vdrumright Posted December 20, 2003 Report Share Posted December 20, 2003 My Husky Mud Guard Installation I debated for a week about if I wanted to put these on or not. The 3 inches of snow we got the last couple of days along with the salt on the roads and the white film on my SShelped me to decide. I picked up my Husky Mud Guards today and thought that since I like to post pics of modifications that I do to my SS, that I would share my experience with this installation. Before I get started I want to make one thing clear. I am not a bodyman and painter by trade I am a Construction Worker. There are probably better ways to do what I'm going to do, but I have always tried to do things myself. So don't take what I do as the proper or professional way to do this. The first thing i did was hold one of the mud guards at it's mounting location to get a feel of how it looks. After seeing it in place I decided to trim the lower section on the mud guards off. Since my SS is lowered I decided it would probably be a better look. Here is a pic the mudguard showing what I trimed off. I used the rolled mould line as my guide for the cut. I used an utility knife to score my cut line then went over it until I was all the way through. I though that this method with give me the cleanest cut. Below is a closer pic of the mud guard after the cut. As I was holding the mud guard in place on my front fender well I notice that there is an extra amount of the plastic that extends into the fender well past the fender lip mounting points. I will be test fitting the fronts guards at which time I will mark the excess material and trim it to fit the lip exactly. I'll post a pic when this is done. Moving on. After I trimmed the lower section of all four guards, I used a sponge block sander to smooth and shape the cut edges. Next I sanded the entire surface area of the guard that I plan to paint. It was getting kind of late and I need to go get some fuel for my garage heater, so tomorrow I will be applying the flexible primer on these. I will post more pics and progress tomorrow night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black03SS_NJ Posted December 20, 2003 Report Share Posted December 20, 2003 Nice pics! I just did nearly the same install, including the sandable/flexible primer and paint (used GM onyx black). Here is something to think about if you have not already: you will see more of the "inside" of the mudflap than the "outside" once it is installed. So I would recommend painting both sides (if you weren't planning on that already). I had 3 of the 4 go on striaght with no problems...the dirver's rear required some widening of the holes. You will be surprised how well these protect the sides of the truck. Good luck...I can't wait to see the rest of the pics! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2xtreme Posted December 20, 2003 Report Share Posted December 20, 2003 black03ss Do you have any pics of your install? I am still debating on putting a set of flaps on mine. I don't plan on driving it in the winter so that will not really be a factor, but in the summer you will run into the occasional water puddle. I am a freak when it comes to a clean truck and maby they will help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdrumright Posted December 21, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2003 Day 2 Today I started by sanding all 4 guards with 320 grit paper. After I sanded them I washed them good with soapy water. Next I decided that I only wanted to paint the back sides of the guards. My reasoning is, since the fender wells are black and knowing that the sides facing the tires would be taking alot of abuse, I didn't see the need to paint them. They would just wind up looking like what I was trying to prevent on the rest of the SS. So, next I taped off the areas that I didn't want to get overspray or paint on. After I taped off the first one I went to the automotive paint store and picked up some thinner tape. It speeded up the prosess alot. Next I sprayed 4 coats of the flexible primer on the guards. I followed the directions and waited 15 minutes between coats. After the final coat, I let them dry for 2 hours and then block sanded them with 320 and 400 grit paper. After the sanding I washed the areas to be painted again with clean water and let them dry. After they dried I sprayed 3 coats of basecoat Victory Red paint. Allowing about 10 minutes between coats. After the final coat, I took the Ms out for dinner which allowed them to dry for about 2 hours. After we got home I applied 3 coats of clear top coat. I will let them dry overnight. Tomorrow I'll pull the SS in the garage and do the install. Stay tuned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shopman1 Posted December 21, 2003 Report Share Posted December 21, 2003 Good job. Your now a painter. I just purchased the same flaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2xtreme Posted December 21, 2003 Report Share Posted December 21, 2003 lookin sweet keep up the good work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdrumright Posted December 21, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2003 Day 3 Day 3 begins with a before picture of the front & rear fender wells. I removed the wheel and took out the 2 screws and plastic retainer as the instructions directed. After I removed them I made a pattern of the fenderwell lip so i could use it to trim the excess material off that extended past it into the fenderwell. After I made the pattern I used it to mark and trim the guard and then I test fitted it. I had to elongate the two top holes sideways so I could acheive the alignment I wanted. All my experiences with parts like these always require test fitting and some minor modifications to get them to fit properly. I also reused the plastic reatiner I removed in the first step and resued it to attach the most inner edge of the guard to the plastic fender liner. I then put the wheel back on to make sure alignment was like I wanted it. Everything looked good so I tightened all the screws and put the wells back on. Now to the rear. Got it jacked up, removed the wheel. I removed the two screws as directed. Then I test fitted the guard and noticed that the top stuck out past the edge of the fenderwell So I elongated the hole like I did on the front. Then I test fitted it. At that time I drilled the 1/8" hole like the instructions said and installed the screw that cam with the guards. I also added a screw asseen in the pic below. the one on the left is the on I added. It helps hold the guard to the fenderwell lip better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdrumright Posted December 21, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2003 Day 3 cont. I didn't know we were limited in the number of pics. we could place in one post. Anyway here is the next pic. At this time I traced a line on the backside of the guard marking the fenderwell lip. I removed the guard and squared up the trace line and cut it. Then I reinstalled the guard. Then I put the wheel back on. The finished product. I hope this helps someone that is contemplating installing these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black03SS_NJ Posted December 22, 2003 Report Share Posted December 22, 2003 Great step-by-step! You should definitely make sure this topic gets moved to the new tech tips forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdrumright Posted December 23, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2003 I can't believe how much stuff these guards keep off the sides of my truck. It rained here this morning on the way to work. Usually, by the time i get to work it filthy and I'm running to the car wash at my first breat to give it a rinse. Not today!!!!! Looks like their gonna save me a few dollars.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2drTahoe Posted December 23, 2003 Report Share Posted December 23, 2003 Looks great! nice work. I may have missed it, but where did you get victory red and what did you use to spray it? Painting it makes it look top notch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ledfootss Posted December 23, 2003 Report Share Posted December 23, 2003 looks great and good job on the step by step Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdrumright Posted December 23, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2003 Looks great! nice work. I may have missed it, but where did you get victory red and what did you use to spray it? Painting it makes it look top notch I got theDupli-color paint at Advanced auto 11oz aerosol cans. One can was enough to paint all 4 guards. I also used the t125 clearcoat. Here is a link.Dupli-color Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcairns Posted December 25, 2003 Report Share Posted December 25, 2003 No Arrival Blue yet? What's up with these touch up paint companies? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilveradoSS04 Posted December 27, 2003 Report Share Posted December 27, 2003 Good job-looks great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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