My tailgate panel on my 87 is just in bad shape. Stained and just looks like crap. Does anyone know how to clean it to look like new? Or where can I buy one for cheap? The LMC truck ones are $400

 

I used never dull on mine and it cleaned up really nice

 

That's great because Ford wants both arms, both legs and your first born for a new one
!

 

Yeah ridiculous how expensive they are. The plastic insert was broken on mine. I found just the plastic for like $150. Needless to say it hasnt been replaced

 

I've used brasso on mine with good results.

 

From what I've found out the Trim Panel is Anodized Aluminum, and there is a thin coating on it. And it's the coating that gives the Panel that cloudy white look, and it gets older & is exposed to the elements it just gets worse. And there's really nothing you can do to get it shining like new again while it has the coating on it, so I've heard of people removing the coating so they can polish the bare Aluminum back to a really nice shine. But if you remove the coating your going to have to clean & polish it more often.

 

Has anyone considered using a headlight restore or trim restore like wipe new? Assuming it has a plastic coating over the aluminum and not clear coat, it seems like a plastic restore would work.

This product was awesome that I used on my headlights but doesn't come with nearly enough sealant for a whole tailgate. I've had luck with Wipe New as well and have a thread on it as well.

https://www.f150forum.com/f2/wipe-new-180770/


Anyone think this approach could work?

 

go to a junkyard and get one. on the other side of the tail is a panel. take the panel off and that part is held on by brackets inside.