55.2-59 Front end fitment questions

[jasonpotts]

I’m out working in the shop trying to get my
Front end to all line up on my 55.2

Is there supposed to be a filler between the inner fender and the core support?

And what about between the back of hood and the cowl. Is there a gasket that goes there. One side is high. I know that, but I’m out of adjustment. In the hinge so I’m gonna see about modifying the mounting holes to bring it down

Thanks

[MARTINSR]

I will bet a crisp dollar bill that you are pushing the hood down to lower it in the rear instead of "rotating" the hinges. Check out this "Basics of Basics" on panel alignment.

https://www.hotrodders.com/threads/b.../#post-1561503

Here is another one that explains the thinking about "rotating" the hinge a little different. Just think about what the concept is not so much how you do it. Because on your hinges it could require something a little different, just study the concept.

https://www.hotrodders.com/threads/h.../#post-1576191


Brian

[jasonpotts]

Hey. Thanks a lot

I’m reading all the info now. I did not even think about shimming the hood to the hinge. I’m going to get out there in a few and I’ll let you know how it goes

[MARTINSR]

The cool thing is you are doing this before it's all painted nice. Right there tells me you are a thinking machine and you will get this. Sooooo many guys will pull a truck apart and paint it all nice and then try to fit it, that is a mistake!

No, with it before paint like this just move stuff around, experiment with the stuff in the links and see what you can make happen, you have nothing to loose.

Brian

[mr48chev]

I can't tell if that is a frame swap truck or a subframed truck but the bit pitfall of either is the battle of getting hoods and fenders lined up right if you don't have the cab sitting just right on the frame and don't have the core support mounts at exactly the right height.

Take a minute to stand back and look and make sure that the gap between the fender and the door are perfect all up and down and that the body lines on the fender are exactly straight and inline with the other body lines all the way back on the truck. One little thing being off a fraction throws the whole thing off.

[dsraven]

maybe bumble through this, it should show you how the factory assembled it. pretty sure my 57 had some rubber in there.

https://www.trifive.com/d1/55-59Assy.pdf

[MARTINSR]

You are right Mr48, but even with that the back of the hood may be able to be lowered to make it fit.


Brian

[mr48chev]

I was going more on what I have been around and have seen. The main reason I am no longer in favor of Subframe swaps or frame swaps if you have a nice original frame to start out with. Guys can just flat miss the mark especially with subframe swaps and make way too much work for themselves.

[dsraven]

it is a good idea to download the assembly manual and get a look at the original frame, dimensions of this and that, make your own dimensional plan or get an enlarged copy, then lay out the frame or clip swap in such a way as to get the rad support etc at the correct height and dimension from the firewall that is originally planned for. on these TF trucks, if you look at the frame plan, it is basically a flat center section (top rail) with taper in the front to accommodate the axle and a kick up in the rear to accommodate the axle. the plans show the dimension of drop from the plane of the main flat area to the rad support mount area. it also shows the dimension from the firewall (face of cab) to the rad support mounting bolt. it would make sense then to simply extend a line from the flat part of the frame forward and allow for that much drop to the rad support mounts. do some math and you have the location of the mounts. same for bumper mounts.

https://www.trifive.com/d1/55-59Assy.pdf

you can also search for orrieg's profile on here (thanks Orrieg) and find a link to the old car manuals project which has the frame, and other, information.

[jasonpotts]

thanks for the advice guys... im going to print off that manual ..

yes the truck is now on a caprice chassis assuming I got the mounts in the right place i think im getting it to line up now.

As with many things i bought the truck thinking the chassis had been handled appropriately, but soon found out it was in bad bad shape. The best we can tell it was on a g-body chassis maybe a 80s el camino. but it had been done so poorly just scraps of angle iron holding up the bed and cab, structurally significant rust etc, we decided to redo it all

[dsraven]

You could download the plan and build your own. Build a solid frame table first. Get some straight I beam from a scrap dealer for a table. Build on that.

[dsraven]

Post up some pics of what you have to work with. Maybe we can offer some advice.

[dsraven]

When doing alignment for body panels it helps to use a couple magnets and some string ran from front to rear at the body line. Stand the string off the body with a couple of small block spacers so it doesnt touch the body. You can soon see where the body needs shims added or subtracted to get the body lines all in an even row.

[dsraven]

another thing that can help you with the body line line-up is to mark each panel at the designated spot. lay a piece of string on your body line of each individual panel, tape it at the ends and pull it tight, then spray a quick shot of primer, or something that is easily removed later, over the string. when the string and tape are removed you have a nice mark the length of the panel. then when the parts are all on the body and you run your string line from front to rear, held with magnets or some strong tape etc, it is easy to see where the adjustments need to be made.
this is how I do them. assuming the rear cab mount is in good shape, door hinges are good and tight etc and cab is sitting level with the frame . if the frame has a 2 deg rake then the cab should also have a 2 deg rake, if you know what I mean shim front cab mount to get it right. if it isn't right here to start with then the rad support shim pack required can be really exaggerated and also the box angle will look way off and may be too much to compensate for later
-install door in opening
-adjust door to fit opening without referencing the fender
-install fenders and rad support loosely so it can be moved a bit using mild force. I have a couple of floor jacks that I use under the front part of the fenders on each side to allow a quick adjustment in height. some blocking would also work. I leave a long taper punch in the rad support bolt holes so it is roughly centered but not held down for height. same for the fender upper rear bolts, just to get things roughly set in place
-adjust the fender rear upper bolt and shim pack so that part of the fender lines up with the cowl and door body line. you may need shims/body washers etc to get the height right. those bolts can be tightened down a little tighter now to keep the fenders in place
-adjust the rad support height (assuming the use of new or really good rad support mounts that aren't squashed out) and/or the cab front mount height (these are metal on metal mounts) so the fender and door body lines are straight. then tighten it all down and recheck.
-now adjust the fender lower mounts and shim packs so fenders line up with the door and step properly. be sure to open the door slowly while watching for interference spots between the parts
-now install the hood. it should fit somewhat decent if it fit decent before the truck was taken apart and placed on the caprice frame.

[57tailgater]

I just found this great video on YouTube about lining up the body on TF's.

https://youtu.be/RgUwd9PdWiA