The biggest reason that I needed to get the frame on the ground was for the next step...the gas tank. I'm going with a 19 gallon EFI Boyd Welding tank. This thing is a piece of art! Since I will have a wood bed, I decided to go with the flush floor option. I also opted for their mounting kit, which will make for a easy clean install. For safety sake, I had them install a rollover vent. No in tank fuel pump though, we will go a different route for that.
First thing to do is note that I fixed the two spots of rust that were left on the frame rails where I had forgotten to remove a brace in earlier steps. I taped off the area and sanded the rust to bare metal with a Dremel and a flap wheel. Then I coated the area with POR-15 Chassis Black. This was done a few days ago, but I forgot to mention it and forgot to take a photo.
Next thing to do was test fit. The tank is fairly light when it's empty, but a floor jack makes it easy to maneuver it around once it's in place. Being able to move it around is important so you can square up the tank in the space. It's kind of a tight fit, but there is plenty of room to center it up. Once I got it where I wanted it, I used tape to outline the mounts on the bottom of the frame rails. This will help me relocate it later. Once it was outlined I removed the tank for the next step.
Next, I measured exactly where I needed to drill the mounting holes in the tank. I had to be careful here so the existing holes in the frame didn't interfere. I also needed to make sure I was using a flat part of the frame rail and not where it starts to curve up toward the shock crossmember. I used the mounting brace as my template for all of this. When I had the brace where I wanted it, I used and automatic punch to locate the starting point for my drill bit. This should eliminate the chance of the bit walking and messing something up. Once I drilled the holes in the tank, I used my reference tape to reinstall the tank onto the frame. Here I transferred the hole pattern onto the bottom of the rail and repeated my drilling process. When all of the drilling was complete, I installed the tank one last time and tested fitted the mounts and hardware. Everything fit great! Now I have to send the braces to be painted so they blend in with the frame.
