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Excellent progress, you are seriously kicking rear end!
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Jul 17, 2009 03:43
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| # ? Apr 25, 2024 17:25 |
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This is awesome and you are awesome. Question: Once you get the cab all back in one piece, are you going to take it off to finish up the frame?
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Jul 17, 2009 04:20
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This is coming along awesome and is an inspiration to all. 
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Jul 17, 2009 22:58
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Boaz MacPhereson posted:This is awesome and you are awesome. Question: Once you get the cab all back in one piece, are you going to take it off to finish up the frame? Yep, I am hopefully going to pull the cab within the next couple of weeks. With the cab off I will clean up the rest of the frame and install the new dual master cylinder and all the brake lines. While it is off, I will also go through and rustproof the complete underside of the cab. I am also going to have to weld in some reinforcement for the floor under the seat riser. As it is now, it flexes too much for my liking. To do this, I am going to have to tip the cab onto its back, which ought to be interesting/terrifying.
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Jul 18, 2009 02:35
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and just why aren't you upgrading to all disc brakes mister?  Seriously though, this is an awesome build, and keep up the great work!
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Jul 18, 2009 06:36
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Ah, drum brakes are fine. He's not racing it. While the cab's off, you may as well replace the cab mount bushings, they're probably shot. And if that thing has a two piece drive shaft I'd pop a new carrier bearing in there, too. Are you keeping the battery in the floor or moving it up under the hood?
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Jul 18, 2009 16:59
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What is the point of restoring an old truck if it is going to drive like a new truck? Keep the drums. Real men don't need power brakes or steering. If you want a new truck, it is easy enough to find a new truck rather then destroying an old one by citying it up with lazy man options.
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Jul 18, 2009 22:04
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Elephanthead posted:What is the point of restoring an old truck if it is going to drive like a new truck? Keep the drums. Real men don't need power brakes or steering. If you want a new truck, it is easy enough to find a new truck rather then destroying an old one by citying it up with lazy man options. Because sooner or later, you're going to come across someone who's going to panic stop in front of you and you had better hope your drums are cold or you might have problems stopping. Now, granted, with a six-cylinder this truck is going to have a hard time going fast enough to overpower drums; but keep in mind that discs on trucks (and discs do pretty much require power brakes) have been standard for GM since 1971. Not exactly recent history. With how I suspect he'll be using it, I have no problem with him keeping drums, but I also don't see any reason why you would hate on someone for making a truck safer. The survivability of a driver/passenger in a truck like that in a crash is frighteningly low, so the only thing you can really do is do your best to avoid crashes.
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Jul 19, 2009 01:37
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Mooecow posted:While it is off, I will also go through and rustproof the complete underside of the cab. I am also going to have to weld in some reinforcement for the floor under the seat riser. As it is now, it flexes too much for my liking. To do this, I am going to have to tip the cab onto its back, which ought to be interesting/terrifying. How much balls does your welder have? If you can do some decent-sized steel (3/16" from what I can tell) you might want to look into building yourself a rotisserie: http://members.tripod.com/mopar_roadster/body_rotisserie.html This really all depends on how much effort you want to put into restoring the cab. If you imagine spending weeks on it, the rotisserie might be worth building just to allow you to get at poo poo in a way that won't harm the truck's body. A bit better than rocking the cab around on the ground or pissing away with contorting your body and trying to hit everything with a wire wheel/paint/etc. I never built a rotisserie before or any other significant project, but this might be like 10 hours of work that will save you 30 more in the end. Just a thought. Also, loving NICE WORK.
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Jul 19, 2009 03:36
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I looked into the feasibility of switching over to discs when I started working on the brakes, but quickly found out it was more trouble then it was worth. Converting a 1/2 ton is common and easy, a 3/4 ton, not so much. Considering I don't intend on towing a trailer or going auto crossing with it, I should be alright. As for the battery, it is staying under the floor. I can't think of a good reason to move it to the engine bay. I even bought a new battery tray and battery box cover for it.  Anyway, small update. With most of the major parts of the cab patched (with the exception of the cab corners), I started patching the smaller areas. On both sides of the firewall there were holes there were about 2 3/4" x 9" or so. A couple of patches from the scrap door and a little bending later and they were in. Holes:  No more holes:  I also went through and trimmed back all the excess on the various cowls. A cut off wheel followed by a 36 grit flap disk on an angle grinder worked out pretty well. Got completely covered in metal shavings though. Unless I am overlooking anything, all I have left metal wise to do on the cab is fixing the gas tank shelf behind the seat, reinforce the seat riser area, and install the new cab corners. Granted, that is days worth of tedious work. At least there is a light appearing at the end of the tunnel.
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Jul 19, 2009 03:38
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Considering where it started, your progress is awesome man. Keep it up! I'm doing tedious bodywork myself now so I know the pain.
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Jul 19, 2009 15:21
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Awesome work man. Will the roof require much work?
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Jul 19, 2009 23:00
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Very, very nice work. What do you have planned for the bed?
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Jul 20, 2009 01:31
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I hope to have the cab off for at most a week or so, so I don't think it is worth building a rotisserie for that. As it is, I am thinking about just tipping the cab back onto the frame rather that completely removing it. That would make it harder to run the brake lines, but it would be less likely that the cab would be damaged. As for the roof, it only needs minor work. On the dead center of it there are 4 holes that need to be plugged. Three screw holes and a wire hole from an old yellow strobe light. 50's style strobe lights aren't exactly my thing, so I have no intention of putting one back on. I also have to plug a hole in the dash that had a small light that was on when the strobe was on. Relatively minor fixes, but still more work none the less. For the bed, it is definitely getting new bed strips and wood. The panel on the cab side of the bed is rusted through at the bottom (shocker huh?) and is probably going to need to be replaced. The tailgate saw plenty of abuse and is bowing inward quite a bit, so I am still undecided about that. I might just have it squished back straight and roll with it. Mini update: I mostly installed the passenger side cab corner today. I still have to weld it in a bit more and dress the welds, but other than that it is set. It didn't come out perfect, so a little filler is going to be needed. Considering this is my first time doing this sort of thing, I am quite happy with how it came out. Cut out area for patch:  Spend forever trimming patch to fit perfectly:  Weld in patch:  As for the brake lines, is there any special rust-resistant type I should get? Or should a regular 25 foot roll from NAPA do the job? Needless to say I don't want to have to redo the brake lines for a long time.
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Jul 20, 2009 01:53
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The regular stuff is fine. Just be careful bending and flaring it, it goes from "this is easy" to "gently caress I KINKED IT" in about seven nanoseconds.
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Jul 20, 2009 01:57
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I've used some super cool coated brake line. It hasn't rusted yet in Ohio salt winters, so it's at least slightly better than your average line.
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Jul 20, 2009 03:13
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Help! I've fallen and I can't get up! Rather than completely removing the cab, I decided to just roll it back onto the frame. I can still access the area of the frame that still needs to be cleaned and the bottom of the cab. All with less risk of damaging the cab. Before I tipped the cab, I removed the rear glass. The corner glass came out with no problem, but the rear center glass was a bit different. It was obviously replaced at one point because the corners were poorly cut and part of the weatherstrip was missing. If someone had pushed on the window hard enough from inside the cab, the glass would have fallen out. I wanted to remove the windshields, but I ran out of time. I also welded in the other cab corner. This one was a bit easier to install and only took a couple of hours to do. I forgot to take a picture of it, so I will take one tomarrow.
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Jul 23, 2009 02:31
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Kinda reminds me of this. Sorry to hear about the poorly cut window. But you see terrible half-assed repairs on old vehicles like that all the time. Are you going to get a new window or keep the ill-fitting one?
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Jul 23, 2009 02:43
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You ever have one of those times, when you're looking at something totally familiar but, due to some peculiarity of angle, you just can't tell what the hell it is you're seeing? That's what happened when I saw the latest picture. I was trying to make the rear of the vehicle become the front and the bottom of the cab become the rear window 
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Jul 23, 2009 06:31
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The rear window is definitely getting replaced. The fitment of the replacement was so poor it leaked like crazy. Any water that found its way through the tarp went right in the cab via the rear window. So every time it rained there were puddles of water behind the seat riser, right where there are holes through the floor. Coincidence? I think not. So now I have to patch all these holes:  The picture makes the area look better than it is. The metal that is still there is now really weak, so I am going to have to cut out and replace a large area.  Well, I started cleaning up the frame today. This area had only a little bit of grease build up, which was good and bad. The good part being obviously less time cleaning up old grease, the bad being the lack of grease allowed more rust to form. A coarse cup brush on the angle grinder cut through most of it with ease. The clouds of rust dust blowing around were epic. The frame is still perfectly solid and now almost rust free. Hopefully I can Por-15 that section within the next few days.  And here is how the truck looks all covered up. It looks a bit weird, eh?  Rain caused me to stop early today, but hopefully it will be dry enough tomorrow to work on the floor of the cab some more.
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Jul 23, 2009 22:41
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Well, I got the rest of the frame cleaned up and painted. As usual, Por-15 topcoated with satin black Rustoleum.  In the pic it looks like some areas are rusty, they aren't. It is just a buildup of cut off wheel dust and rust dust. I've also been patching all the holes on the floor. A copper backing plate + quick hit of weld seems to be working alright. Of course, some areas are weak enough that just that little bit of heat causes the hole to double in size. I cut out a 9" x 9" section and am going to weld in that patch tomorrow. Hopefully once that is in, the gas tank area will be complete. Next will be connecting the seat riser area to the new floor sections. To do this I am going to have to use some angle iron and flat bar stock, which I should be getting on Wednesday. All I had was zinc plated, which I have absolutely no desire to weld with. And as a bonus, here is the cab from a different angle: 
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Jul 26, 2009 01:44
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Man, you are seriously kicking rear end on this thing. It's really looking good. What has the reaction been like from your relatives (failed previous restorers)? What's happening with the engine? Also: On March 26, Mooecow posted:I have no expectation of this project being done quickly. If it takes years to complete, so be it.
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Jul 26, 2009 02:12
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Bucephalus posted:Man, you are seriously kicking rear end on this thing. It's really looking good. Dog years I think.
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Jul 26, 2009 02:26
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Bucephalus posted:
this has been in the back of my mind the whole time I've been reading this. Please let us know
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Jul 26, 2009 10:53
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Excellent progress, I really love this thread. The whole thing is looking great. As a sidenote, thanks for making me feel like a huge pussy for not being out working on my project.
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Jul 26, 2009 23:26
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IOwnCalculus posted:Because sooner or later, you're going to come across someone who's going to panic stop in front of you and you had better hope your drums are cold or you might have problems stopping. Or get the shoes relined with the new poo poo big trucks use. We've taken drum to a new level, almost being able to drive down Donner completely retarded smoking the piss outta them and still have SOME braking force left...
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Jul 26, 2009 23:44
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I'd heard about that, actually; a few years back there was some push towards it in the '67-'72 community, but it never really took hold as disc swaps for those trucks are so easy (they can be done with straight up parts-swapping, nothing custom). Kevlar-based, right?
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Jul 27, 2009 00:47
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IOwnCalculus posted:Kevlar-based, right? Something like that. It's a boon for the guys with 3/4 and bigger trucks because all you have to do is get the shoe relined which any good shop can do for cheap. Those trucks don't get all the easy upgrades.
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Jul 27, 2009 01:13
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Well, I've just set a new personal record. 2 lbs. of welding wire used in less than 2 weeks. Like everything else, it's coming on Wednesday, so I had to find some things to do that didn't involve the welder. So first of . 0all the door guts were removed. To the engineer who decided to the bolt to remove the vent window up inside the door, screw you. After 55+ years, that was a pain to remove. I spent the entire time praying it wouldn't round or sheer off. If either had happened, I wouldn't have been able to put a torch or cutoff wheel to it, and would have been completely screwed. On the parts door, it was rusted to hell and the entire window frame would bend while the bolt stayed in place. After using some vice-grips to hold the frame while turning the bolt, it slowly backed off. The original drivers door came out with no problems. So far it seems like the only new glass I need to buy for the doors in for the passenger side. That door for some reason has extremely cloudy plexiglass installed.  (Inside the door)   I can't wait till I have more wire so I can fix that rust on the bottom there. It feels like it is taunting me. I also ordered the new master cylinder and looked into the brake lines some more. After trying to decide between flaring my own lines and buying pre-flared, I decided to go pre-flared. I will cost a couple of bucks more, but it will save me a couple of headaches so it's worth it. Also, for some weird reason, all the brake junctions have 7/16-24 threads on them yet the wheel cylinders are 7/16-20. On the front that is fine since the rubber line has that end, but the rear has the steel line connecting directly to the wheel cylinders. So I am just going to end the line with a 7/16-24 fitting and get a fitting to convert it to 7/16-20. I should have the master cylinder on Thursday. Napa not surprisingly doesn't stock in store a 1967 Chevy C20 drum/drum cylinder. The only thing I am afraid of with this cylinder is that the outlets are on the transmission side. From what I can tell, I will only have about 2-3" between the two where I have to run the lines. Gulp. As for the engine, I am pretty sure I am replacing it with a 235. For $900 shipped I can get a solid runner out of Minnisota. Before I grab that I am waiting to hear back from a local old fart. Apparently he has a few runners and a few cores. Unfortunetly, with all the rain we have been having, his field has been flooded. Given he is in his 80's he has no desire to go out to his field when it is marshy.
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Jul 28, 2009 00:51
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I am trying to get the brake lines installed, but I think I just screwed up. Does this line look passable or did I kink it? 
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Jul 28, 2009 18:59
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youve kinked it. I would replace it again and dont kink it this time! Much easier to replace it now before you fill it up and have to worry about re-bleeding. Bend the pipe round something this time to keep a decent radius. You can buy a cheap tool to help do this if you like. Also - flaring your own brake lines is really easy to do and the tool to do it costs very little.
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Jul 28, 2009 20:00
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If you have a little coil spring roughly the same diameter as the brake line, slip it over the line before you bend it. It will help keep it from kinking. One of those springy doorstops works if you can get the cap off and it's big enough.
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Jul 28, 2009 20:38
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You can also get an inexpensive brake line bending tool that might make nicer bends without as much risk of bending it.
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Jul 28, 2009 21:40
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ab0z posted:You can also get an inexpensive brake line bending tool that might make nicer bends without as much risk of bending it. Like this?  Yeah, those work really well too.
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Jul 28, 2009 22:16
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Slung Blade posted:Like this? That's what I was thinking of. I haven't needed to use one yet, do they work well?
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Jul 28, 2009 23:54
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ab0z posted:That's what I was thinking of. I haven't needed to use one yet, do they work well? I've only seen them used, never used one myself. They sure seemed to work well from the results though. This wasn't for a brake line though, if that matters.
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Jul 29, 2009 00:28
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Ok, Its KB's lessons in bodgy! Your kink is repairable with some care and a anvil ( I use the end of the fence....) By gently tapping the kink with a hammer whilst holding it on a hard surface the kink will come out ( and the bend will unbend a bit) Yes ugly.. But it works.
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Jul 29, 2009 01:02
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I was using a tool when I kinked the first line. Although that fact it was a $5 piece of crap didn't help. Luckily it broke while I was practicing with it after I messed up the first line. So I brought it back and bought a much nicer bender. I bent a new line with the new bender and this time it came out much nicer:   As for you method KB, one of the old farts at NAPA mentioned doing that. I put one slight kink in another one of the lines, so I am going to try that before I remake it.
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Jul 29, 2009 02:25
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Mooecow posted:You're pretty much a professional now!
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Jul 29, 2009 02:32
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| # ? Apr 25, 2024 17:25 |
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Mooecow posted:I am trying to get the brake lines installed, but I think I just screwed up. Does this line look passable or did I kink it? TOLD YA!  You have to go slow, as you seem to have figured out already. The second ones are good. drat brake line benders- they're juuuuust good enough to give you dangerous levels of confidence.
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Jul 29, 2009 04:13
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