Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

Frizzle Fry · 03-07-2007, 04:56 PM

I decided to take a stab at the fiberglass kick panel deal. I like these because they provide a nice enclosure volume for any set of decent mids. I’m running Infinity Kappa components with the tweets in the dash where the AC balls would go if equipped. That was not my first choice for location but the PO had installed some garbage 70’s map lights there so the tweets made a nice replacement for now.

I bought everything I needed to do this at Home Depot and Joann Fabrics.

I have to give credit to greasmonkey’s FAQ for the idea (at least that’s where I first saw it). I followed his basic idea, but made a few changes.

First, I used a dense ¼” fiberboard for the backing instead of fiberglass. Because of this there was no need for the ½ round edging. I just sand rounded the edges of the fiberboard. It also allowed me to cut a groove in the back of the panel at the depth of the speaker wire to run it from the hole to the top of the panel and still allow the panel to sit flush against the sheet metal (see pics).

I placed the driver’s side speaker lower than the passenger side to clear the e-brake pedal. I decided to move the pedal itself over on the lever (drill welds, move right, re-weld) as can be seen in one of the pics. That’s not necessary, but I didn’t want to be kicking the kick panel all the time, or even close to it. I also removed the Highbeam/Lowbeam switch. I run brights all the time (because they’re not very bright) so I just tie-wrapped the harness up under the dash and made a nice jumper for the plug so I have full time brights. After I do the headlight relay mod I’ll come up with a better alternative for the switch.

Frizzle Fry · 03-07-2007, 04:59 PM

Frizzle Fry · 03-07-2007, 05:06 PM

I used a hot glue gun for all the fastening of the materials. I also used spray adhesive as well as hot glue for the vinyl. I wasn’t able to get the vinyl to stretch completely over the entire structure, so I had to cut out some extra material (same with the t-shirt and the fiber cloth). The place I made those cuts is out of sight when they are installed.

I did apply the resin to the t-shirt material (not shown) before adding a single layer of fiber cloth. Trust me with these two layers they are very rigid.

Frizzle Fry · 03-07-2007, 05:14 PM

Frizzle Fry · 03-07-2007, 05:17 PM

Here you can see the purpose of the groove:

Frizzle Fry · 03-07-2007, 05:22 PM

Another thing I did was figure out how to locate the factory air-vent puller bracket holes in the kick panel. I taped a piece of card-stock over the holes and tried to make the holes visible by rubbing over them with the side of a crayon (a relief). In my case they didn’t show up very well (at all) so I just eyeballed them and started poking around with a jeweler’s screwdriver until I found the two holes. With the card stock taped only on one edge I was able to flip it out of the way to put the kick panel in place under it. Mark the panel and viola. They are close enough if you oversize the holes in the panels (I used a ¼” bit).

Frizzle Fry · 03-07-2007, 05:27 PM

The panels are held in place by the air-vent puller brackets, a tight fit around the floor and dash edges, and one sheet metal screw on each side. Those screws are located right behind the speakers as far down and back (toward the door) as I could reach. I considered using a hot glue gun to mount them, but decided one extra screw hole on each side was acceptable (the PO already put several on each side anyway…).

Now I just need some carpet...

shifty · 03-07-2007, 05:32 PM

Nice work Mike, and thanks for sharing. This should go in the FAQ also. You make it look so easy

What was the total prep and build time?

Frizzle Fry · 03-07-2007, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shifty

Nice work Mike, and thanks for sharing. This should go in the FAQ also. You make it look so easy

What was the total prep and build time?

Well, I have to admit that I was multitasking (or distracted if that's what you want to call it

), so I spent an hour or two here and there over about ten days or so. I'd say it could be done in 3-4 days allowing for overnight curing.

metalmassfab · 03-07-2007, 05:43 PM

Mike, great job! Your attention to detail is outstanding, perfect fit and finish. I've had speaker kicks on the 'to do' list for years, but now I'm thinking more like bribing you to build me a set...no, really! My '69 C-20 is the same color inside, same steering wheel...I better go check and make sure my trucks still here!!!

67ChevyRedneck · 03-07-2007, 05:44 PM

Quote:

I also removed the Highbeam/Lowbeam switch. I run brights all the time (because they’re not very bright) so I just tie-wrapped the harness up under the dash and made a nice jumper for the plug so I have full time brights. After I do the headlight relay mod I’ll come up with a better alternative for the switch.

Crap! I was hoping you figured out what to do with it

What sucks is that it sits in a depression in the floor and moving it will put a lump in the carpet.... Where am I going to put the stupid thing on mine???

Those look great! Great job

And Jason's right, this is DEFINATELY a new FAQ!

sb69chevy · 03-07-2007, 05:46 PM

Those are nice...would love to have some.

jimmydean · 03-07-2007, 05:48 PM

Nice work for sure! I keep putting mine off because of a million other things I have going on leading into the mountain bike season.

Frizzle Fry · 03-07-2007, 05:50 PM

Thanks guys! They sound better than they look

Quote:

Originally Posted by 67ChevyRedneck

Crap! I was hoping you figured out what to do with it

What sucks is that it sits in a depression in the floor and moving it will put a lump in the carpet.... Where am I going to put the stupid thing on mine???

I was thinking about mod'ing the turn signal lever for the brights-switch like newer vehicles have.

67ChevyRedneck · 03-07-2007, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frizzle Fry

Thanks guys! They sound better than they look

I was thinking about mod'ing the turn signal lever for the brights-switch like newer vehicles have.

Great idea! By using a newer column or actually modding just the lever?

I got the cheapo plastic kick panels and my switch is useless behind it.

jsbgump · 03-07-2007, 06:24 PM

Breat idea and nice work

RACINJASON22 · 03-07-2007, 07:39 PM

Allways feels better when ya make something better than you can buy!! GR8 work!

Stroker · 03-07-2007, 08:28 PM

Those look great!!!!! This is one that belongs in the FAQ for sure. Good pics and description a quality tech article. Thanks Mike!

Gary · 03-07-2007, 09:53 PM

I love you man! this thread is so being bookmarked for later reference

GREASEMONKEY72 · 03-07-2007, 10:17 PM

thats great man, awesome job

sleepyboy · 03-07-2007, 10:21 PM

turned out nice..

1972ChevyCheyenne · 03-07-2007, 10:48 PM

There already is a FAQ in there about the kick panels. Although Frizzle Fry has picture of some of the steps that aren't shown it the other FAQ. It should be add to the other one though.

Also when I made mine I put the truck clearance lights in them. On the wires for the lights and the speakers I used the bullet style connector to make the easily removable. I guess it could comprimse sound quality but it sure beats the AM radio.

ClassicRedneck05 · 03-07-2007, 11:02 PM

ya know i ended up making me some as well and the bad part i forgot is after i made them and set them in there to mount i realized at that time i couldnt use my hi-beams anymore without relocating the switch (which i didnt want to do and did not do) haha

muddpile · 03-08-2007, 01:06 AM

I've thought about doing this, but one question: How well do the floor vents work now with the handles spaced out from the original location on the tin kick? Are they just out 3/8" or so (wood+fibreglass+vinyl), or are they more than that? If I could make that work, that would be killer!

*Ozona* · 03-08-2007, 09:59 AM

Very nice work. I've been thinking about doing this myself....SOLD me on doing it.

It should be really easy to change the high beam switch over from the floor mount switch to a toggle/momentary push button & relay. You could put the switch basically anywhere handy....

Again - very nice work.

Now that you've done these, what would you do differently next time?

I would love to hear your thoughts...so I can learn from you.

03-07-2007, 04:56 PM	#1
Frizzle Fry Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Hillsboro Oregon Posts: 6,449	Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels I decided to take a stab at the fiberglass kick panel deal. I like these because they provide a nice enclosure volume for any set of decent mids. I’m running Infinity Kappa components with the tweets in the dash where the AC balls would go if equipped. That was not my first choice for location but the PO had installed some garbage 70’s map lights there so the tweets made a nice replacement for now. I bought everything I needed to do this at Home Depot and Joann Fabrics. I have to give credit to greasmonkey’s FAQ for the idea (at least that’s where I first saw it). I followed his basic idea, but made a few changes. First, I used a dense ¼” fiberboard for the backing instead of fiberglass. Because of this there was no need for the ½ round edging. I just sand rounded the edges of the fiberboard. It also allowed me to cut a groove in the back of the panel at the depth of the speaker wire to run it from the hole to the top of the panel and still allow the panel to sit flush against the sheet metal (see pics). I placed the driver’s side speaker lower than the passenger side to clear the e-brake pedal. I decided to move the pedal itself over on the lever (drill welds, move right, re-weld) as can be seen in one of the pics. That’s not necessary, but I didn’t want to be kicking the kick panel all the time, or even close to it. I also removed the Highbeam/Lowbeam switch. I run brights all the time (because they’re not very bright) so I just tie-wrapped the harness up under the dash and made a nice jumper for the plug so I have full time brights. After I do the headlight relay mod I’ll come up with a better alternative for the switch. Last edited by Frizzle Fry; 03-07-2007 at 10:55 PM.

03-07-2007, 04:59 PM	#2
Frizzle Fry Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Hillsboro Oregon Posts: 6,449	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels

03-07-2007, 05:06 PM	#3
Frizzle Fry Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Hillsboro Oregon Posts: 6,449	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels I used a hot glue gun for all the fastening of the materials. I also used spray adhesive as well as hot glue for the vinyl. I wasn’t able to get the vinyl to stretch completely over the entire structure, so I had to cut out some extra material (same with the t-shirt and the fiber cloth). The place I made those cuts is out of sight when they are installed. I did apply the resin to the t-shirt material (not shown) before adding a single layer of fiber cloth. Trust me with these two layers they are very rigid.

03-07-2007, 05:14 PM	#4
Frizzle Fry Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Hillsboro Oregon Posts: 6,449	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels

03-07-2007, 05:17 PM	#5
Frizzle Fry Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Hillsboro Oregon Posts: 6,449	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Here you can see the purpose of the groove:

03-07-2007, 05:22 PM	#6
Frizzle Fry Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Hillsboro Oregon Posts: 6,449	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Another thing I did was figure out how to locate the factory air-vent puller bracket holes in the kick panel. I taped a piece of card-stock over the holes and tried to make the holes visible by rubbing over them with the side of a crayon (a relief). In my case they didn’t show up very well (at all) so I just eyeballed them and started poking around with a jeweler’s screwdriver until I found the two holes. With the card stock taped only on one edge I was able to flip it out of the way to put the kick panel in place under it. Mark the panel and viola. They are close enough if you oversize the holes in the panels (I used a ¼” bit).

03-07-2007, 05:27 PM	#7
Frizzle Fry Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Hillsboro Oregon Posts: 6,449	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels The panels are held in place by the air-vent puller brackets, a tight fit around the floor and dash edges, and one sheet metal screw on each side. Those screws are located right behind the speakers as far down and back (toward the door) as I could reach. I considered using a hot glue gun to mount them, but decided one extra screw hole on each side was acceptable (the PO already put several on each side anyway…). Now I just need some carpet...

03-07-2007, 05:32 PM	#8
shifty Questionable Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Atlanta Posts: 13,376	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Nice work Mike, and thanks for sharing. This should go in the FAQ also. You make it look so easy What was the total prep and build time? __________________ If I've got anything up for grabs, it'll be here: 7-hole gauge cluster for a 67-72 p/u FREE (link) I can't check the forum daily. If I don't reply to you within 24 hours, drop me a PM! I'm (hopefully) still alive and will reply faster to a PM.

03-07-2007, 05:43 PM	#10
metalmassfab Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Sunny CA Posts: 98	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Mike, great job! Your attention to detail is outstanding, perfect fit and finish. I've had speaker kicks on the 'to do' list for years, but now I'm thinking more like bribing you to build me a set...no, really! My '69 C-20 is the same color inside, same steering wheel...I better go check and make sure my trucks still here!!! __________________ Ryan Metal Massacre Fabrication New Projects: -New radiator core supports, steel and stainless -Aluminum radiators -Aluminum dual electric fan shrouds '69 C-20 Custom '69 Nova...BIG BBC soon '72 3-door 'Burb...in a few '94 K2500 454 'Burb

03-07-2007, 05:46 PM	#12
sb69chevy Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Springfield, MO Posts: 375	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Those are nice...would love to have some. __________________ 1969 C/10 swb, 350, powerglide (daily driver) 2005 CRV (wife's ride)

03-07-2007, 05:48 PM	#13
jimmydean Registered User Join Date: May 2005 Location: Beaverton, OR Posts: 3,728	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Nice work for sure! I keep putting mine off because of a million other things I have going on leading into the mountain bike season. __________________ New Project: 1966 LWB C20 Plans: 1/2 ton conversion Dropmember front Dropmember rear Corvette discs Restored raised bed http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s....php?p=4295210

03-07-2007, 06:24 PM	#16
jsbgump Gone Fishing Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Fort Worth, Texas 76135 Posts: 12,361	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Breat idea and nice work __________________ 68 Chevy Short Fleetside LSX Swap Under Way 3.73 posi 2.5/4 drop Frame of resto has been started 2022 Hyundai Tucson Limited 2019 Chevy Traverse Redline Edition Wifes Ride Build Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...=1#post3483616

03-07-2007, 07:39 PM	#17
RACINJASON22 GEARHEAD Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: CENTRAL,PA Posts: 2,284	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Allways feels better when ya make something better than you can buy!! GR8 work! __________________ 72 SWB 2WD MY PROJECT 72 LWB 4X4 FUTURE PROJECT SUBSCRIBE HEREBOARD VENDORS HERE NORWOOD MEET SURVIVOR!

03-07-2007, 08:28 PM	#18
Stroker Registered User Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Moore, Ok Posts: 1,149	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Those look great!!!!! This is one that belongs in the FAQ for sure. Good pics and description a quality tech article. Thanks Mike! __________________ 72 SWB parts and pieces Oklahoma

03-07-2007, 09:53 PM	#19
Gary Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Harvest, AL Posts: 545	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels I love you man! this thread is so being bookmarked for later reference __________________ Gary Harris 85 Silverado - 87 Grand National 2007 Ardmore Car Show



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03-07-2007, 10:17 PM	#20
GREASEMONKEY72 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Bakersfield,CA Posts: 7,893	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels thats great man, awesome job __________________ -steven Alte Seele S.S. "Allison" '72 C/10 LWB 350SB/TH350 - DD PITBULL IS NOT A CRIME

03-07-2007, 10:21 PM	#21
sleepyboy '69 Step Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Marion, Texas Posts: 722	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels turned out nice..

03-07-2007, 10:48 PM	#22
1972ChevyCheyenne Registered User Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Teeswater, Ontario, Canada Posts: 173	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels There already is a FAQ in there about the kick panels. Although Frizzle Fry has picture of some of the steps that aren't shown it the other FAQ. It should be add to the other one though. Also when I made mine I put the truck clearance lights in them. On the wires for the lights and the speakers I used the bullet style connector to make the easily removable. I guess it could comprimse sound quality but it sure beats the AM radio. __________________ Jamie _______________________________ 72 Chevy Cheyenne 350/th350 LWB 03 Chevy Silverado Sporty Shorty 4.8L

03-07-2007, 11:02 PM	#23
ClassicRedneck05 Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Humble, Texas Posts: 262	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels ya know i ended up making me some as well and the bad part i forgot is after i made them and set them in there to mount i realized at that time i couldnt use my hi-beams anymore without relocating the switch (which i didnt want to do and did not do) haha __________________ Redneck Rampage 1972 Chevrolet C-10 LWB 350 1972 Chevrolet K-20 LWB 502 LiFtEd

03-08-2007, 01:06 AM	#24
muddpile Registered User Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Saskatchewan, Canada Posts: 1,371	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels I've thought about doing this, but one question: How well do the floor vents work now with the handles spaced out from the original location on the tin kick? Are they just out 3/8" or so (wood+fibreglass+vinyl), or are they more than that? If I could make that work, that would be killer! __________________ 1964 Chevy Short Fleet: Tornado 1972 Chevy C10: Fast Orange Secondaries Wide Open

03-08-2007, 09:59 AM	#25
Ozona Account Suspended Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Fort Worth Posts: 155	Re: Home-Made Speaker Kick Panels Very nice work. I've been thinking about doing this myself....SOLD me on doing it. It should be really easy to change the high beam switch over from the floor mount switch to a toggle/momentary push button & relay. You could put the switch basically anywhere handy.... Again - very nice work. Now that you've done these, what would you do differently next time? I would love to hear your thoughts...so I can learn from you.

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