In preparation for the AHMTA Southwest Military Transport Show, I recently painted the inside of the cab on my M818. I think the outside of the truck is pretty good, and I wanted the inside to match. I removed most of the runs and high spots in the old paint with a wire wheel and sanded down the few rough spots. I took the seats and seat belts out and took off most of the data plates in preparation to paint the interior. I masked off the windows, gauges, steering wheel, and other parts I didn't want paint on.
The paint is the same Rapco Gillespie 383 green that I have on the outside of the truck. This time, I used spray cans instead of firing up the paint gun. While it is considerably more expensive to use the cans, it is nice to be able to paint when the clean up is just throwing the empty can away. I used 6 cans to do the inside of the cab and 1 more to do all the various accessories, like the seat bases.
I removed the bench seat and added another spring seat base on the passenger side. The seats themselves are FMTV seats. The only comments I have on them so far is that while I like the kidney wings and overall shape, I kinda dislike the 90 degree angle they are fixed at. They are a bit "longer" front to back, so they probably put my legs a bit closer to the steering wheel, but I can't say that bothered me. They aren't very soft, but I'm hoping that they will "break in" as they are sat on more. They do look good, though.
I rebuilt the air wipers and they seem to work pretty well now. The driver's side runs a bit faster for some reason, but I don't think its a problem. I added the ANCO wiper arms and blades that others have. They seem to actually move water out of the way so you can see, rather than just move the water around in your way like the OEM ones. They look different, but painting them green means that most people will have no idea they're different.
My buddy made the shifter boots by copying the existing ones that I had. I think they turned out pretty good. They are 1000D cordura and seem to do a good job of keeping the hot air out of the cab. I riveted them onto the metal parts from the old boots.
I have a minty hardtop with a matching interior to put on it as well, but I ran out of time before the show. Once I do that, I think the truck will be lookin' pretty good overall. I also have a cab reinforcement plate to add at some point. I probably should have added that when I had the seats out, but again, I ran out of time. Plus, I'm not looking forward to putting in 95 rivets.
These pictures are all from the AHMTA Southwest Military Transport Show at Falcon Field airport in Mesa, AZ. My truck won the "People's Choice" award and I got a nice plaque.
Pretty tight looking truck there CB. Nice upgrades. Awesome job.
Thanks.
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Be sure to put down those plastic floor and seat covers that the Jiffy lube places uses so you don't mess up the interior.
Yeah, thats the problem with making it look nice - When you mess it up, you notice it much more than normal. I prefer the balance between looking good and still being functional.
Cab paint job, new seats, etc...
TRUCK LOOKS GOOD---WHEN DO YOU WANT TO START ON MINE?
