Ahh, sheet metal work. I think I get more excited about doing sheet metal work than anything else on this truck.
When I left Active Duty Coast Guard in 2004, I decided I was going to open up a hot rod shop. An old friend of mine agreed to become a partner. Boy was that a mistake. We both built several cars and trucks before opening the shop, so we knew what we were doing. The problem was we got way too big way too fast. We quickly fell behind and then my partner backed out on me. I was stuck with a bunch of trucks to finish and not enough time. I worked 18 hours days for about 6 months and finally got everything out the door. As soon as I finished the last one I closed the doors and went to find a job that was less stressful. I was offered a job bending exhaust pipe at a local shop and I took it. I loved it, but after being there for 6 months I did a brake job on a truck for a guy and when I was done he offered me a job as a diesel mechanic on an assembly line for an armored vehicle manufacturer.
Oops, off subject again... My favorite part about running the shop was sheet metal work. I've done just about everything from mild to wild. Since I'm not doing anything custom on this truck, the only fun I get to have is installing replacement panels.
Front cab wall before.
And during the weld process. I just need to apply some filler and drill some holes to finish it up.
