My 1955 Chevy 3100 build

[55 Chevy Dave]

I haven't posted in a while, as the projects have not been that exciting. Here are some pics of the last hole being filled in the back of the cab.

[55 Chevy Dave]

Instead of spending $1,000.00 on front fenders and inner fenders, I decided to fix them. Here is a patch I did on one of the inner fenders where stress cracks had destroyed a couple of the mounting holes.

[55 Chevy Dave]

I did a fair amount of work on the fenders as well. I filled the mounting holes for the badges, repaired stress cracks at some of the mounting holes and filled the antenna hole.

[55 Chevy Dave]

I put the front end back together to see how everything fit and to see if anything else needed to be fixed at the connection points of the panels. Everything seems to fit pretty well.

[Advanced Design]

Really nice metal repairs. Great progress.

[oldman3]

Repairs looking great...Jim

[Kim57]

Very nice job on all the repairs.
Kim

[II_Slow]

I think mine is getting exactly the same repairs, plus a little work on the hinge pockets. Thanks for posting the pictures, gives me more confidence to proceed on mine. Yours is looking great, rock on with it!

[ptc]

Originally Posted by II_Slow

I think mine is getting exactly the same repairs, plus a little work on the hinge pockets. Thanks for posting the pictures, gives me more confidence to proceed on mine. Yours is looking great, rock on with it!

Ditto here! - I am just getting ready to do the fender lowers and the door lowers. did you have any problems with warping any of the panels due to heat? or just take it real slow! ???

Also on assembling the fenders to the front radiator support, do you have to assemble the inner fenders first before installing onto truck? cause mine dont seem to fit afterwards.... thx!

[55 Chevy Dave]

Originally Posted by ptc

Ditto here! - I am just getting ready to do the fender lowers and the door lowers. did you have any problems with warping any of the panels due to heat? or just take it real slow! ???

Also on assembling the fenders to the front radiator support, do you have to assemble the inner fenders first before installing onto truck? cause mine dont seem to fit afterwards.... thx!

PTC, I did have problems with the first fender warping. When I did the second fender, I had a rag soaking in bucket of water nearby. After a few welds, I would put down the welder and soak everything down with the rag. It took a lot longer but made the difference!

I assemble the inner and outer fenders on the truck. If I leave everything loose, there is enough play to move all of the panels around and make sure everything fits together properly.

[55 Chevy Dave]

The passenger side took a bit longer than the driver's side, but the fender ended up nice and straight.

[RockinKees]

Nice repairs Dave!

[made2drag]

WOW! Amazing build so far. Your metal work is stellar man!

[55 Chevy Dave]

Thank you for all the compliments. I appreciate all of you taking the time to look at my thread. It makes the time spent working on the thread worthwhile.

[oldman3]

Nice job, you should be proud...Jim

[Kim57]

Looking very nice.
Kim

[Advanced Design]

Really good work Dave. Came out nice.

[slck57]

Very nice!

[ptc]

Thanks Dave for all the tips, it will sure help! Dash looks great too! The smooth dash sure looks lot better, I like the minimalist approach!

Thanks Again...

[II_Slow]

Looks like we are doing many of the same repairs at the same time! I'm just winging it as I go. And it's slow progress but it sure looks better after it's done. I'll keep an eye on your thread for ideas and inspiration. Keep up the good work!

[II_Slow]

I'll pay particular attention to what you do with the rust below the lower hinge pocket. Lots of compound curves and hard-to-get-to areas there. Looks a little tricky. I've still got that, and a rusty brow, to deal with.

[RockinKees]

Nice work on the Dash!!
Great repair on the fender also!!

[55 Chevy Dave]

I managed to warp the driver's side front fender during the first repair, so I had to do it over. This time, I purchased a half fender from LMC. I cut the old repair out along with the warped sheet metal. I also staggered the cut so that I did not end up with a straight line weld again like last time. I thought this may help with the overall strength of the fender and help keep it from warping. I welded in the new repair panel. I took my time and cooled down the metal between spot welds with a soaking wet rag. It did the trick.

I guess that's one way to learn!

[55 Chevy Dave]

Last weekend, I took delivery of my buddy's SBC 350. A few year's back, he had it professionally rebuilt locally and it has been a good performer for him ever since. The dyno sheet says it puts out nearly 450 horsepower with 430 foot pounds of torque. I think it will move the truck along nicely and I must say that it is pretty cool to have my buddy's old engine as the heart of my new truck!

I also took delivery of a new Tremec TKO 5-speed transmission to bolt the engine up to. I also picked up a new bell housing, flywheel and clutch. My truck fund took quite a hit!

[55 Chevy Dave]

Of course, I couldn't wait to introduce the powerplant and trans to it's new home! I bolted everything together and slowly dropped it down and rolled it back. Apparently, I am going to need to order to one of Tremec's optional shifter relocation kits as the default rear position is definitely too far back.

I spent a lot of time looking around the forum this past week for any and all information on the proper placement of the engine. I found quite a few threads on the preferred angle of the engine/trans and it's relation to the rear axle pinion angle, but I didn't find much info on placement front to back and up and down. Any input on this would be greatly appreciated.