Pete's (Now Nate's) 2003 Denali Budget Build thread

[drowssap]

I have a set of depots on my tahoe and there's 2 significant hot spots. It drives me crazy. Right now I just have some 5000k HIDs in my stock denali headlights

The Tahoe lights do create hot spots even with just the halogen bulbs. Best would be to get a new set of clear bulbs and retro in some decent projectors. I don't think there is anything else that you can do with those lights to achieve the quality you are after. Also....I may be wrong about this so please do your own homework but better projectors may even help the denali lights. No mods needed as it is just a plug and play with adapters that some sell.

 

[Bombsquad85]

The Tahoe lights do create hot spots even with just the halogen bulbs. Best would be to get a new set of clear bulbs and retro in some decent projectors. I don't think there is anything else that you can do with those lights to achieve the quality you are after. Also....I may be wrong about this so please do your own homework but better projectors may even help the denali lights. No mods needed as it is just a plug and play with adapters that some sell.

Oh yea I'm aware. I have had retros in the past. I'm not concerned about the tahoe. I'm selling it now that I have my denali

 

[Sevenevez]

Perhaps

Btw do you have a list of supplies you used for paint? I need to paint my roof, hood, bumpers and hatch and I'm thinking of tackling it myself possibly

i think i listed everything i used, but off the top of my head. the single most important thing is - does your compressor have enough CFM to lay it out without having to recycle itself during the middle of your spray? if you have at least 6-7 CFM and about a 20-30gal tank you can do it but the gun you use has to be able to use a lower CFM as well.
if you dont need primer/sealer you can get away with your base color and reducer. then clear and hardener. You will good supply of tape and masking paper and plastic covering saves a ton of time unless you plan on spraying everything separately off the vehicle. mixing cups and sticks, respirator, prep-sol/degreaser, tack rags, paper filter funnels etc.. If you get it mixed in your city at a paint shop they will get you what you need as well. better quality paint and clear you use is pretty important. Might sound like a lot. But man, once you get to spraying, it all goes kinda fast. Also, you generally want the temperature in your garage/outside to be at least 60 degrees or higher

 

[Sevenevez]

The Tahoe lights do create hot spots even with just the halogen bulbs. Best would be to get a new set of clear bulbs and retro in some decent projectors. I don't think there is anything else that you can do with those lights to achieve the quality you are after. Also....I may be wrong about this so please do your own homework but better projectors may even help the denali lights. No mods needed as it is just a plug and play with adapters that some sell.

i miss the factory self leveling Projectors in my BMW and Lexus were great

 

[Bombsquad85]

i think i listed everything i used, but off the top of my head. the single most important thing is - does your compressor have enough CFM to lay it out without having to recycle itself during the middle of your spray? if you have at least 6-7 CFM and about a 20-30gal tank you can do it but the gun you use has to be able to use a lower CFM as well.
if you dont need primer/sealer you can get away with your base color and reducer. then clear and hardener. You will good supply of tape and masking paper and plastic covering saves a ton of time unless you plan on spraying everything separately off the vehicle. mixing cups and sticks, respirator, prep-sol/degreaser, tack rags, paper filter funnels etc.. If you get it mixed in your city at a paint shop they will get you what you need as well. better quality paint and clear you use is pretty important. Might sound like a lot. But man, once you get to spraying, it all goes kinda fast. Also, you generally want the temperature in your garage/outside to be at least 60 degrees or higher

Nice thanks. My compressor right now will definitely need to be retired. It was a sale item from HF and is too small. I want a reason to get a stronger compressor. Unfortunately I might have to wait a year or so until I can get a house with a garage.

In the meantime I might look into wrapping the roof and bringing the hood and bumpers to a body shop

When I took my roof racks off I saw that there were white spots where the clear coat AND color had rubbed off

 

[HiHoeSilver]

hmm. doesnt the higher number constitue brightness? i need to take a look at mine closely and see if its printed on them

The K(elvin) rating is the color. It has "nothing" to do with brightness. An incandescent light bulb is 2700K. As the scale goes up, the light color gets cooler. So, think this:
2700K, traditional warm light
3500-4300K, pure white light
4500-5000, retail /operating room
6000K, blue

 

[Sevenevez]

The K(elvin) rating is the color. It has "nothing" to do with brightness. An incandescent light bulb is 2700K. As the scale goes up, the light color gets cooler. So, think this:
2700K, traditional warm light
3500-4300K, pure white light
4500-5000, retail /operating room
6000K, blue

oh snap. nice. i get it now. haha i was way off. i bet mine are like 6000k then.
thanks for the explanation

Nice thanks. My compressor right now will definitely need to be retired. It was a sale item from HF and is too small. I want a reason to get a stronger compressor. Unfortunately I might have to wait a year or so until I can get a house with a garage.

In the meantime I might look into wrapping the roof and bringing the hood and bumpers to a body shop

When I took my roof racks off I saw that there were white spots where the clear coat AND color had rubbed off

i mean, if you dont have a garage and there is a day with No wind, you could do it outside. And regarding the roof, mine was the same. i just sanded those areas smooth and honestly my roof probably only got 2 coats of everything. Well the front and the back i did 3 coats but the bulk of it is so hidden to the human eye i didnt care. All i am saying is.. you can do it. its a good amount of work but i can tell you the feeling of accomplishment when you are done is amazing.

 

[Bombsquad85]

oh snap. nice. i get it now. haha i was way off. i bet mine are like 6000k then.
thanks for the explanation



i mean, if you dont have a garage and there is a day with No wind, you could do it outside. And regarding the roof, mine was the same. i just sanded those areas smooth and honestly my roof probably only got 2 coats of everything. Well the front and the back i did 3 coats but the bulk of it is so hidden to the human eye i didnt care. All i am saying is.. you can do it. its a good amount of work but i can tell you the feeling of accomplishment when you are done is amazing.

I have no doubt I could do it I just don't know how good it'll look haha. I think I'm gonna try my hand with a wrap yo hold me over. At least that way I can grind down the bolts for the roof racks, plug the hole for onstar and xm and the body work will be done. The wrap can cover it until I'm ready for paint

 

[05Single]

The Tahoe lights do create hot spots even with just the halogen bulbs. Best would be to get a new set of clear bulbs and retro in some decent projectors. I don't think there is anything else that you can do with those lights to achieve the quality you are after. Also....I may be wrong about this so please do your own homework but better projectors may even help the denali lights. No mods needed as it is just a plug and play with adapters that some sell.

Then he loses the u-bar, and we don't want that lol.
But yes there is an adapter to put in better bowls and cut off shield for oem Denali heads that are straight plug and play and create a much better output.
Maybe the u-bar lights are similar but I haven't seen anyone try it yet as they're a pretty new style.

 

[Sevenevez]

Then he loses the u-bar, and we don't want that lol.
But yes there is an adapter to put in better bowls and cut off shield for oem Denali heads that are straight plug and play and create a much better output.
Maybe the u-bar lights are similar but I haven't seen anyone try it yet as they're a pretty new style.

ha, true. the U-Bar heads are staying!

 

[drowssap]

Then he loses the u-bar, and we don't want that lol.

ha, true. the U-Bar heads are staying!

PSSSHHH!! I was NOT talking about removing those U-bars at all!! But what you said was kind of interesting regarding the new bowls possibly fitting them! My post was to bombsquad!

 

[05Single]

PSSSHHH!! I was NOT talking about removing those U-bars at all!! But what you said was kind of interesting regarding the new bowls possibly fitting them! My post was to bombsquad!

Oh my bad , too many posts to keep track of lol
But I still wanted to throw the idea into Pete's head about retrofitting his heads after seeing the , no offence but crappy output.
I know my projectors were worse with hids, much better output with halogen lights. Might switch to halogens and see @Sevenevez if you get bored later.

 

[Sevenevez]

i saw Red in some other thread mention using "Scrubbing Bubbles" on the interior, so i got some, and tried it out. Which, my leather actually wasnt even dirty but i cleaned it anyways. But then i tried it on the carpet, and before you know it i was scrubbing all my Nike's. haha, stuff works great on almost anything. But i did notice my leather looked kinda dry the next day. So i rubbed it all down with some Leather Conditioning Cream

i have had this stuff since i died my seats in my Sierra.
Which brought back some memories.

If anyone is wondering if you can dye your leather seats. You sure can. I did it on my OBS and they turned out great. I got rid of the ugly fabric bench seat and got some grey leather seats out of a Honda Odyssey and dyed them all black. Made some brackets and mounted them in the truck. They were confortable as hell and had fold down armrests on both sides. I know this has nothing to do with my Denali, in case someone was wondering if you can dye your leather seats with good results. I had that truck for about 4 years and the leather never faded one bit.


Here's the kit i got from LeatherWorld.com

Grey Leather (before)

Black Leather (3 applications) After

Ugly bench seat interior
Before

After

 

[Sevenevez]

If you recall, my compressor had a leak in the pressure switch unit. Luckily it was still under warranty. So i finally took mine back (exchange) and got a brand new one at no charge. Thanks Harbor Freight!

 

[Bombsquad85]

@Sevenevez can you send a link to the compressor you used

 

[Sevenevez]

@Sevenevez can you send a link to the compressor you used

you bet. best 120v 30gal compressor for the price out there

https://www.harborfreight.com/29-gal-2-HP-150-PSI-Cast-Iron-Vertical-Air-Compressor-61489.html

 

[Sevenevez]

Just the Tip!

Good ol @Galante was kind to point out how ugly my factory exhaust pipe was.
So i bought the Denali one small christmas gift.

I got it from one of our Forum vendors --> @GotExhaust.com

i was doing some measuring last night. i think i am going to have to take about 4-5 inches off my oem pipe to get this to sit just how i want it. Maybe after Christmas i will bang it out.

 

[Bombsquad85]

Just the Tip!

Good ol @Galante was kind to point out how ugly my factory exhaust pipe was.
So i bought the Denali one small christmas gift.

I got it from one of our Forum vendors "GotExhaust"

i was doing some measuring last night. i think i am going to have to take about 4-5 inches off my oem pipe to get this to sit just how i want it. Maybe after Christmas i will bang it out.

Thanks for the link. Are you gonna weld that tip on?

 

[Sevenevez]

Thanks for the link. Are you gonna weld that tip on?

nah, it'll be tucked under there enough that you wont even know whether its welded or not. You know me, i wont take this truck to a shop unless its mandatory. Pete's Garage only

 

[PG01]

nah, it'll be tucked under there enough that you wont even know whether its welded or not. You know me, i wont take this truck to a shop unless its mandatory. Pete's Garage only

Love it