nsdq3
Full Access Member
I was dreading installing these from all the horror stories I read, but they really aren't that bad. I did the passenger side first and it took about an hour from start to finish. The driver side only took about 10 minutes after learning from mistakes made on the other side.
It was probably luck, but no disasters. Didn't cross thread anything, lose anything or scratch anything.
Prep is the key. First, tape everything! Until you get the mounts snugged down there isn't any way that I found to keep them from making contact with the hood. The brackets have very sharp edges and will scratch the edge of the fender or hood very easily. I started with one layer of tape on just the hood and quickly realized that wasn't going to be enough. Just to be safe I placed 3 layers on the hood where the bracket was contacting and one on the bracket. Additionally, I taped off the areas within the wrench swing so I didn't have to worry about scratching anything when doing the install. I also ran tape over the "hell hole" that seems to suck in bolts and tools just to make sure nothing ended up down there.
Sharpie outline the hood brackets before removing anything. This reference will be extremely valuable when tightening everything up.
Disconnect both hood struts prior to starting, especially if you are doing this by yourself. I got lucky and found a PVC pipe at work that was close to the right length I needed. I taped bubble wrap onto it where it made contact with the bottom of the grille and foam padding where it rested between the radiator and bumper. This will allow you to manipulate the brackets to get both bolts to start cleanly.
The only tools I used was a 10mm ratcheting wrench and a 1/4 socket wrench. I thought this would save me time, but the back bolt still had to be turned with the open end of the wrench when the bracket was installed. There wasn't enough room between the bolt and the head of the wrench to get it on.
I don't remember if most guys that have done the install ground a flat side into the washers or not, I found it made it easier to get the bolts threaded easily.
I do remember that most said to do the back bolt first. After quite a few failed attempts to get the back started squarely I went ahead and started the front bolt first. This was just to be able to see what a correct bolt alignment looked like. One I had the front started with a couple turns by hand, I could place the rear bolt at the same orientation. It made installing the rear bolt much easier as I can definitely see how many have cross threaded the rear bolt. What seems to be straight isn't.
After both both are started, push the bracket as far towards the cab of the truck as possible. This gets rid of the interference between the hood and the bracket. Also, keep the bracket square to the hood mount. When I finished, the driver side set about 3/16 higher than the passenger side. Not a big deal but it set my OCD off. I realized the driver side bracket was canted outboard, causing it to sit higher.
Once both bolts are cleanly started, force the bracket into the position you want. I did a test closing of the hood just to make sure there wouldn't be any contact before tightening everything down. What worked best for me was flush against the hood bracket and as far towards the rear of the cab as possible. Now is where the sharpie outline of the original position of the hood brackets come into play. Keep the light bracket where you want it, but get the hood brackets back to their original position based off the sharpie outline.
One additional note, I marked the front bolt for each side before removal, but really didn't see a difference between the two of them.
The front bolt torques down easily with pretty much any 10mm tool. The rear, for me anyway, required an open 10mm wrench and some creative articulation to get it seated properly.
**alibi** I'm sure most know this, but to feed the bracket into position, turn it upside down to feed the mounting tab under the hood, then rotate it into mounting position.
That's it, reconnect hood struts, install your lights, remove tape and enjoy....
It was probably luck, but no disasters. Didn't cross thread anything, lose anything or scratch anything.
Prep is the key. First, tape everything! Until you get the mounts snugged down there isn't any way that I found to keep them from making contact with the hood. The brackets have very sharp edges and will scratch the edge of the fender or hood very easily. I started with one layer of tape on just the hood and quickly realized that wasn't going to be enough. Just to be safe I placed 3 layers on the hood where the bracket was contacting and one on the bracket. Additionally, I taped off the areas within the wrench swing so I didn't have to worry about scratching anything when doing the install. I also ran tape over the "hell hole" that seems to suck in bolts and tools just to make sure nothing ended up down there.
Sharpie outline the hood brackets before removing anything. This reference will be extremely valuable when tightening everything up.
Disconnect both hood struts prior to starting, especially if you are doing this by yourself. I got lucky and found a PVC pipe at work that was close to the right length I needed. I taped bubble wrap onto it where it made contact with the bottom of the grille and foam padding where it rested between the radiator and bumper. This will allow you to manipulate the brackets to get both bolts to start cleanly.
The only tools I used was a 10mm ratcheting wrench and a 1/4 socket wrench. I thought this would save me time, but the back bolt still had to be turned with the open end of the wrench when the bracket was installed. There wasn't enough room between the bolt and the head of the wrench to get it on.
I don't remember if most guys that have done the install ground a flat side into the washers or not, I found it made it easier to get the bolts threaded easily.
I do remember that most said to do the back bolt first. After quite a few failed attempts to get the back started squarely I went ahead and started the front bolt first. This was just to be able to see what a correct bolt alignment looked like. One I had the front started with a couple turns by hand, I could place the rear bolt at the same orientation. It made installing the rear bolt much easier as I can definitely see how many have cross threaded the rear bolt. What seems to be straight isn't.
After both both are started, push the bracket as far towards the cab of the truck as possible. This gets rid of the interference between the hood and the bracket. Also, keep the bracket square to the hood mount. When I finished, the driver side set about 3/16 higher than the passenger side. Not a big deal but it set my OCD off. I realized the driver side bracket was canted outboard, causing it to sit higher.
Once both bolts are cleanly started, force the bracket into the position you want. I did a test closing of the hood just to make sure there wouldn't be any contact before tightening everything down. What worked best for me was flush against the hood bracket and as far towards the rear of the cab as possible. Now is where the sharpie outline of the original position of the hood brackets come into play. Keep the light bracket where you want it, but get the hood brackets back to their original position based off the sharpie outline.
One additional note, I marked the front bolt for each side before removal, but really didn't see a difference between the two of them.
The front bolt torques down easily with pretty much any 10mm tool. The rear, for me anyway, required an open 10mm wrench and some creative articulation to get it seated properly.
**alibi** I'm sure most know this, but to feed the bracket into position, turn it upside down to feed the mounting tab under the hood, then rotate it into mounting position.
That's it, reconnect hood struts, install your lights, remove tape and enjoy....
