bolt - threw the tray and bolt them in ?
Linz

[KombiMadness]

Yeah, that's what I was originally thinking to do before the nutserts (rivnut) idea and now I'll have to go back there.
Anyone drilled out nutserts before? Is it easy or a pain in the arse?

[Cafe53]

Pain in arse Nutserts can be we used them in fibreglass panels on trains and some steel panels check check and check again cause once in they are a bitch once pulled off

Good luck buddy but sorry for bad news

[PHAT BUG]

That sucks

We use 100's of nutserts in each of the trucks we build, they are wonderful things but when things go bad they're a prick!

Can you get to the back side of the nutsert? if so get someone to hold it with some locking pliers while you drill out the insert from above.

Try using one of these counter sinking bits.............


It will just take the lip of the insert off.

[68BUS]

Yeah, I have had them fail too as once you try to drill them out the outer splines wear off and they spin. I ended up using a grinder with a flapper disk on it. Buff them down to about 10-20% thickness (so you don't grind the surrounding metal) then using a sharpish chisel knock them through the side and sheer the top ring off. You will do very slight scuffing to the ute bed, but if careful it should not be too bad.

[KombiMadness]

Thanks for all the responses and tips....

It seems whichever of the above methods I try, it ain't gonna be fun. I guess the good news is that they're ally and therefore softer. At one stage I was considering using stainless nutserts.

[KombiMadness]

That sucks

We use 100's of nutserts in each of the trucks we build, they are wonderful things but when things go bad they're a prick!

Can you get to the back side of the nutsert? if so get someone to hold it with some locking pliers while you drill out the insert from above.

Try using one of these counter sinking bits.............


It will just take the lip of the insert off.

I can get to the backside of them via the engine bay and treasure chest compartment (although the ones above the fuel tank will require some yoga moves).

So I might try your method...... Are you recommending the counter sunk bit because it won't hurt the existing ute bed steel like a normal drill bit would? These are the kind of tricks I like to learn.

[PHAT BUG]

Exactly and unlike a twist drill it wont 'pull' itself through, it'll just take off the minimum material.