68 Update - Gonna see some paint!!!

[RustyParts]

That truck has the best fitting doors I've seen. The drip rails are something GM should have gotten rid of a long time ago. There would be a bunch of rust free cabs today. Really nice lookin' truck.

[BP68]

Originally Posted by fourty1

Say Bp,..
Wonderful documentation of the build up... from the recent posts to the weekly waits,...
But for the not so enlightened- good buddy bodyman/friend, would you mind hinting at a rough $$ amount ( the shaving costs). it's real easy to get caught up in the many stories of different builds going on this forum at any one time.. but man ;let us feel your pain....
if not that's ok too.
-41-

I will try to post a few new pics tomorrow. The weekly waits are hard for me also. The main reasons for the delays between posts is working my day job one Sat a month and Bobby (my bodyman) is a few weeks away from finishing a 55 Chevy truck that was also a frame off. I will get some pics of it posted as well. Once it is done, mine is on the top of the list. Now if money doesn't run out, we should really see some nice progress. Last weekend we got the fuse block mounted under the dash, and the wiring separated and taped up. Next is connecting all the ends, getting a final alignment of the front sheet metal, and saving up for the 800.00 No Limit guage cluster with Autometer carbon fiber guages.

I will have to ask Bobby what he would charge the average person to do the shaved rail. I am getting kinda of a inside deal, he has known my father in law for a long time, I have helped with the grunt work like cutting out rust and doing a lot of grinding and cleaning, and he actually had me cut the rail off. He just showed me where to cut. But the cab body work including front floors, rockers, cab corners, two floor supports, shaved drip rail, shaved dash, shaved firewall, and intial priming along with the materials ran me around 1,700.00 plus the cost of the patch panels.

I have done little steps at a time over 5 years, and now I should have enough to finish her up. Most of the money has been spent over the last year, but I figure I have around 12,000.00 invested so far. That includes the first truck and all parts, labor, and materials. I hope to be finished at around 15,000, but wheels and tires, and stuff like the a/c may push me closer to 20,000.

Funny thing is, 5 years ago I said, I'll find a decent truck, fix it up a little, paint it and be cruising for around 5,000. hahahaha
2 trucks, a doner frame, a growing list of body mods, and hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars later and here I am. But I am still sure it will all be worth it in the end.

Keep the faith and don't give up guys and gals! ><>

[BP68]

Ok, the 55 my body man was working on is all but done. One other quick project, and my truck is on the top of the list. He says we should have a nearly finished project come November.

I will be posting updated pics. In the mean time, here are some pics of the 55.

[BP68]

And a few more

[bad6772]

man your truck looks great. did you cut the drip rail off all at one time, or in sections.?

[BP68]

Originally Posted by bad6772

man your truck looks great. did you cut the drip rail off all at one time, or in sections.?

The side rails came off first (one piece each) then each side got tacked back together. Then the front rail came off in pretty much one long section also tacked as we went. Final fill welds on ever seam, spaced out to minimize warpage. Went a lot smoother than expected.

[fun in dirt]

What ever happened with this truck???

[NONHOG]

[BP68]

Sorry all. I am still waiting on the bodyman to finish up the front clip alignment and final paint.

I know one thing. I really need to learn more skills. I hate having to wait on someone else to do stuff. I am not scared to try, but right now I don't really have room. I hope to get a bigger house and lot in the next couple years. I really want to work on welding and minor body work.

Anyway. See my signature line for a link to my offical build thread. I a new thread in the Project and Builds sub forum. All future updates will be there. Keep the comments comming. We all love input.