Now that we're moving out of the arctic temps, I got ALOT of the truck torn down.
Cab has more rot than I would like to deal with but so far I've decided to keep it and fix it.
I've also been busy hitting the local junkyards for parts. Scored a pair of "repro" inner fenders. Yep, used repro parts are showing up in the yards I guess. (I even brought home 1 perfect outer fender however that won't be used on this truck) I found a perfect fan shroud to replace the broken one, a pair of nice mirror heads and a rust free hood. Still searching for some diamond plate steel to do some box repair. It's a specific "football" shaped pattern so not easy to find.
Now I'm just waiting on spring Carlisle so I can get all the new sheetmetal parts I need. First jobs on my list are rebuilding the cab with a brand new floor, cab corners, lower kick panels & door jams as well as top cowl panel. I'll also be sandblasting the frame and tearing down the engine to inspect. If it needs machine work, it will head out for that.
The first pics show the wrecker boom parts getting removed. Both the winch and the boom upright piece are God awful heavy! More so than they look.
Got the front clip off and amazingly, most bolts on the front clip just turned right out easily, even those pesky fender well bolts with the U-nuts that ALWAYS spin! Only 2 gave me trouble but were no match for my sawzall.
Seems to be going fast and the "parts to be done" pile is growing.
Engine and trans comes out today and I will start sandblasting some of the small parts and put them in storage.
Here's what it looks like now. Front bumper is fully welded on so that's staying put! Engineless pics to come next...