Re: A '54 named Busty
 

next it was time to flatten out the bumpies so that our newly crafted brackets would butt up nice and flat against this sheet metal

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

to lay them down nice and flat and keep the metal from fighting itself I decided to cut some relief cuts, now I've never done did this before, so if I did it wrong let me know

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

with the cuts made, I did some hammering (aka the fun part) and saw the gaps close up and even buckle in some places - very interesting, shows the process is working

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

so I followed the same lines and re cut them open for the second time

... and the beatings continued, until morale improved!

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and pretty soon we had what we was after, a nice flat surface for mountability of our brackets

that post looks crooked in one of the pics, but it won't be bolted down, the factory holes are also on that curvy part so I am not worried

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

trade of the tricks

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

then it was time to make some sparks, and I remember why I don't use these types of clamps - once the metal shrinks after welding they are a PITA to get out

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

next I prepped all the "extra" holes for closure

gonna use an old Jamaican trick on the big ones, shove a washer in it and just like that you wen't from having to fill a one inch hole to filling in a 3/16ths

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

for the smaller holes I just used a copper backing plate that I made out of cutting open and flattening a piece of copper pipe (I know they make spatulas for this type of work, but we run what we brong)

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and for the tiny ones I just used hopes and dreams

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Cutting relief slots worked well, just like filling the holes.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and then it was off to the other side, now despite the fact that when the inner fender literally fell off it nearly cut my nose off, have a scar to prove it, ha ha I still sat there in my thinking chair with a beer and some potato chips and stared at the exposed front clip - I swear I don't know what it is, but I can sit there for hours just marveling at all the engineering that went into it, like a moth to a flame

can anyone relate?

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

anybody know what this is called, found it right next to the brake pedal?

did trucks come with two brakes back then? one for each foot or something? :confused:

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

yup, hey, GOOD MORNING !!!

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Morning. You're up early. That peddle wouldn't be for a clutch would it?

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and here's a little before and after comparison of the driver side inner fender after the dance of the wire wheel (don't you dare tell my wife I did the dirt and grime transfer on our back patio)

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and here are all the hand slicers removed just from that one inner fender (yes I'll be wishing there was a hook or two later when I go to route the headlight wiring, ha ha, but oh well, form over function, things must look smooth)

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

I was on such a wire wheelin' high that I decided to do the fender boomerangs too

Fun Level: still 0

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yeah it is, I was being facetious on the account of how two leg driving is lost on us Americans, shame really !!!

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

OH, you mean the millennial anti-theft device. Saw it on a T-shirt.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

it was honestly a very busy, noisy, dirty, yet productive day

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Yep, feels good to get stuff done. My wife still talks about me using a grinder to clean the frame and all associated parts including the individual springs from the 4 spring packs when I did the Cherokee Chief.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

I did flatten the dimples in the driver fender, I welded up the relief cuts and the extra holes (won't bore you with those pics) but did not get to make the pedestal on the driver side yet, pretty much because of this power steering box interference still (which was expected)

so I played wax on wax off with both inner fenders and the radiator frame making sure the hood shuts properly, while trimming a bit more off by the steering box bit by bit

you can now see the justification for my frame being so fugly on the driver side instead of nice and straight as I was trying to avoid contact with that steering box

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Exactly

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

That lineup will put some led in your pencil.