47-55.1 Long Time Coming......

[gsinon]

As I said in my introduction thread, I fell in love with Chevrolet's AD 3100 pick up when I was a young teen. While attending a Sunday car show with my dad we saw a truck that belonged to a friend of his. It was a 49 with a mild chopped top, painted black with traditional flames and a nice set of Cragars. Now you may not like the thought of that, but for a 12-13 year old kid in the early 80's it was like a Hot Wheels come to life and it rocked my world.

In any case, the stars never aligned for me to get an AD of my own for one reason or another. I have had many other hot rods in the mean time, just never the elusive AD I wanted..... Until.

In 2006 my family and I bought a new house in a new town. At the time I had a 1947 Ford coupe hot rod. One day the mail man came up the driveway to deliver something that wouldn't fit in the mail box. We struck up a conversation and he told me there was an Old Truck down the street that he felt I would just love. After telling me where it was I went for a ride. Sure enough, there sitting in some guys driveway was a 1951 Chevy 3100 five window. It appeared as though it hadn't moved in years, and yet didn't look to be in bad shape. Of course I knocked on the door and an old timer came out, we spent a while chatting but he said he wasn't ready to sell it. He only had a one car garage and not able to do anything with it, but as an old hot rodder I just don't think he was in the place to finally give up on it. He did welcome me to come back from time to time to check in on it.

Fast forward over a decade and a visit every year or so and it is now June of 2020. I'm out for a ride in my 55 BelAir and decide its time to check in on Fran. I knock on the door and we catch up and chat a bit about Covid and the current state of affairs. I of course bring up the truck that's still just sitting there when he finally says those magic words.... It's For Sale! We agreed on a price and it made the 1 mile trip home to me on a flat bed a couple days later. These pics are of it right after being unloaded.








So that's the back story. Now for a new beginning for this truck after sitting in the same spot since 1998. The truck is so ridiculously solid and has such a cool vibe that for now I am just going to scuff it down and matte clear it to lock down the look. I'm a body/paint guy so this goes against everything I am, but after the last car I did and all the car shows etc (see my Introduction) I am tired of the "pretty car" thing for now. Maybe at some point I will blow it apart and paint it, but for now I'm not going to.

So what is going to happen? FatMan front end, TCI 4 link rear, Progressive Automotive X member, full boxing of the frame, crate 350, TCI 700R4, fuel injection, Snowden seat, German Squareweave carpeting, Dakota Digital gauges, Vintage Air ac/heat, Ididit tilt column, John's Industries 9" rear, ET wheels and so on. In the end I'm looking for a super comfortable truck that will drive anywhere and have a bit of an old school hot rod vibe.

This project started over a year ago so I have a lot to catch up. Follow along if this is something that strikes interest.

Glenn

[Getter-Done]

Cool story.
You have a nice truck to start your project with.

I am in for the build.

[gsinon]

And so it begins....

On November 29th 2020 I pulled the truck into my back yard shop and got it up on jack stands. At this point it was time to commence in disassembly of the entire drivetrain and suspension.




Because I work alone I have leaned to do so much with just two hands. Here I am using a cherry picker to remove the entire front end as one assembly...





Getting ready to remove the front suspension...




I know the front jack stands look a bit sketchy like this. They were very solid and I needed them right where they were for room for the cherry picker to slide in and remove the engine/trans. It wasn't like this for long I assure you.




With the front and rear now out I was able to start cleaning out all the old suspension along with the engine/trans. I gave it all away to a friend and his project as I'm replacing everything with new stuff.

[Father&son56project]

Awesome truck to start with! Be sure to post lost of pics and details as you tackle each part of your project. I'll be following.

[youngrodder]

Welcome and thanks for sharing your story and project. It looks like a great platform. I too understand the pretty show car statement. That was what led me to the direction of my 53 Suburban. Looking forward to seeing this one progress.

Marc

[oldman3]

I'll follow along for the build...Jim

[gsinon]

Thank you guys for the warm welcome. If there is one thing I'm good at it is taking lots of build pictures. As I mentioned before my dad is my hero, and with his health issues he has been house bound for a handful of years now. He hasn't been able to get to my house in almost five years, so photos are what keeps him up to speed with my toys and projects. Dad just turned 78 and started smoking at 13, he has really bad COPD and is on oxygen full time now from it. In November he fell for the third time, this time breaking his hip. So now since Thanksgiving he has had surgery, which led to rehab and now is a full time resident at a convalescent home. He just can't live alone anymore and my wife and I are not equipped to care for him as he needs.

And now back to the show......

The firewall wasn't in terrible shape but at the same time it was full of about a million holes. So I got this nice new one from LS Fab.




It was at this point where I realized how bad the floor was overall. So out it came piece by piece...




And now the new floor and tunnel to make sure I have plenty of room for any transmission I ever want to run.



Then fitting the hanging brake pedal assembly and fitting the firewall m/c. I hate the up through the floor pedals in hot rods.





While looking at the firewall there is that rectangular impression that LS Fab sends you the cover plate for. I decided to do something a little more unique. I had an old script valve cover and cut it down to size and then welded it in the area. Once all blended in I think it will be cool. Something tells me I can't be the first to ever do this, so I won't lay claim to the idea. But I do think its different and cool as heck.




And lastly I finished up the floors with these new rear panels too.....

[gsinon]

So it is now February 1st and I decided to play with the dash some. I wanted to make a lower dash panel for the switches and ac/heat controls.

Here is the first stages of mock up.... At first this was just clamped in place from the back side. But once I had it fitting the way I liked I drilled through the upper lip and the dash together. I then nut and bolted it together, then reached in from the bottom with my mig welder and tacked the bolts in place. Now I can take off about six nuts and the panel is removable to service anything I need to but yet the panel is a direct mount with the studs welded to the panel.




Once I slid the column in place I was able to get a better idea of where I needed to have it, and then notch the lower panel...














I also welded up the notch in the dash for the original column. I never understood why this was offset between the gauges. This would drive my OCD crazy, so the notch for the column in my lower panel is now centered.

[gsinon]

One more update for tonight....

I ordered this bench seat from Chris Snowden Custom Seats. He makes a great product that is super comfortable. You can order them many ways, I chose this design and material/color. I also got several extra yards of material for the rest of the interior so it all matches. I then placed the seat in the truck flat on the floor, obviously not a good position but I had to start somewhere. I then used some wood blocks to get it where I was happy and comfortable. Once I knew what those measurements were I was able to make these standoffs.

With some rectangular tubing that I had lying around. I then trimmed it, used some hardware I had and was able to make it so they bolt to the seat tracks, then the stud goes through the floor and bolts down. I will install a support under the floor for some added strength so in an accident it won't rip out.












I then made some panels to close off the open space. I am undecided if these will get upholstered or paint matched.





And lastly here is a sample of the material and a sample of the German Square Weave carpeting that I will be using. I love the rich look of it. I bout several yards of the carpet and have it rolled up in my basement waiting.

[nvrdone]

man, im in for this one. gives me many ideas for my '49

[duramax55]

hi Gsinon this will be a awesome truck . Just a thought but i would leave the seat surround up a bit so you can tuck the carpet under them. I would also upholster those, would look great

[youngrodder]

Lots of great progress..There is one thing this site loves and that is pictures and lots of them. I made a similar lower dash panel on my past 2 builds. It's a must have if you run AC.

I like the seat color and the oatmeal carpet color.

Well done.
Marc

[joedoh]

what a great project! love it all, the planning, the vision, the execution.

[gsinon]

Again guys, Thank you!!


So at this point I started with the Fatman front end install. I started to mock up where the side boxing plates would go along with the crossmember.







With the front crossmember tacked in place I then moved to the rear and installed the cross bar for the TCI 4 link upper coil over mounts.





And then the new John's industries custom ordered 9" rear showed up. Oh happy day!!



At this point it was time to remove the cab and get going on the entire chassis. As you can see the front crossmember is now tacked in and the suspension is hung to check and make sure everything is where it should be.







At this point I sent the frame out for sandblast to get it down to nice clean bare metal. Once back on stands it was leveled from side to side and checked many times before any welding. The boxing plates were then tacked in place and the new X member from Progressive Automotive was trimmed and fitted as well.

[gsinon]

With the boxing plates and X member all tacked nice and solid I was finally able to install the suspension front and back and put the chassis on all four wheels for the first time!!













I'm adding this picture just because I thought it was really neat....

[gsinon]

I have been following along on Youtube as the Idaho Fabricator builds his truck. He does fantastic videos and really explains what he is doing and why. I have gotten several ideas from him as they just made sense. The gas tank and how to mount it was one of those items.

I bought a 1941-48 Ford passenger car tank from Tanks Inc. I love the way it mounts with one threaded mount in the front and two in the back. So I started by making these brackets that will bolt to the tank like this.








I then made this drop out bracket that will bolt to the tanks front mount as well as to a welded in crossmember.





What I like about this is its simplicity. When/if I ever need to service the tank I will remove the two rear bolts, but because the tank is on top of the mounting tabs it will stay where it is. The I will remove the two bolts that go through the crossmember into the front mount and then lower the tank down.

[gsinon]

Last post for tonight.

Here with the bed on and the rear in place and tires on you can see the entire rear suspension as well as how the tank sits.

[youngrodder]

Great progress. I REALLY like your wheel and tire combo. Those should offer a great stance. I used similar wheel tubs (Dennis Carpenter - tubs) in my previous build.
I like the tank solution. How many gallons is that tank? Serviceability is well thought out too.

I like the direction of this one.

Marc

[edgeleycanuck]

Very interesting! Thanks very much for your efforts posting pictures and explanations. Your skills , planning and execution are top notch.
I m not sure, but was the original notch in the dash offset for the Shift tube?

[oldman3]

Nice work, going to be a sweet ride...Jim

[rnrdthefox]

What a great starting point with your project. You are moving along quickly.

[gsinon]

Originally Posted by youngrodder

Great progress. I REALLY like your wheel and tire combo. Those should offer a great stance. I used similar wheel tubs (Dennis Carpenter - tubs) in my previous build.
I like the tank solution. How many gallons is that tank? Serviceability is well thought out too.

I like the direction of this one.

Marc

The new tank holds 17 gallons. More than enough for me, but the time I burn that much fuel on a long trip I'm looking for a place to stop and stretch anyway! As for the wheel/tire choice, thank you. I had some nice billets on the last toy, wanted something that took less work to maintain and also a bit more classic with an old school flavor.

Originally Posted by edgeleycanuck

Very interesting! Thanks very much for your efforts posting pictures and explanations. Your skills , planning and execution are top notch.
I m not sure, but was the original notch in the dash offset for the Shift tube?

I'm definitely a picture taker and enjoy sharing the project. I like forums like this for that reason.

Originally Posted by oldman3

Nice work, going to be a sweet ride...Jim

Thanks!!

Originally Posted by rnrdthefox

What a great starting point with your project. You are moving along quickly.

Thanks, I started the project a bit over a year ago, so while this seems to be moving quickly it has taken 14 months in reality. To me it seems slow.

[8man]

I'm late to the party, but glad I got here. Great back story and all the pics. Thanks for sharing all the places you get products, for us newbies that helps a lot.

I would have liked a video of how you built that lower dash section and how you built it. Bending that sheet metal is a mystery to me. I'm still learning to use a hammer and dolly.

Looking forward to more postings and lots more pictures.

[Rowdyaf]

I love the way the tank sits and mounts, i have been kicking around how im going to do a fuel tank in my 57 and think im gonna have to steal that idea! love the work and keep the photos coming!

[gsinon]

Originally Posted by 8man

I'm late to the party, but glad I got here. Great back story and all the pics. Thanks for sharing all the places you get products, for us newbies that helps a lot.

I would have liked a video of how you built that lower dash section and how you built it. Bending that sheet metal is a mystery to me. I'm still learning to use a hammer and dolly.

Looking forward to more postings and lots more pictures.

I love how you refer to yourself as newbie and yet have 1700+ posts!! Lol. I love sharing and detailing how I do things in hope it helps or inspires others. I didn't take a video of the lower dash panel, however I would be more than happy to take some detail pics and even a video showing what and how I made it. I don't have any fancy equipment beyond a sheet metal break from Harbor Freight among other tools. On my last build I made a radiator close out panel and bent it around my floor jack handle as it was the perfect radius. I have spent my entire career in the collision/restoration/hot rod building industry. So maybe I have a leg up as this is what I have always done. But at the end of the day I'm just a humble fat guy that plays with hot rods in his garage.

Originally Posted by Rowdyaf

I love the way the tank sits and mounts, i have been kicking around how im going to do a fuel tank in my 57 and think im gonna have to steal that idea! love the work and keep the photos coming!

I'm thrilled that you like how I did the tank. If you need more pics to help out I will gladly share more with you. To me that's what these forums are all about.