1st Gen Front Speaker Install Standard Cab

I just got in from putting in new Kicker 6x8 speakers in the front doors of my Standard Cab 4x4 (2004).

1 - the butt crimps (tee hee) that Crutchfield supplied didnt really grab onto the wires well, so I twisted the wires together and put a standard cap on it (like in an electrical receptacle in the house) and taped it. Anyone know if this is no bueno for this application? They work just curious if theres something wrong with doing that that i dont know about?

2 - the Kickers i bought are just about the same size as the factory speakers that i took out, but it appeared that the mount on the speakers left a bit of a gap between the plastic speaker bracket in the door and the actual speaker. i know holes are pretty much an audio killer - do i have to buy an aftermarket bracket to make this hole go away?

thanks in advance for the advice.

 

Caps and holes are no bueno. You should get right size butt connectors with heat shrink. Moisture and water gets in the doors.

 

Today is a great time to learn how to solder and heat shrink.

 

I think the speakers should be 6x9 not 6x8. 6x8 are generally used by ford, while everyone else uses 6x9 or 6 inch. 6x8 will work, but you'll have that gap.

EDIT, maybe not, guess the 1st gen used 6x8

 

1. Def solder and tape/heatshrink vs crimp caps and butt connectors, nothing comes loose if done right.

2. If you are set on the 6x8, you might need to grind down part of the back of the bracket to get the speaker to clear. If that's not the case, you might be able to use foam gasket to cover it up. Post a pic though that might help.

2A. https://catalog.pac-audio.com/catalog/best-kits-installation-accessories/bktsb900 - is normally what we would use anytime we switched out speakers in a 1st gen 01-04, the 95-00's already had 6.5s.