Got them old bent tailgate blues....

[hugh ness]

Hey guys, yes still plugging away at my 56 F100.
My project didn't come with a tub, so I bought one from Mar-K in the USA. I have to say it is an outstanding tub and it fitted together like it should.
The project did come with a tailgate but it was in poor condition. Last year a mate took it away as a bit of a fun project to see if he could pretty it up.
He had a good go at it before falling ill and he gave it back to me.
I'm hoping his illness wasn't caused by working on the tailgate.
Anyway, I got it back last week and realised it was decidedly bent. Looks like my mate has welded a bar across the top (it was missing the bar before) and has followed to countours of the bend in the tailgate, So now I have a custom bent tailgate with a solid bar bent in uniform with the rest of the tailgate.
Just wanted to get some of you guys to think about how I should go about straightening it?
My plan was to remove the top bar again and sandwich the tailgate between two hefty pieces of wood, clamp them and then weld a new straight bar across the top.
Thoughts guys?

[46OzHudson]

I would probably cut that bar off and weld a straight one back on makings sure your weld isn't causing it to bend as well.
Someone else might have an easier solution but I'm going to take a guess it will involve heating and shrinking

[hugh ness]

If the truck was running I could take it to the Woolworths car park and wait for someone to reverse their car into it which happens quite frequently there. That would straighten it up

[46OzHudson]

Or you could get Zuffen to go get some more bolts! (sorry too soon? )

[enjenjo]

You can decide for yourself what this is worth, but here's how I have straightened a couple tailgates in the past.

I do this in the grass in my yard. I lay the tailgate down in the yard with the bend up. I then lay a piece of 2 by 8 framing material on top of the tailgate with the ends spaced off the gate itself, with a small piece of wood at each end of the bend under the gate. I then drive one of the wheels of my car over the gate on the 2 by 8, and check the bend. adjust spacers closer or further away from the bend to adjust it and try again. Two or three tries usually get it straight.

[hugh ness]

I like the idea. Maybe I'd try a couple of tapered pieces on each end.
I'm driving my wife's beetle, so I will have to try this when she is not around. heheh.
The guy next door has a Ford Ranger (like, hasn't almost everyone?) Might ask him to come and have a roll in the grass with me.

[zuffen]

I think trying to straighten a piece of pipe is near impossible, with or without the tailgate.

I'd probably cut the pipe off and try and get the tailgate straight without the pipe. It should panel beat reasonably easy without the pipe holding it in a curve.

Then weld a new pipe on but spread the welds from side to side and end to end. In other words don't overheat it.

I asked myself, What would Go Jeep do? I think that's how he would attack it.

[Gojeep]

Don't have to drive on it. Jack up the vehicle and place the tailgate, with some timber at the very ends to start with, centred under the tyre over the worse part of the bend. Slowly let the jack down checking the progress. Will have to over bend to allow for spring back. You will have to move it around to centre over the 'new' worse bit and maybe even change the position of the timbers.

[hugh ness]

Hi Marcus. I'm with you now. Great idea. That way you can regulate the descent of the wheel on the tailgate.
Might have to update my jack. I've got one of those jacks that's fine going up, but it's one of those "scare the living bejezus out of you" jacks coming down.
I think also, will cut that bent pipe off and grab a new piece, start again, as Zuffen said. Pointless messing with this diabolical mess.

[Gojeep]

You might end up with the same bend welding the new pipe on! This would be from welding heat shrink for sure and too hard to hammer stretch it out. Why I avoided doing it this way as seen this exact thing happen to many others trying.
Got nothing to loose trying to fix this one first. Just a screw or scissor type jack would be the best control.

[hugh ness]

I guess at the end of the day there is more than one way to do it.
This is what I came up with this afternoon.
I cut out the old bent pipe and bought a new piece of gal slightly narrower. I already had a couple of pieces of channel and sat one piece over the tailgate and another underneath. Coughed up and bought a couple of big G clamps to compress it together. I was initially gonna drill a half dozen holes through the channel on both sides and through the tailgate and run some threaded bar through them and compress it that way, but this achieves same result. Couple of wood clamps I scabbed to push the new pipe hard into the cavity left by the old pipe.
Should be easy now just to weld the whole thing together.
The good thing is it has really brought the tailgate into line. The bottom is still a touch out, but nothing a block of wood and a sledgie won't sort.

[hugh ness]

Got the old Aussie flag flapping away there. Once I get the tailgate on I'll take it for a drive and ram raid Woolworths Lol!

[jeffa]

Got the old Aussie flag flapping away there. Once I get the tailgate on I'll take it for a drive and ram raid Woolworths Lol!

Yeah, my dog-walking hat is a blue Aussie one I bought from Kmart believe it or not.
Its been ok out and about so far, but I'd better not wear it in Woolies in case the Manager asks me to leave for stirring up his customers!

[zuffen]

Well done.

Now to keep the distortion to a minimum, so take your time and spread the heat and let it cool.

No problem if it takes all day to do it.

[hugh ness]

Thanks mate. Probably tackle it tomorrow. I hear it's gonna be 35 in the shade here today. It might weld itself.
Good luck going to Woolies, Jeffa. stick it up them