Time for an update...
The parts hunt is on and several acquisitions have arrived. Ringbrothers door handles, Wilwood 6 piston front, 4 piston rear disk kits with slotted / drilled rotors, Aeromotive EFI fuel components and a new front windshield. Side glass kit with one piece front windows is on order as are a set of 90 degree suicide door hinges. Black Friday worked out pretty good for me.
Meanwhile, in keeping with my goal of maintaining road worthiness until the frame arrives, the first mod I'm tackling is the rear hatch. I want to get rid of the ugly tailgate hinges (yellow arrow) and it seems the most practical way to go about it is to weld up the seam between the tailgate and the liftgate (black arrow). This will convert the rear hatch to a single door like most modern SUV's. The door will be supported by gas struts instead of the mechanical latches. I also plan to remove the tailgate t-handle and replace it with a recessed, flush mounted lever. It will activate a "pull" solenoid to electrically open the hatch. On the inside, I'll have a flush mounted mechanical t-handle as a fail safe.
Today, after removing the rusted tailgate trim and the carpet covering, I cut two windows into the inner panel to see what condition the metal was in. Not too bad, actually. After cleaning out the sound deadener and metal shavings, the tailgate seems a lot lighter than when I started. Note the picture of the "bondo weenies" on the inside of the rear skin. Never fill a hole like this boys and girls... you're only asking for a rusted mess down the road.
So next up will be to remove the beltline stainless on the liftgate and align all the gaps as best possible. Once it's all fixtured, I'll run the parts over to Eagle and have George media blast them. They'll be ready for welding and primer. More to come...