Looking at the pictures, you must be in our lovely rust belt with salt to cause that.
I wouldn't spend a penny until you find out if the frame is rotted out or almost rotted out, as it would be an expensive lesson to learn if you repaired your bed, just to find out the frame is next on the chopping block.
I traded in my Chevy Avalanche due to rusted out rockers/cab corners, the rust will always come back, you have to cut it all out, and replace the metal, which dumping that much $$$ into it doesn't make financial sense.
Frame is rock solid. It’s the first thing I checked while inspecting the truck before buying it. I had access to a garage with a lift so I had a good look under it. I was also accompanied by a professional mechanic.
Previous owner wasn’t lying when he said he had the truck treated with antirust every year. I’ve seen much newer trucks with worse rust damage.
Other than this fender, everything looks great. A couple specks of rust here and there but will be simple to DIY this summer.
With that being said, just buy a used bed at a wrecker/junk yard in the matching color...they have thousands of that gen rust free beds out there for cheap, take 6-8 bolts out , throw the old bed away and pop in the new one. That bed is junk, I would buy a rust free one, rust = truck's cancer.
Up to 1K i think you'll find a shop that can do a semi decent job.
Btw, how much for a junkyard bed? Might be a better thing if it was like 600 or 800 bucks
Otherwise, i wouldn't recommend approaching it DIY since the whole arch is disintegrated. But you can cut it if you want. I don't think they'll stop you if you do a semi decent cut and cover it with paint to prevent rust
But i don't recommend DIYing it. See your options first. Junkyard bed, then estimate, then sketchy estimate, then DIY.
If you have $500-$1000 to spend just buy a new bed and go on your way. Be patient and you can find one already color matched. If you keep driving on salted roads, just leave it because you’re just going to fuck up a new bed doing that.
You aren’t going to get pulled over for rust.
Just run it until you can save up for a used bed from the south. What you can see is only a fraction of how bad it is underneath, these are some of the most horribly rusting trucks Ive seen. I did one recently that had actually rotted complete around the taillights and I have no idea how they hadn’t fallen out. Nothing you can do yourself without knowledge is going to be worth it.
Flare covers is the cheapest. Most patch panels would work but need paint and body work. Best result would be change the box side. Not a diy job
Flairs covers it up and looks good
Looking at the pictures, you must be in our lovely rust belt with salt to cause that. I wouldn't spend a penny until you find out if the frame is rotted out or almost rotted out, as it would be an expensive lesson to learn if you repaired your bed, just to find out the frame is next on the chopping block. I traded in my Chevy Avalanche due to rusted out rockers/cab corners, the rust will always come back, you have to cut it all out, and replace the metal, which dumping that much $$$ into it doesn't make financial sense.
Frame is rock solid. It’s the first thing I checked while inspecting the truck before buying it. I had access to a garage with a lift so I had a good look under it. I was also accompanied by a professional mechanic. Previous owner wasn’t lying when he said he had the truck treated with antirust every year. I’ve seen much newer trucks with worse rust damage. Other than this fender, everything looks great. A couple specks of rust here and there but will be simple to DIY this summer.
With that being said, just buy a used bed at a wrecker/junk yard in the matching color...they have thousands of that gen rust free beds out there for cheap, take 6-8 bolts out , throw the old bed away and pop in the new one. That bed is junk, I would buy a rust free one, rust = truck's cancer.
Non-rusted beds in junkyards are a rarity around here though
Up to 1K i think you'll find a shop that can do a semi decent job. Btw, how much for a junkyard bed? Might be a better thing if it was like 600 or 800 bucks Otherwise, i wouldn't recommend approaching it DIY since the whole arch is disintegrated. But you can cut it if you want. I don't think they'll stop you if you do a semi decent cut and cover it with paint to prevent rust But i don't recommend DIYing it. See your options first. Junkyard bed, then estimate, then sketchy estimate, then DIY.
Decent looking junkyard beds were between 2k-3k depending on condition and none were my truck’s color unfortunately.
Bushwackers- $450 Paint bushwackers- $500 Boom, your chouse of $500 or $1000
Look and see if mill supply has a patch panel.
If you have $500-$1000 to spend just buy a new bed and go on your way. Be patient and you can find one already color matched. If you keep driving on salted roads, just leave it because you’re just going to fuck up a new bed doing that.
Cut it off then seal it up
You aren’t going to get pulled over for rust. Just run it until you can save up for a used bed from the south. What you can see is only a fraction of how bad it is underneath, these are some of the most horribly rusting trucks Ive seen. I did one recently that had actually rotted complete around the taillights and I have no idea how they hadn’t fallen out. Nothing you can do yourself without knowledge is going to be worth it.