Re: Wife's 48
 

Experiment with varying your travel speed, faster/slower to see if traveling to slow is the cause of the build up. Just a thought.

strong work!

nc

Re: Wife's 48
 

Good job your going in the right direction with your welding.

Re: Wife's 48
 

I had a great Father's Day weekend. I got about 10 hours of shop time and spent it on the firewall of the 48.

This is what the firewall looked like when I started, at least the driver's side.
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4479/...8a4d411b_c.jpgIMG_1790 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Now I do have a question since I bought 2 trucks and both were completely dissembled. There are four indented holes on the top of the firewall. They are spaced to look like they go to an interior brace, actually two braces. Will I need them when I go back together?

Then I started filling holes.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1726/...09959750_c.jpgIMG_1938 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr
You can see I left the four holes until I hear to fill them or not.

Now time for some of the larger holes.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1755/...850590b1_c.jpgIMG_1940 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

And finally
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1744/...70a79512_c.jpgIMG_1942 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr
Another question here. I plan to use an aftermarket steering column, so do I fill the old hole and cut a new one?

End of day on the rider's side.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1742/...fc1e07c5_c.jpgIMG_1941 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

One more question here, I think I saw where some have used that hole inside where the fender will mount for an AC line or something, or should I fill it too? I was thinking fill it and then put the AC/heater lines where the fit the best.


NO, I am not finished touching up the finished product. I have to check for pinholes and then finish up the grinding, you can see some shadows where I have not gotten all the weld smoothed out. I'm still doing some "gorilla" welds, getting better, but not good yet. The last welds of the day were a lot better, but I just ran out of time.

Re: Wife's 48
 

I say YES you will need the two brackets, or make your own. I ended up cutting the extra length of bolts off, and welded the nut to bolt, and then to the cab.

Pic 1 shows the two brackets that tie the firewall to dash.
Pic 2 shows the bolts coming thru the firewall
Pic 3 shows it all welded together.

Hope this helps...Jim

Re: Wife's 48
 

Will those still fit if I use the S10 brake set up?

Re: Wife's 48
 

I'll have to let the more knowledgeable S10 guys answer that...Jim

Re: Wife's 48
 

Happy to answer this question, but I'm not entirely sure reading the thread I know what you mean?

The easy way I found to mount the brake booster from an S10 is to cut out that section of the S10 firewall with the holes intact. I used that as a template. Some people on the forum actually cut the section from the AD firewall and weld in the S10 piece that way the holes are perfectly in place.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4238/...4c7d6552_z.jpg

Re: Wife's 48
 

9 hours in the shop today. It goes slow when you are learning. My welds are getting better, but they are still not good. I burned through 3 - 3" cutting discs reducing the weld. So I know there is room for improvement.

Thanks to you all, I fabricated several patches that actually fit very well. Some even had bends/rolls to them. So thank you all for that.

I did not have the energy to go back one more time and make sure I got every little hole and that all the welds are good and the grinds are smooth, but I'm very happy with todays work.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1824/...6d30e58b_c.jpgIMG_1950 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1797/...32b07473_c.jpgIMG_1951 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1840/...9707a5c9_c.jpgIMG_1952 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

I even got most of the floor done, but I'm debating on the battery box hole. I have a good original cover that I can use just for fun. Or I can go ahead and fill the hole since the battery will not be in that hole.

Re: Wife's 48
 

Some real nice work there. Maybe consider a smaller gauge welding wire so you're not putting down so much material when welding. I think I use 0.28 for sheet metal and .30 for most other things.

I kept my battery box hole so I could build something cool like a mini safe or a beer fridge haha. I figure I could find a use for a little compartment and on the surface, it still looks like a classic.

Someone clued me into this site a while back.
https://www.truckfridge.com/tb15/

Re: Wife's 48
 

Those truck fridges are cool.

I started using .023 Easy Grind wire to help my welds. When I do it right, there is very little "excess" weld. It is all on me. I'm getting better, but it still takes practice.

Re: Wife's 48
 

if you are using an actual grinding disc you may want to try a flap disc, just for giggles. it will surprise you. they also don't generate as much heat when using them as long as you are aware, like using a grinding disc and knowing that too much heat generated will produce more body work from warpage. they come in different grits so the finish can be done with a higher grit and be fairly smooth, actually.
I have several el cheapo deluxe mini grinders and they all have a different type of attachment. some are 4", a couple are 5". one has a wire wheel, one a cupped knotted wire wheel, one a flap disc with 40 grit, another 60, another 80 grit another an actual grinding disc, several with zip discs of different states of wear (sometimes you just need a small wheel to fit into a tight spot) and lastly a large and small shrinking disc. after that I also have several 1/4" die grinders with burrs of different shapes. the grinder with the extended shaft also is a handy one sometimes. harbor freight sells the stuff pretty cheap (especially compared to Canadian prices)

Re: Wife's 48
 

one little trick I have found to work well for finding the pinholes is to use a light on the back side and then look for bright spots. then when that is all fixed and you can't find any more bright spots then soak the area liberally with some wax and grease remover and look on the back side for any wet/damp areas. the bonus to this is that you will also see the reflection of the surface, which is very close to the contours you will see when it is painted. if it looks ripply, and you want smooth, you have some body work to do before rechecking for pin holes.

Re: Wife's 48
 

Thanks Raven. I'm not in your league yet, but I do have multiple electric and air grinders with multiple attachments. I haven't gone to a tool for each attachment yet, but I'm getting close.

I've been using a technique for removing the weld I read about on Garage Journal, MP&C recommended it. I am using a cutting disc and just clipping the top of the weld. Working it down slowly. This produces less heat than a grinding disc and only removes the metal where I place the cutting edge. Then I use a flap disc when I get the weld smoothed out the way I want it. It is time consuming, but it seems to work, except that my arms are dead after a day of doing it that way, but I'm sure that isn't the age...

Re: Wife's 48
 

Well, went to CTC Auto Ranch and picked up a few parts. Got the dash for the 54, 2 very nice single window doors, two front inner and outer fenders and a couple of solid running boards. Pictures later on that.

Here is CTC. VERY nice people!
Laura inspecting one of the trucks.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1790/...dd5ffb1f_c.jpgIMG_1955 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

A row of trucks to look through.
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/833/4...f0b2ccb4_c.jpgIMG_1956 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

A 54 dash, but not the one I got. I got one without the mirror mounted to it.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1828/...6dee8c78_c.jpgIMG_1957 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Now I have to figure out what to do with the 54 parts I have, 2 solid doors, two solid and straight bedsides, the great condition front fenders and decent grill. We are doing a "blended" truck. 54 cab, with everything else from 47 to 51 (I think that is right because of the single window doors).

Going to the shop now to start sorting and looking at the good and bad for body parts. I have 4 rear fenders that would take a bit of work to get right, a couple of running boards that are in pretty good shape, and a couple of straight bed sides that need a couple of patches.

Found a guy locally who is doing soda blasting. I've heard good things about soda blasting, so I'm thinking about taking all the parts I just got to him and get them clean so I can see what if anything I need to do to get them ready for prime. I'll get pictures today, but when I picked them up, it looked like the parts were in very good shape as far as dents or rust throughs.

Here is hoping that they look as good this morning as they did yesterday!

Re: Wife's 48
 

Been checking the "new" parts. Here are some pictures.

Here is the "new" dash. They cut it small, but I think I can get enough to make the patch I need. I was hoping to just replace the dash.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1786/...52614f2b_c.jpgIMG_1967 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

The doors are in good shape, no rust outs and for the most part they are straight.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1784/...631c43e1_c.jpgIMG_1961 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

I'm really pleased with the two sets of outer and inner fenders.
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/843/4...8f78e097_c.jpgIMG_1966 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/924/2...1413a96a_c.jpgIMG_1965 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr


I also got 2 running boards. Both need a bit of work. No rust throughs, but both have some minor dings in the outer edge, and one is bent a little. This is pretty heavy gauge steel. What would be the best way to straighten it?
The one in front is the "new" one.
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/920/2...fd7809d3_c.jpgIMG_1964 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1763/...e0b6f6bf_c.jpgIMG_1963 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Re: Wife's 48
 

wish we had a place around here like that to scrounge for parts.....nice collection
some heavy metal and a big hammer will get those close.....ive got a piece of 6x6 angle that's 1/2" thick that works good when clamped to my welding table

Re: Wife's 48
 

look at all those future projects hahaha

looks like a nice score of stuff

Re: Wife's 48
 

Nice parts. I could spend all day in that place.

Re: Wife's 48
 

Well, beauty is in the eye of the beer holder! I started on the "new" parts this weekend.

The last thing I did this weekend was look at the best looking fender of the bunch, and it turned out to have rust issues.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1762/...fa627946_c.jpgIMG_1979 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr
When I started looking it over closely, there was some rust on the underside, but the paint was still in tact on top. So I started messing around and found all of those little holes! It looks like someone stored it upside down and it held water. I started welding them up from the top side first. Some of them are so small that you can't stick a pin in them. I stopped at this point and will work on the welds and grinding again.

The best of the rear fenders turned out to have at least a quarter inch of bondo on it.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1828/...fcbac364_c.jpgIMG_1976 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr
The PO didn't weld up the crack/rip, just covered it with a think layer of bondo to "hold it in place", I guess. So I cleaned it up and welded the crack. When I get it blasted I'll start on the hammer and dolly on it.

One of the front fenders had been hit, and the PO welded the spot up, but didn't bring it out smooth first. I worked it with a hammer and dolly a bunch before working on that gorilla weld. This is the PO's weld after I've worked on it a bit.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1766/...fd12d36b_c.jpgIMG_1977 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr
There is another spot on this fender where it looks like it was hit with a small round object and it made a nice hole. The PO welded it up, but I can not figure out how to bring it out from that roll. It's the round hole on the left.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1762/...06a7debf_c.jpgIMG_1978 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Re: Wife's 48
 

keep working at it!

Re: Wife's 48
 

Regarding those 4 indented holes in the firewall

(Now I do have a question since I bought 2 trucks and both were completely dissembled. There are four indented holes on the top of the firewall. They are spaced to look like they go to an interior brace, actually two braces. Will I need them when I go back together?)

Those are for the dash brace/pedal support. I bought elevator bolts with a large flat head (got mine at Lowe’s) and ground the heads down until they fit down in the indent and bolted the bracket in to properly locate the bolts. Then I welded them from the firewall side and filled in the indents with a little Bondo.

Re: Wife's 48
 

the two larger ones are for the dash support, the two further to the center and slightly smaller are for the cowl vent mechanism.

Re: Wife's 48
 

I guess it's to be expected to some degree when working on a 70 year old truck

Re: Wife's 48
 

I've been working on welding up holes. I got the bottom of the doors done, no pics of that, I got the fenders welded up and beat out enough to prime and see what I have. So I've been trying to finish the cab on the 48.

I had to remove the dash, it was hacked all to heck by a po, so here it is without a dash.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1797/...4c14892d_c.jpgIMG_2007 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr
This is the last time you'll see this truck without a dash.

Now I have a dash that was removed including the A pillars that I took apart some time ago. I welded up the steering column indent and it was time for blasting. You will notice in the picture you can see the steering column indent, that is because it is a different steel and blasted differently. It is really smooth as is the choke hole.

My buddy who is buying the truck from me didn't want to spend the extra $60/hour for soda, so he went with a sand.

I have to say that prior to "sand" blasting the dash fit perfectly.

After sand blasting it looked like this, here it is all primed on the inside with self etch epoxy and the little lip has weld through self etch on it, and I thought it was ready to go in.
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/850/4...7048e28c_c.jpgIMG_2008 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Here it is bolted in with the 4 bolts.
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/932/4...77c89b1d_c.jpgIMG_2009 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Yes, that is it now sticking up above the front cowl. However, with a little messaging it went back into shape and fit pretty nicely.
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/928/4...752e34dd_c.jpgIMG_2010 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

And from the inside,
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/850/4...aeda18c0_c.jpgIMG_2011 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

I have not primed this side as I am going to take the entire cab to be SODA blasted and epoxy primed. I am not going to let him take a chance on another "sand" blaster.

All welded in and looking good,
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1831/...b8155a76_c.jpgIMG_2012 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

You can see the steering column indent here, it is smooth, and yes, that is the persuader I used to get it to fit so I could weld it. It looks good now. At the A pillar we'll have to do a little putty, but not much.

Now to get the frame cleaned up and cab stands started for this one so I can start on the cab of the 54 for the wife.

Re: Wife's 48
 

Nice job! It is really amazing how much heat sand blasting causes.

Re: Wife's 48
 

dash looks good, I havent ever attempted removing one and looks like I still wont.



how many trucks does your wife need? :lol::lol:

Re: Wife's 48
 

Long story. We got the 48 because she wanted a 5 window. I had it in the barn for several years waiting to get to it. Then we went to a car show and she saw a 54 with the "smooth" windshield and that was the one for her.

So my best friend from highschool on decided he would like the 48. As a result, I'm building the 48 for him and the 54 for my wife.

Re: Wife's 48
 

well I was just picking on you because of the thread title, but good that you are spreading it around!

Re: Wife's 48
 

Sand blasting doesn't cause heat, that is a very commonly thought myth. It does just the opposite if you feel the metal it's cooler, it has been blown with air remember. What causes the warpage is the pieces of sand are like little hammers that are thinning out the top layer of the metal. The top thus gets larger, and that is what warps the metal.

Brian

Re: Wife's 48
 

Oh good to know. Thanks

Re: Wife's 48
 

Well, my buddy came over today to help on his truck. He has myasthemia gravis, some call it "MS light". So any time he comes over we make the most of it.

He is taking the support off of a bed/running board filler here.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1859/...307d72f8_c.jpgIMG_2013 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Next he blew a hole in some sheet metal trying his hand at welding. I fixed it and he ground it down. After that, we started building the cab mounts.

Re: Wife's 48
 

haha tell him we ALL blow holes in sheetmetal. if there was a way to use that cold solder UV light stuff instead of welding I would buy stock in it.

Re: Wife's 48
 

Well we got to spend about 12 hours in the shop over the last two days. We got the cab mounts built, the next picture should look familiar.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1848/...59cc2ca0_c.jpgIMG_2014 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Thanks for the diagram.

So we got them built. My welding could use some improvement, but I got good penetration and I'm sure they won't come apart.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1847/...986a6897_c.jpgIMG_2015 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Then we started taking the cab off of the Camaro/54 frame. I'm going to put it on the body dolly so I can work on it. We built a wooden dolly for the 48 cab until it gets its test fit on the S10 frame. If you look on the right side of the picture you can see the back of the 48 and my body dolly under it. That is the one I can I used to do the repair panels.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1868/...06d55750_c.jpgIMG_4750 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

If you look at the lower drivers side door hinge you will see that it is still in the cab. It is held in by something, I'm thinking it may be the hinge pin as I've read about that. The upper hinge had a hinge pin that was about 1/8" out when pulled. This lower just won't come out.

Does anyone have an idea on how to get it out?

Also, the wooden dolly for the 48 is in the lower left corner.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1887/...e0b9f6d1_c.jpgIMG_4754 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

This is the Camaro/54 frame with the 283 and T350 that is going into the 48. When we get the cab test fit, this is next to be fit on the S10.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1886/...2055f80f_c.jpgIMG_4755 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

And the gratuitous shot of the 48 finally ready to be test fit - and off of my body dolly so I can start on the 54.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1846/...575eacd8_c.jpgIMG_4756 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

And here the 48 sits on the dolly so we can roll it around in the shop. The shop is FULL right now. I should post a picture. Never enough room.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1882/...b3f45d67_c.jpgIMG_4760 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

I hope with the long weekend we will get the 48 test fit and the frame and all of Richards parts to his house so he can start stripping and priming stuff.

It's been a good Labor Day weekend so far.

Re: Wife's 48
 

woop woop!

Re: Wife's 48
 

True dat! My daily routine is move the all the bikes, mower, power washer outside, then shuffle the rest of the junk out of my way to work. At the end of the day move it all back in...

Your work is looking good. Must be nice to have the lift! :metal:

Re: Wife's 48
 

Today is a new day, but the offending hinge was still stuck.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1857/...f12b9ac3_c.jpgIMG_2016 (1) by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

I fought with it for half an hour before I finally resigned myself to cutting it out.

First I had to make some room to get a saw in to cut the pin. So I used the cut off wheel to take the top of the hinge off.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1894/...5d2fe352_c.jpgIMG_2017 (1) by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

Then I started with the Sawzall. It had one long steel cutting blade, but it was old and dull. So back up plan was a hack saw blade, by hand.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1894/...f4dc51e1_c.jpgIMG_2018 (1) by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

So after half an hour of cutting with one hand, the pin was cut enough that I could break it with some long needle nose pliers and get the top of the pin and the hinge out.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1875/...891e7233_c.jpgIMG_2019 (1) by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

The pin had backed out of the top hinge about 3/8", it backed out of the bottom hinge over 1".

NOW, if I could find some willing sole to sell me two rebuildable drivers door hinges, cheap enough that I could rebuild them. Just the bottom would work if anybody has one.

Re: Wife's 48
 

oof that sucks, needing to cut the pin on a perfectly good hinge. why not weld the pin back together and reuse it? sure its a lot of planning to get it straight, and a lot of grinding once its welded, but you HAVE an original hinge.

I thought I needed one for mine too, I was glad it was capable of rehabilitation, aftermarket hinges are not great is what I have heard.

nice work otherwise!

Re: Wife's 48
 

Joe, I would love to have saved that hinge. However, I had to cut the top part of the hinge off to get the saw blade in there to cut off the pin.

I heard the same about new hinges, so if someone will just find me a set of hinges I'll be good on door hinges. I don't mind rebuilding them, but I need at least the 2 for the drivers door.

Re: Wife's 48
 

The simple things can be so frustrating sometimes.

Re: Wife's 48
 

Well, I got lucky with the hinge and it went back together just fine, it even fit back into the cab right.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1884/...c92b49f9_c.jpgIMG_2052 by Robert Moorman, on Flickr

NorCalGal has been kind enough to make new faceplates and so I'll be using the original 54 hinges.


The 48 is on the wooden dolly to be worked on when Richard is here. We cut the frame horns off the S10 and ground off the S10 body mounts to get ready to mount the Skymang version of the cab mounts for the 48. He called it a short day, so I stopped on the 48 and started on the 54.