[Purcell69]

Just as I was priming the bare metal, the rain came. I managed to get primer on the edges of the holes I had cut or drilled, and all the places I had ground welds off, with just enough time for it to be dry to the touch. Then it poured...3/4" of rain in 15 minutes.

After that wave of rain cleared out, I tipped the bed up to get water off of it, and hit it with compressed air to speed up the process. Once the floor was dry, I cleaned it again and let the sun finish the job. When all was good and dry, I got back to painting. The bottom side of the floor is now coated in oil-based enamel implement paint, to keep the rust monster at bay. It should be durable enough to stand up to any bits of road debris that may hit the bottom of the floor.

Last weekend, out of the blue, I got a message from a fellow Marine I served with in the 1980s. He's a car guy too and has been following along with the progress. He asked to buy something I needed for the project, with no worry for the cost. Looking at the twisted pile of 61 year old bed strips, I had an answer for Hugga. Thursday, a set of natural stainless steel bed strips arrived at the house while I was at work.

These will be a nice addition and complement whatever color bedliner is used on the inside of the box. Now, as soon as things dry back out, the next big task will be getting either Monstaliner or Herculiner down on the bed floor and getting those new strips installed so I can get the bed back on the truck. and out of the driveway. Thank you Hugga! Semper Fi brother!

Edit: I have the pocketed d-rings on order and expect they will be here this coming week. One for each corner, so four more holes to cut and sixteen more to drill on the bottom side of the floor. Then the inside of the box can be addressed.

-Joe