Body Lines - Cab and Bed

[jason999]

Hello,

I have a 1966 Fleetside Shortbed Truck

My truck is in lots of pieces right now. The body work and paint on the bed is done and everything on the cab is lined up and most of it is in primer.

Before it was disassembled, the bed sat up just slightly higher than the cab. The body lines on the side were off just a little. My old bed wood was slightly thicker and it had been exposed to water, so I bought new wood from Classic Parts. The new wood is straight and a little thinner.

A few months ago, we did a test fit with the side pieces of wood in the bed. We didn't bolt it down. We just sort of mocked it up. The body guy said that it would line up fine when everything was bolted down. I am hopeful that when we assemble everything, the side lines will be perfect with the new wood.

The concern that I have is that the bed came off of another truck and the cab had new bushing put under it, so I am concerned that there could be a problem that the new wood won't fix.

If the lines are off when we assemble the parts, what can I do?

I have thought that the cab could be raised slightly, but I am afraid that would throw off the lined up front.

The only other thought that I have is that the support beams that run across the bed could be ground down slightly on the bottom. These are the support beams for all of the wood. All of the wood sits on the beams and the bed sits on the wood, so if the beams sat a fraction of an inch lower, then the whole bed would sit lower.

I'll try to attach a few pictures of the truck. Any input would be appreciated.