Pierce Gates Bronco #BuildBlog Part Two
The Pierce Gates Bronco rebuild is in full swing. The PAP team has been hard at work since our last #BuildBlog update. We are on schedule to finish this project Spring of 2020 and the excitement level is increasing.
After pulling the alternator plate, brackets and other parts in November, we sent them in and had them powder coated. We went with a custom glossy black with metal-flake finish and are very happy with the results. One of our goals with this project is to preserve the design and style that Alma and the original Team Gates Crew put together.
The updated powder coat is a noticeable enhancement and increases durability.
There was some prep work and painting to do before we put the parts back on. In the spirit of the project itself and our own unwillingness to do ANYTHING half-assed – we spent some time with the details. Last weekend we started reinstalling the freshly-coated parts. This included the alternator plate, attached brackets and power-steering pump brackets. Seeing it all go back together was satisfying.
The final design for the Excessive Amperage alternators is complete and they are now being built. The black / metal-flake plate will provide the perfect backdrop for these custom 300A Hairpin alternators. We can’t wait to see all 14 of these on the truck! The embedded video below shows off the first one.
Before the alternator install the Bronco will be painted.
There is some body damage on the truck including a dent in the driver’s side door, cracks in the passenger side door jam and cracks in the paint. There will be some welding needed. But first we needed to remove all the decals. We’ve nearly completed this already but we’ll also need to use a serious amount of wax and grease remover to get it clean enough to sand the clear coat down.
All new polished stainless-steel hardware incoming…
For this year we’ve also removed all the faux bolts and will be replacing them with all polished stainless-steel bolts and washers. The windows will also be buffed out before we install the new hardware. We have plans to replace the the front windshield after the 2018 season.
Overall we’ve made great progress since our last update. We may need to revisit some of the recent work and tie it in to an unpcoming post. On a final note: Last week we also dropped the battery rack to prepare for powder coating. This hinges on two large bolts to service the batteries. We’ll do some grinding and prep work this weekend and drop it off next week. Stay tuned for pictures and more details in our next update.
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