Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Bruce88 I am into your computer skills. Very detailed.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

I made a decision after a couple days of trying to figure out how I was going to modify the spare tire mount. In the end possibly obtained a lucky charm for the shop, I can always use some luck as everyone can.

Picked up some ¼ inch steel plate and cut out a 6-1/2 inch DIA. circle on the band saw. Drilled the ½ inch DIA. holes for the 5 lug x 5 inch DIA. wheel pattern and press in the NAPA 641-1102 wheel bolts.

Before removing the original mounting plate from the frame drilled a wheel center hole in the plate and then welded in a support bar with a corresponding centering hole to locate the new mounting plate.

Attachment 440340

Not wanting the spare tire to break off the mount and pass me on the road (that would be embarrassing) I took the mount down to a professional welder with a big enough welder to weld the new thicker mounting plate on. I also added a mounting plate to the top of the spare tire mount to install the CB antenna to (CB antenna is on order and should be in within a few days). All that’s left to do is drill the antenna mounting holes, clean up the mount and send it off to the powder coater for a black finish.

Attachment 440341

The ¼ plate that I picked up for the mounting plate was in a larger circle and after cutting out the new mount I ended up with a horse shoe shape. History says that to hang a blacksmiths horse shoe above your door will bring luck to your shop. Yes the debate goes on as to how to hang it facing up or down (I definitely do not know the answer) but being a modern-day metal worker/blacksmith decided to hang it above my shop door to bring luck to my shop.

Attachment 440342

May the luck of the blacksmiths horse shoe be with you in your shop on your build

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

looking good bro.

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Two steps forward one step back (Not a new dance that anybody wants to do when measuring a builds progress)

The last two weeks my motivation level has been low, something that should take one day to do was not coming together and three days of work later was still not complete. Since I’m converting my step side to have a side mounted spare tire, the fender is from one truck and the spare mount is from another, bringing all the parts together things just didn’t want to line up with each other. These kinds of problems happen during builds and it’s always nice to find them before final assembly but it can be aggravating to solve and adds time to the build. (Not that I’m on a strict time line and have to have this truck done by a certain time)

The fender and bed side panel holes lined up pretty good but the aft two peace angled mounting brackets for the spare mount would not work. So I broke out my backyard mechanics design/engineering abilities (HA HA) and created some one peace angled mounting brackets. With the new bracket I will need to cut a square hole in the top of the fender and plan on using a “U” shape grommet cut from a side marker light grommet (shown below) to finish off the hole and prevent metal to metal rubbing.

The CB antenna and cables came in and made sure that it would clear everything. This 2 foot long CB antenna will be the only antenna on the truck it will be doing double duty as a AM/FM and CB antenna by using a antenna cable splitter. Yes a taller antenna would work better but I want to pull my truck into the garage without having to remove the antenna, well see how good it works when the trucks all together.

Parts and material used
4 foot of 1 in x 1 in x 11 gauge angle plate steel
1 foot of 1 in x 1 in square bar
150-18 Peterson side marker grommet (for fender grommet)
Model FS2-B Firestik II 2 foot, 5/8 wave, Rated@300watts, Antenna
Model K-14M Firestik Ball Mount
Model AR-1A Firestik Match-Maker CB/AM/FM Antenna Splitter
Model K-8 Fire-Flex 18 foot single Antenna Coaxial Cable

Attachment 446162

Attachment 446163

You are probably tired of seeing my spare tire mount, it’s taken up the last three posts but I’m just showing what is happening with the build over the time and this area has definitely had more problems and time consuming than I expected. My next post will definitely be another area of the build.

Hope your delays in your builds are short, and any problems that you have are solved quickly, so that your builds progress smoothly.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Wow...great build thread. How the heck do I miss these?

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Great build...just looking at last photos of the spare tire mount. How is the fender going to bolt on to the bedside with the spare mount occupying the same area?

Just went back and looked over pics again....feel like a real dumb ass....did not realize that the mount to the bedside was a made in 2 pieces to clear the fender and there was a hole in fender for the angled support bracket. I had never seen these mounts up close so I can see now by looking at your pics how it all falls together. Nice pics and build...keep up the good work!

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

No problem westofb
The original/stock mount angle was two angles bolted together thru the fender. The reason I designed the single angle to slide thru a hole in the fender was because the original upper peace of the angle was to long and would not fit right plus it was kind of flimsy.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

You have some really good ideas, thank you for the bolt pattern picture, i was just needing one, worked out perfect. will check in later to see how things are going, btw i like the spare tire holder, that will work out great and usefull for more than one thing.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

I think I can answer that. If all of the frame cross members were the same length and perpendicular to the frame rails, the rails would be able to move forwards and backwards. Having an unequal length crossmember will stabilize the frame like putting a X pipe in a roll bar. The triangulation adds rigidity.

This is an interesting thread. You are doing some things the opposite of what is typical, such as putting the spare on the bed side rather than moving it from there, and adding a CB, when most are removing the antenna and welding up the holes. Making it the way you want. I like that. There is always good information on this thread, no matter what experience level the reader is coming from.

I used to live on Camano Island and worked in your area. I don't miss the clouds, but do miss the scenery sometimes.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

You have raised the bar for us on planning and documentation. I am sure your truck is going to extremely nice AND functional.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

With that splitter, it allows you to use FM and CB at the same time?

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Texanidiot25 The answer is yes you can use the FM and CB at the same time.

Not being an expert on the mater but from what I’ve read this setup is a compromise in performance for a CB antenna for the distance it will transmit. If you wanted the best performance for your CB you would want a longer and separate antenna. As for a FM antenna it will work fine. There are two tuning screws in the splitter box for fine adjustment to match the antenna to the FM and CB requirements. I’ve used this similar setup in the past and it worked fairly good for me.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

[QUOTE=hgs_notes;3225804]I think I can answer that. If all of the frame cross members were the same length and perpendicular to the frame rails, the rails would be able to move forwards and backwards. Having an unequal length crossmember will stabilize the frame like putting a X pipe in a roll bar. The triangulation adds rigidity.


(Hgs_notes) I’ve been looking at this cross member and think it might have something to do with the fact that the rear end centering bar (Tracking Arm) is attached to the frame just below this cross member. The tracking arm comes over to the frame at an angle and the cross member goes over to the RH frame at the opposite angle to the tracking arm. This might be to distribute the tracking arm load equally across both frame rails to keep the frame rails square under load. But with out talking to the design engineer that designed this it’s just a guess.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Not really an update on the build, just to let you know that it’s not stopped just a short delay.

The past month and a half I’ve been focusing primarily on spring cleanup of the house inside and out plus the minor repairs to the house needed coming out of the winter months. With all this complete now the build will be progressing after a short rest for all the sore muscles that haven’t been used in some time (HA HA).

The closes thing to the build was some Lisle socket organizers that I picked up for the ¼ inch and 3/8 inch drive sockets. I had been using the spring clip type socket organizers and had always been looking for something that would work better for me. With my eyes not being the best over the years decided to label the socket locations.

Over all the years of gathering tools any thing that will help me find the right tool/socket for the job I think will help the build will go smother. For me sockets seem to be misplaced or should I say hide (HA HA) more than other tools.

Attachment 461085

Summer is just around the corner enjoy the good weather, for me my projects always seem to go better with out fighting the weather, may yours benefit as well.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

your really orginized! lol opposite of me

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Awesome build thread! Subscribed.

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I've always been told if it's just hanging on the wall to hang it with the opening up to keep the luck from falling out. If it is hanging over a doorway, hang it with the opening down so each time you walk through you are sprinkled with a little luck. It doesn't really matter though, Chevy truck owners are already the luckiest guys around ;)

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Squaring away the front window corners.

The four corners of the front window seem to be an area where rust definitely can be found on most of our trucks. I don’t know if it’s the window seal is trapping the water or gap seam sealer failure in the drip rail area that causes the rust problem or a combination of both. Decided to do a fill weld in the area to replace some of the rust pitted area and not need to use any gap sealer in the area. It defiantly took some time to do this, a day and a half work for the two corners shown below. Also filled the antenna cable hole that I will not be needing.

Don’t know if this is going to solve the problem in the future but it should slow it down from coming back at least.

I’m planning on using a two part seam sealer in the drip rail area and this area of the truck should be good for another 30 plus years

Attachment 466335

Attachment 466336

I’m glad to be back working on the truck after the short delay. Have a nice day and a better one tomorrow.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Im in the process of doing that now. I had to do some dash repair as well because of the seam issue... Nice Work.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

way to pay attention to detail! good job so far

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Clarification/correction for build post #7

I have received two private messages regarding the spark plug wire brackets on the back of the block

Sorry if my post was somewhat misleading, as a lot of times in my builds I modify or make custom parts and did not mention this in that build post, the aft wire loom stands on the back of the block falls into this category you will not find them in the R&M wire loom kits.

The stand was made from some 1 inch x 1/8 inch thick x 36 inch long aluminum stock I picked up from Home Depot. Made a paper template where I wanted the wires to run and clearing the automatic trans dip stick and on the other side made a separator bracket to have two spark plug wires go under the throttle cable and two go over the top so the wires would not ride on the throttle cable. As far a bending the stands I used two 45 degree bends to get the joggle in the stands (recommend not bending this aluminum stock more than 45 degrees with out proper brake that can radius the bend, this aluminum stock will crack at the bend)

The only place that I know of to pick up individual wire separator blocks the same that are used on the R&M wire loom kit that I used on the stands is from Enos Custom Components http://www.enoscustom.com you can download there catalogue and find the individual separator blocks on page 35. You will need to find some longer alien head bolts to use with the blocks if you want to attach the blocks to a bracket or stand.

Here are some closer pictures of the brackets.

Attachment 467617

Hope this helps anyone interested in where the brackets and blocks came from.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Simple, but effective and looks good. Nice!

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

I had forgotten just how much this is NOT "just a pickup." Way cool detailing.

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Things are not as they appeared
More work than was expected will be required

A number of years ago when I bought the truck I knew that the original cab was in real bad shape and the previous owners thru in a stripped cab for nothing. The spare cab has been sitting in the corner of the garage taking up space and gathering dust until the rebuild was started in earnest and that day has come.

Looking around this forum’s builds I’ve seen others using stands that they made or acquired to support their cabs for working on and I liked this approach. Not wanting to build or buy a stand I looked around my shop to see if I might have something that would work and getting more use out of my equipment than what it was bought for is a benefit for me. I have some movable scaffolding 6 foot long x 2-1/2 foot wide x 6 foot tall rated at 500 pound load capable. Not knowing the weight of the cab, I might be over loading the stand some what but I think it will work and make working on the cab a lot easer. Just used my cherry picker, engine hoist, and some angel iron attached to the seat mounting holes to lift the cab on to the stand (it’s a two man job but went smoothly).

Attachment 468887

With the cab off the ground and making it easer to inspect it for damage and work needing to be done I found what I would call a failed repair to the driver’s side rocker panel. I new that the rear corner panels (both sides) and fwd floor corners where going to need repair but the rust has penetrated more areas, inner rocker panels up to the floor and fwd lower pillar. The use of foam by the previous owner, I would say was not of benefit and may have added to the problems. I can see foam and rust on the passenger side fwd lower pillar, the rocker panel on this side looks to be from the factory but just my guess that this side is in just as bad shape as the drivers.

Repair panels for both sides are on order from Wess at Classic Heartbeat Pickup Parts and will write and show them later.

Attachment 468888

The additional work not foreseen at the beginning of this build is starting to add up but I’m not going to start cutting corners now just to get the truck done and have to deal with it later on. Hope you have the time and resources to make your build right the first time. Yes I can remember my younger days when I was building my primary driver and needing to keep it on the road or get it back on the road as soon as possible. Good luck on your builds

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

ive seen "Great Stuff" used in many applications...now thats a new one on me...!!!!!

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Making the modifications work with other parts

If you have read this complete build thread up until now you should know that I’m building a 72 Chevy short box step side ½ ton pickup. The reason I’m stating it again is to clarify the pictures below (bed cross sills are located in different locations on short & long box models)

As I take a few days off from working on the truck for rest and recovery, I some times use pictures that I’ve taken to work thru projected modification problems for a solution that meets my requirements. Thought you might like to see the pictures that I’m using to solve one of the problem areas.

I’m going to be installing a Blazer stile gas tank under the bed (gas tank from Classic Heartbeat Pickup Parts). I’ve seen where others have just removed the bed cross sill that is normally positioned over where the gas tank is going to be installed or cut the cross sill shorter in height to clear the tank. Doing this is probably fine if you’re not going to put any heavy loads in the truck bed. But I want the support for the floor boards to carry any load I want and get as much clearance for installing the fuel filler tube to the tank.

From the factory this short bed did not have a short cross sill installed just fwd of the gas tank location at the stock floor fastener location. I will be installing one there as well and moving the one cross sill to just aft of the fuel tank edge where it dips down and adding a 16 gauge steel sheet to attach the sill to the stock floor fasteners. Doing this the only holes in the floor bed that will not be in the stock location is the fasteners that attach the bed to the frame thru the sill.

Before I get the question, yes the cap over the sending unit hole is from a mason jar and it fits pretty good to keep dirt out of the tank (HA HA)

Attachment 469055

Attachment 469056

Some times this method of generating modifications help me prevent other problems before I start cutting and fabricating metal. May all of your modification go smoothly with out problems.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Nice work. Thanks again for the pictures and detailed explanation. Your build, when completed, will be one concice FAQ about how to restore a truck to be used....the right way... :chevy:

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Thanks VA72C10 for the comment
I can’t say it’s the right way, it’s just my way, that is building on past experiences and I’ve made may mistakes in the past and learned from them I hope and try not to make them again. Every new build is a learning experience for me and trying new thing some times and hope they work out good.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

It was suppose to fit but it didn’t
Making it fit and improvement

A neighbor of mine did welding for a living and was laid off two months ago. Wanting to improve my welding skills (they could definitely use improvement) we struck a deal where I would do all the fabbing and set up along with the finish grinding and he would show me how to weld it for pay by the hour. This is what I would call a win win arrangement, I get a one on one instructor to improve my welding and he gets a few dollars to help him between jobs. You can see some of his welding in the pictures below.

When I bought the seats for the truck from Discount Van-Truck-SUV-RV I also picked up their seat frame that was made for the 67 – 72 Chevy pickups. The slotted holes did not line up with the holes in the floor so I fill welded them up and located them where they needed to be. I also added two steel plates to give added support to the frame legs, this is probably over kill and could have just added a smaller gusset angle to the legs but the steel was just laying around the shop looking for a home (HA HA).

It seems to me that when you relocate your gas tank on the forum build thread you need to show you’re filling of the filler neck hole in the cab. Not wanting to brake with what seems like a tradition I’m showing mine. I did find that cutting the filler plate with a 3-1/4 inch BiMetal hole saw is a perfect fit for the hole. Now all that left is a skim coat of bondo to bring the slight curve to the surface and no will know that a hole was there.

Attachment 469511

Still learning aft many years, keep learning and enjoy your builds

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

I can't thank you enough for that seat frame pic. I've been trying to figure something out in my head & sometimes seeing a pic of something triggers the thought you need. That pic just did it for me!

I love your thorough updates. This is going to be better than an OE designed truck because of the attention to the little details that make all the difference.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Awesome job on this build!! Thanks for all the pictures, I am subscribed now :)

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Dude you are awesome and very modest...

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Breaking News – Older trucks have rust (LOL)
Or maybe it should be a question – do I have more or less rust in my panels than you?
Sometimes a question not stated but thought when acquiring used panels for your build.

I did make a mistake. No, not cutting the panels back to inspect for all the rust before having the patch panels in hand to prevent cutting to much metal away (more than the patch panel will cover). All metal removed would have to be replaced regardless, I did have the patch panels in mind, not to cut more than was absolutely necessary (more cutting and fitting will be needed to install the patch panels)

The mistake was placing the order for the patch panels before seeing what I really needed. I had to add items to my order. The previous failed repair was done very stealthy, the rear cab support was filled with foam and the holes thru it was covered over with undercoating. It’s a good thing that I found this before going to pickup the panels and not finding this in the middle of replacing the panels. I always prefer to have all the parts needed on hand before starting plus just having one order for parts is preferred by me and I think by the supplier as well.

Both sides of the cab’s rocker panel areas are just about the same in the repairs that will be required. This being said I would say this cab is still in a lot better shape than the cab on the truck from the floor up. It will be nice not having to be concerned about where to put my feet on the cab floor or watching the ground pass by thru the floor when driving (HA HA)

Attachment 470797

There’s plenty to keep me busy until the panels come in and updates should continue fairly uninterrupted. May your build have less rust than mine.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

nice progress.

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Some want it with nuts and some don’t
If I remember correctly this was a commercial for a candy bar but could also apply to this installation.

Positioned the head liner in the cab and drilled all the mounting holes. This head liner is where the four radio speakers and CB will be installed. In the picture below the head liner is shown being temporarily held in place with cleckos.

Next the head liner will come down and all the mounting holes will be drilled up to the size for rivet nuts. All the rivet nuts will be installed after stripping and painting.

A lot of people would install this panel with sheet metal screws, I prefer to use rivet nuts and machine screws. For those of you that might not know what a rivet nut is I’ve included some pictures of the installation tool and steps to install one.

Rivet nuts come in many sizes and threads as well a steel and aluminum. I use steel ones when installing them in steel panels and for this installation will be using a 10-32 rivet nut. The rivet nut is kind of like a pop rivets but puts a nut on the back side of a blind fastener hole, a special tool is required for installation.

Attachment 472095

Some times there’s more than one way to do a installation and I like having options. There’s plenty out there for you to chouse from, in joy your build.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Very cool tool. Those could be useful in lots of applications. Thanks for the writeup.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Very nice!

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Again I must say this is NOT "just a pickup." This looks like it will be a work piece of art, not a trailer queen. I'm digging it.

Re: It’s Just A Pickup
 

Very nice work...

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The outcome may hinge a pound it (HA HA)
Getting to make a modification to the door hinges that as far as I’m concerned should be a standard on all door hinges.

The Hinges where being stubborn, the hinge pin did not want to come out, I tried penetrating oil and heat but it didn’t want to budge. But I found if I ground the head off the hinge pin and use a socket to support the frame around the head area and one or two solid hits on the pin it came right out. The spring pin holding the slider was bent and had to be cut out with a small cutoff wheel in my Dremel and pushed out in small peaces.

Gathering the parts that I was going to need for the rebuild
(Qty 2) 38-6560 hinge pin rebuild kits from LMC
(Qty 1 pack) SPS-04-32-10 Spring Pin ¼ x 2 inch from Small Parts Inc.
note this is a larger spring pin than the stock one of 3/16 x 1 inch
(Qty 1) SRNY-0250-E NYLATRON GS PLATE ¼ thick 12 inch x 12 inch from Small Parts Inc. note this is a guess on my part that this material is similar to the stock material

Attachment 475485

I never found a way to get grease in the hinge pin area the way I thought it should be. So I drilled a small hole that will let me use a grease gun needle nozzle to get the grease where I think it is needed on occasion. (See picture below)

One technique I’ve found useful is drilling a 1/8 Dia Hole in the hinge half’s so that after you get the door to fit and fair right you drill a corresponding hole in the door and frame thru these holes. Then when you put the doors back on after painting you get the doors real close to where they need to be with very little if any adjustments. I just use a clecko to line the holes up for installation. (See picture below for those that are interested)

Attachment 482342

Attachment 475487

The friction pads where completely wore out and not knowing the exact nylon material or how thick the pad should be I sat down to try and figure it out. (See picture below for calculations) No guarantee this is going to work right but time will tell. The pads where staked in the retainer no rivets as I’ve seen in other pictures so I just staked the new ones in.

There all put together and painted and ready for installation

Attachment 475488

Have an enjoyable 4 of July and don’t blow up or set fire to any thing that has value to any one.