speedy mate

I have a 99 F250 SD that I just picked up for super cheap. The bottom left side of the tailgate is what I need help with. The hinge that bolts to the bed is still there, but the hinge insert that is part of the tailgate is gone. It looks like it rusted and fell off a long time ago. The only thing holding the tailgate up on that side is the cable.

Has anyone fabbed a tailgate insert that they welded to the tailgate? Ford wants $500+ for a new tailgate plus the cost of painting and transferring handle parts. I'm on the hunt for a cheap DIY fix that involves some kind of metal ring from the hardware store that serves as the hinge insert.

I do not want to dish out lots of money, and even if I could, I do not want to pick up a working tailgate that is a completely different color (even they are hard to find on craigslist / junkyards / etc)

Your help is greatly appreciated. Hope this all made sense.

speedy mate

Ok well the problem is going to be resolved. The tailgate inset I spoke of was still on the bedside hinge. It looks like it had rusted and broke from the tailgate. Gonna have it welded back to the tailgate and should be good to go. No fab work needed.