Diesel Bombers - Custom Bowtie

Ok, I had already done this, but didnt get to finish when i got called to work, so since I was redoing it, I figured Id take a few pics and make a small writeup.

This is a pretty easy DIY, that is inexpensive, and just a way to customize your truck, and somethin to do between other BOMBS that you are saving up for!

Tools Needed for this job, 10mm deep well socket, flat screwdriver and about 3/4 of a beer.

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First, pop the hood. Now if you have a small arm, u can avoid some of the disassembly, and even with a big arm, you dont have to remove the grille assembly. I chose to remove it all because its very easy, and it lets me get the bugs, and small birds that are stuck in the grille .. out.

To remove the Radiator cover, use your small flat screwdriver and pop the center piece out of these clips , and then pull the whole clip out of the cover.

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There are 7 of these clips total. Once they are removed, just set the cover in a place where you and the kids wont step on it..

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Now, grab your grille on the top, on each side, just in from where it snaps into the front end bracing, and pull out just enough to un-clip it. Then between the headlight, and parking light, put a couple fingers in there and pop it out.. its all just snapped in.

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Next, I grabbed the grille on both sides at the bottom corners, and pulled out as to unsnap the the bottom 2 clips, and its free.. If your like me, and you dont own those fancy body panel stands, just use a party chair, they work great, and they support the grille assembly just fine.

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Now if you didnt have any small birds or big bugs to remove from your grille, and your arm fits comfortably behind the grille after removing the radiator cover, just reach down in there with your 10mm socket and ratchet, and remove these two bolts.. BUT, if you did remove your grille, and its sitting nicely on your "redneck" body panel stand, you can easily remove your 2 10 mm bolts from the bowtie.

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Once the bowtie is removed, I started with 600 grit sandpaper, just to get a nice smooth, yet paintable surface. and I wet sanded the entire time. Just to keep it clean. I used about 95% water, and about 5% simple green so everything would get wiped and washed away.

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Once you have it sanded, you can now find a low wind, high heat area (a driveway works fine) place to do the spraying. I chose to prop mine up on a cinder block, but if you like, you can also use some fishing line and hang it from a branch in the yard so you can paint it like that..

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Once you have done your painting/clearcoating, you need to let it dry REALLY good before you handle it and before you go down the road.. Just so you know, I used 2 coats of flat black primer, 4 coats of gloss black, and 3 coats of acrylic enamel clear coat.

I hope that helps someone!