Re: Jans 53
 

Then holy cow, that's smooth. I can't even tell there were ever holes there.

Re: Jans 53
 

Finishing up body work on the cab this weekend. Ordered new 3m accuspray gun hoping it will be here soon so I can get the surfacer sprayed.

Re: Jans 53
 

Coming along! looks good

Re: Jans 53
 

Nice work....keep up the pace and you'll be done in no time.

Re: Jans 53
 

Everything looks great! What color(s) are you thinking?

Re: Jans 53
 

Thanks everyone,
Dan color is undecided but I was really wanting to use a satin paint. I really didn't want anything high gloss but I have been reading up on the maintenance of satin and I seems like a real pain in the a$$!
If I do the satin I like the color of the Boyd Coddington shop truck

Re: Jans 53
 

Hi NCGal,

Ha, I couldn't love your choice more. My JUST sprayed '55.2 is almost identical to what your pic looks like except I used a base coat/clear coat on mine. But my truck before the current build had a sort of shop truck vibe and I used satin rattlecan paint on it. Yeah, I know - cheap. But it's what I could do then. Really liking your build!

Re: Jans 53
 

That looks awesome! What brand and color is that? It's really close.

Re: Jans 53
 

It's 2012 Honda Milano Red.

I saw a car at a show last summer that was Honda San Marino Red and thought that was the color I wanted for certain. But when I saw the two colors side by side the San Marino was too dark. Here's a picture of the car I saw. The picture doesn't look anything like it really looks because the flash went off. It looked great at the show but I'm REALLY happy with the Milano Red I chose.

Re: Jans 53
 

Loving this SPI epoxy, crazy how this stuff lays down the reflection makes it look like paint.

Re: Jans 53
 

Oops forgot the pic:crazy:

Re: Jans 53
 

Dug my chassis out of the garage today to work on the radiator support, can't believe it's been 3 years since I mounted the running gear into the frame. The metal work on the body took longer than I wanted, seemed like there was always something in the way of working on the truck. The body work gets boring......zzzzz.
My job tomorrow is to re angle the lower radiator inlet and tig it in a strait or downward angle.

Re: Jans 53
 

I've done the opposite. Got the truck running and skipped all the body work :)

I notice your radiator has the exact problem mine did. I had a shop cut the piece out, flip it around and weld it back in. Worked a charm to have the bottom hose outlet pointing outward.

Maybe we should all write to speedway and ask them to either make the bottom outlet straight or point slightly outward haha. I wonder how many of these 19x22 rads have been modified.

Re: Jans 53
 

I cut mine off and rotated it 90 degrees until it pointed downward. I'll see how it works tomorrow.

Re: Jans 53
 

:lol: Your welds look better than OE!

Re: Jans 53
 

Thanks Iowa boy for some reason I find aluminum easier than steel.

Today's plan is to get this radiator support mounted. Decided to weld a plate to the frame because I wanted to be able to run a thread in to the frame to hold the support.

Re: Jans 53
 

Everything still looking great, Jan.

Re: Jans 53
 

Since the weather is too cold for body work I decided to spend the winter months doing the final mock up of the cab. Today I spent time adjusting the radiator support, ended up bringing the front up another 1 1/2 inches. It's harder than you think finding that sweet spot where things don't look weird. Yesterday after I mounted the cab I went ahead and drilled the hole for my steering column and installed the lower mount. Still need to mount the running boards. Figure out where the wiring is going to go through the firewall so I can drill holes before painting the cab. So far it's going together pretty smoothly.

Re: Jans 53
 

Looking really good there NCG!!!! Its great when things start coming together for the last and final time! = ;)

Mine still has a few odds and ends so it will be in the "Graduating Class of 2018" finished trucks! It will be at Autorama "Drive-In" too come February so come on by and say Hi

Re: Jans 53
 

Looking good! I'm beginning to regret that I never put the hood on when I set all my mounts and core support up. Looks pretty good right now but who knows what kind of disaster I caused myself :)

Re: Jans 53
 

Thanks guys I have been following both of your builds since they began. I find it keeps me motivated to keep plugging away at mine. So thanks for the inspiration!
Today's plan is to get out in the garage and continue to figure out where to run the wiring in the cab.

Re: Jans 53
 

How many options do you have ?

Re: Jans 53
 

I should have clarified. I smoothed the fire wall so I'm looking to hide where the wires run through the firewall and hide as much as I can under the hood.

Re: Jans 53
 

I just installed my fuse panel and have been looking for the right place to drill the hole to pass wires thru as well. I have a couple of big wire harness grommets and I think I’m going to put them on the right and left kick panels right about where the floor turns up into the firewall and right next to the firewall. The wires will come out in the wheel well and I can run them along the wheel side of the inner fender. I welded a row of zip tie clips along the inner fender to secure the wires. So nearly all of my wires will run inside the cab or on the wheel side of the inner fenders until they have to enter the engine compartment to connect. Make sense?

I also welded studs at the very front of the wheel well to mount my PCM (LS Swap) inside the wheel well and get it out of the engine compartment.

Re: Jans 53
 

That is where I run my front harness on the drivers' side wheel well
For the HVAC hosed I do the same and run them in the pass side wheel well
Haven't found a way to hide the spark plug wires yet !!

Re: Jans 53
 

I'm going to use the drivers side wheel well for my headlight harness also, I'll hang my wires from the bolts that mate the inner and outer fender.
My a/c is hurricane air and the bulk head comes directly thru the original fan motor hole so I'll just go ahead and run them under the hood.

Re: Jans 53
 

My Vintage Air system is the same as yours. If I had thought about it earlier I would have swapped the fittings so I could route the hoses thru the wheel well as solid axel did. I did manage to route my trans cooler lines thru there so that reduces the clutter a bit.

Re: Jans 53
 

I used 1/4-20 rod couplings that you can find at HD or Lowes. and then I welded them to the inside firewall so I didnt have any bolt heads on the engine side. Make your plate first to fit all your stuff and then do the mounting holes to the firewall. Just tack them first and remove the plate and then weld em tight!

https://media5.picsearch.com/is?5TTs...adw&height=151

I put my main fuse box and CDI ignition box on one plate there in the upper drivers corner.

https://scontent-lax3-2.xx.fbcdn.net...34&oe=5AB7D9B6

Re: Jans 53
 

That looks sharp, I welded some elevator bolts to the inside firewall to mount a/c and the firewall to dash support.

Re: Jans 53
 

Fed Ex delivered my Birthday gift from my hubby today.:hot:

Re: Jans 53
 

That's pretty slick! Mine didn't come with a manual so I had to figure out what each wire did and how to connect that to the existing harness. Are you going to use the control panel thing? Seems kind of new for these old trucks compared to hooking it up to the old needle gauge.

Re: Jans 53
 

No, I will only use the control panel for programming purposes. I like the old school look.The hubby is a loose cannon,lol. I was trying to keep things simple but he reads about all this cool stuff and next thing I know I come home to gear vendors over drive and brushless programmable fans, now he keeps talking about the aftermarket EFI. I can't complain he buys I do the work, WEIRD RIGHT!

Re: Jans 53
 

Mocked up the radiator with the fan installed, looks like about an inch clearance.

Re: Jans 53
 

Spent the weekend making running board supports (used Hussey's idea). Still need to blow it apart and do the final welding, but glad to get one more thing done.
Next is to rethink my bed support. I would like to be able to lift the bed wood to have access to fuel tank and battery. Anyone have any slick ideas?
Here's the pictures of today's progress.

Re: Jans 53
 

nice job...Jim

Re: Jans 53
 

I've been considering a bed for myself also. I left a space in the center you can see below. I'm still deciding what style I'd like, but I'm pretty set now on doing a center split with two fold up sides. That way I can fold it from standing at the rear of the truck and potentially only have to unfold one side at a time. The added benefit is that I can split the bed down one of the seams between wood panels so it will look like the bed doesn't fold at all :)

Here are some poor sketchup designs of what I've been noodling around in my head...

Bed down flat:
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4613/...ce0fbfe09c.jpg

A. Traditional lift of the whole bed towards the cab:
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4747/...3d6d5dc786.jpg

B. Split lift of the traditional towards the cab. Like a concertina:
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4656/...4ee87818de.jpg

C. The one I think I want is a split down the center with either side opening towards the wheel wells. Allows me to open just one side at a time and I can open either from the rear of the truck.
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4714/...64b882a488.jpg

My current bed floor has a space in the center I'll use for the lift areas. I have given myself 6" on either side as a space for wheel tubs, if needed, and for somewhere to attach hinges to.
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4689/...7f18df76c6.jpg

Something like a trunk hinge to help lift them
https://content.speedwaymotors.com/P...ec6cac6c93.jpg
https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Unive...20(Dec26_2017)

Re: Jans 53
 

I like the idea of your C illustration

Re: Jans 53
 

I'm still mulling it over in my head to make sure I'm not missing anything obvious in the execution of it. e.g. is there space for two trunk hinges with the gas tank and an air tank in the way? How does the center of the bed not bend inward when I throw things in the truck? Where do I put air shocks as helpers to lift each side? When lifting, is the length an issue with it warping? How will I latch it closed so the sides don't fly open?

I think all those issues can be figured out in the ole noodle.

Re: Jans 53
 

Draw it on paper --- then build it in cardboard first.... ;)

Re: Jans 53
 

mock up is the most important. I know a lot of guys who built tilting bed floors "for access" and with the floor tilted couldnt access anything. mock up a sheet of plywood in the position you will have the floor tilt to and see how much room you have for access. even the center split, will you be able to get to anything at the front of the bed? how often will you need to even get under there?

I had my airride and fuel tank under the bed of my 65. I was going to tilt the bed floor till I realized that there was no way to change a tire with a flat. so we tilted the whole bed. I never got to motorize it but it worked perfectly, access to all the airride, fuel system, and able to change tires.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4630/...7db35f71_c.jpgIMG_8305 by Joe Doh, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4652/...313dd71d_c.jpgIMG_8304 by Joe Doh, on Flickr