14-18 tailgate handle disassembly.

[cbrsilv15]

I painted my handle 3 years ago and it’s been holding up great. I decided to paint the spare handle I had and take it apart this time for 100% paint coverage. This is how I did it.
 
I took a hacksaw to the pin holding the handle to the assembly. Cut off as little as you need to, so you have plenty of pin to deal with.
 

 
Side the pin out and take the spring off. You’ll have to unscrew the small philips screw on the white washer so you can pull the mechanism slightly off so that the handle will clear, and you can separate the two.
 

 
Now the handle will be completely apart. I put the screw and spring back in for the time being so they wouldn’t get lost.
 
Paint however you decide to. I washed with dish soap, sanded down with 220. Sanded some more. Then more sanding. Primed. Waited 48 hrs and sanded some more with 600g this time. Base coat, clear coat and then you’re golden.
 

 
I had a friend at work use his die set and threaded the end of the pin so I could use a nut to reattach it. I wanted to do it this way vs buying a long bolt and a nut to make sure the diameter was perfect, and there wouldn’t be any slop once together. I chose to use a dab of red loctite and some fishing string to make my own nylon nut.
 

 
This is why I said to leave the pin as long as possible. There’s not much room to thread on the nut.
 

 
I’m letting it sit overnight and I’ll probably install it this weekend sometime.
 

 
Sit back and admire.
 
 
 
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[Codman67]

Good job but I didn’t cut the pin I used a punch and hammer to get it out and tapped it back together, looks better painted?

[cbrsilv15]

The end of the pin is crimped so it wont come out. I had to cut the end off. I was worried it would break the plastic or elongate the hole when it came out. 

Edited April 1, 2019 by cbrsilv15

[TX LIMO]

Very nice looking. Was contemplating tackling this project at some point. Thank you for the in-depth explanation of the process.


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[Codman67]

Yes mine was the same way but it turned out everything went back together perfect wish they came from factory painted.