Dug's 1959 Fleetside

[47 Fasttoys]

OK, again with my opinions. Good move on the bed cuts, that should turn out fine. For the rear bumber....nope don't care for it either way. How about a round tube bumper resting between the lower rear corners of the bed? It could still stick out a bit , say 2 inches on a 4 inch tube and you could build a receiver in it or below it. With it sticking out a little it would still offer some protection and if you use schedule 40 pipe it would be much stronger then that factory one. And if you really want to play, turn it into an air tank. That's what I did on my '46 and it operates my air horns or can fill a tire if needed. Not saying it's the best way to go but but it's always good to think outside the box.
Rob

[dug224]

Rob: Thanks for the input and nice job. I like the out of the box innovation. This morning, I went to the garage and drew a line on the rear end of the bed that represents a modification to the lower part of the bed if I decide to inset the bumper where it belongs. Bumper still sticks out on either side since it is wider than the bed. As with most of my decisions, I will play around with a few ideas until one sticks. This has become part of the critical path since, if I decide to use the factory hitch, it goes on before the bed is mounted. Can't modify it until I work out the bumper. Headed to a Barry's-U-Pull-It today to get a hinged license plate holder just in case. At least I have the wheel opening thing solved so I can dive into it. May grind all the paint off today and get started. Thx Dug

[Kim57]

Seeing as the bumper has bad chrome why not cut it straight across the top and bottom so it will be able to move closer to the bed. If you put a notch into each end it could move even closer. You can also trim the ends so the don't stick out past the bed sides.
Kim

[dug224]

Originally Posted by Kim57

Seeing as the bumper has bad chrome why not cut it straight across the top and bottom so it will be able to move closer to the bed. If you put a notch into each end it could move even closer. You can also trim the ends so the don't stick out past the bed sides.
Kim

Kim: Not sure what you mean by cutting it straight across the bottom. Can you elaborate? I believe I have enough width at the license plate to cut it once to shorten it so it does not stick out on the sides. Will study the bed side notch to make sure I am up to it. The bottom of the bed ends are toast anyway so slicing them up to make room for a bumper will be improving them. Would also fab up some sort of filler panel to put between the bed cross member and the back of the bumper. Stopped by the local chrome shop. Costs $350 to get the bumper rechromed. Not in the budget. A bit steeper than I expected.

[Kim57]

Unless I am seeing it wrong it looks like if you were to look straight down on the bumper from above as it is mounted that the ends curve towards the bed. If you were to make that a straight line it would allow you to move it closer to your bed.
Hope that helps to clarify what I meant.
Kim

[dug224]

Originally Posted by Kim57

Unless I am seeing it wrong it looks like if you were to look straight down on the bumper from above as it is mounted that the ends curve towards the bed. If you were to make that a straight line it would allow you to move it closer to your bed.
Hope that helps to clarify what I meant.
Kim

I understand and you are correct. I will study this. It will also shorten the bumper slightly although not as much as I need to shorten it. I think I need to shorten it overall by about 1-1/2" to make it flush with sides. Bought a hinged license plate holder off of an '80's Camaro for $2.00 at the U-Pull-It place. Turns out, they will sell me an entire bed with good sides I can cut the floor out of for $130.99 (plus tax). Spotted a straight LWB bed I may be able to use. Thanks for the input. Dug

[Mac the Yankee]

Dug,

I'm looking forward to seeing your progress with using the modern bed (been thinking of doing the same thing myself)- hope you find one that fits well!

[ricott]

I'm watching with interest to see what you do for a rear bumper. I've been looking, and one idea I had (absolutely no idea if it will work) is the chrome bumper from the newer dodge pickups.

As far as the bed floor, look at "SGTUSMC '59 Build" Posts 117 and 121 for how he did his bed floor and sidewall (inner). He used a 1988 long wheelbase pickup bed for the floor on his 59 fleetside. It looks like it worked out real well. I hope so, as I bought a 1990 bed from my salvage operator (sheetmetal was dented so the bed went cheap).

[dug224]

Originally Posted by ricott

I'm watching with interest to see what you do for a rear bumper. I've been looking, and one idea I had (absolutely no idea if it will work) is the chrome bumper from the newer dodge pickups.

As far as the bed floor, look at "SGTUSMC '59 Build" Posts 117 and 121 for how he did his bed floor and sidewall (inner). He used a 1988 long wheelbase pickup bed for the floor on his 59 fleetside. It looks like it worked out real well. I hope so, as I bought a 1990 bed from my salvage operator (sheetmetal was dented so the bed went cheap).

Reviewed SGTUSMC's thread. Loved the fact that he got to use the sides and the tubs. I will see if I can beat him out of a few photos of how he mounted it. That looks like the very bed I have my eye on. Will head out in a minute to remeasure it and possibly make the deal.

[Mac the Yankee]

Thanks ricott, I completely forgot about that thread- looks like an '88ish will work well!

[Mac the Yankee]

I may just use the bottom... want to install a spare mount on the inside of the passenger side of the bed

[dsraven]

gm stuff try gmupfitter and go through to see what you need from different models.

[dug224]

I bought a SWB bed and tailgate from a '94 Chevy truck at the U-Pull-It place. Eight (I think) 18 mm bolts and it was off. The inside of the bed is flawless. Jim and I are brainstorming on how we can use the majority of the fresh bed including the bed front, bed floor, inside walls and latching tailgate and still make it look old. Ideas include replacing the '94 tailgate "Chevrolet" text with the text off of the '59 gate. All of the latching linkage appears to be above the area in which we would recess the '59 text panel. The '59 has a pretty large bondo filled dent in the top. May simply hang the '59 sides on the '94 bed. It will get a bit interesting around the '59 taillights since they are mounted on a flat surface and the back of the '94 (structure and tailgate) has a curve to it. The rest of the truck has a bunch of curves. Adding a few on the tail end of the truck will fit right in. Regardless, I will still need to section the bed walls. My first move will probably be to pop a line 3/8" on the outside of the pockets and remove the bed sides.

[Mac the Yankee]

Dug,

How well do the '59 side panels line up with the '94? If things do line up well, it should be a fairly simple matter to reskin the '94 bed with the earlier sides. Now, trying to get the modern internals of the tailgate into the '59 would be a real feat !

[dug224]

Originally Posted by Mac the Yankee

Dug,

How well do the '59 side panels line up with the '94? If things do line up well, it should be a fairly simple matter to reskin the '94 bed with the earlier sides. Now, trying to get the modern internals of the tailgate into the '59 would be a real feat !

Preliminary looks show that the outside dimension of the '59 bed width (side to side) is wider than the '94 which is good. Front to back they are about the same which, in my mind, is not as critical as the width with regard to the dimension. On the tailgate, my initial intention is to simply inset and weld the '59 "CHEVROLET" text on the '94 bed and avoid all the perfectly functional latch mechanism. The challenge will be maintaining the top to bottom curve on the back of bed at the taillights. What I really need is an in-fill panel that replaces the '94 taillights. Should be pretty straight forward making one if I need it. This weekend's plan is to move the truck over and pull the new bed inside the garage next to the truck so I can really start to figure it out. dug

[LSXapache]

http://grantkustoms.com/catalog/fill...ler-p-280.html

sure you can find em cheaper with some searching this is the 1st thing that popped up

[dug224]

Originally Posted by LSXapache

http://grantkustoms.com/catalog/fill...ler-p-280.html

sure you can find em cheaper with some searching this is the 1st thing that popped up

THANKS! Unbelievable what is out there. The search is on. All I really probably need is the portion facing the rear so I may be able to fab it out of a piece of the side. Dug

[ricott]

Great score on the bed. I like your idea for using the tailgate. There is a build on here (old) that dealt with reworking the tailgate. Search for "Yukon Ratrod". I planned to steal his idea (that is very simular to what you are thinking on the taligate). Look at post 107/108 for how he grafted in the "Chevrolet".

I am getting inspired in Columbus (Goodguys) this weekend. I probably saw (and photographed) 50 to 60 AD and TF trucks today. Two years ago there might have been 10. I have seen a lot of great cars, and some great paint ideas. The 58-62 Corvettes have also got me drooling again to get off my rear!!!

[dug224]

Originally Posted by ricott

Great score on the bed. I like your idea for using the tailgate. There is a build on here (old) that dealt with reworking the tailgate. Search for "Yukon Ratrod". I planned to steal his idea (that is very simular to what you are thinking on the taligate). Look at post 107/108 for how he grafted in the "Chevrolet".

I am getting inspired in Columbus (Goodguys) this weekend. I probably saw (and photographed) 50 to 60 AD and TF trucks today. Two years ago there might have been 10. I have seen a lot of great cars, and some great paint ideas. The 58-62 Corvettes have also got me drooling again to get off my rear!!!

Looked at Yukon Ratrod's build. That guy is good. Really like what he did with the gate and especially the taillights. The curved gate, he and I both agree, is curved in such a manner that it better matches the curves of the side. Thanks once again.

Columbus Goodguys sounds like fun.

[Mac the Yankee]

Okay, I feel like an idiot- have been searching for the "yukon ratrod" with no luck... could someone provide a link ?

[dug224]

Originally Posted by Mac the Yankee

Okay, I feel like an idiot- have been searching for the "yukon ratrod" with no luck... could someone provide a link ?

Try this. Posting 106 I believe.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...=391290&page=5

[dug224]

Cut the damaged passenger side off the new bed after coming up with a plan to hang the '59 sides off the '94. Sheet metal below nice and straight. After much measuring we were surprised to find out that the bed is more narrow in the rear than in the front by 1-1/2". In other words, the bed side top rails are not perpendicular to the front of the bed or the tailgate. The red line is perpendicular to the bed ends and represents the approximate location I will be butt welding the '59 to the '94 which means that the combined top rail will get wider as it goes towards the rear. May add a piece to the top rail so it looks rectangular from the top. Also, the inner bed sides narrow as well from front to back. After I remove the driver side, the next move will be to cut loose the top rails, tailgate support structure and bed front (but keeping them all together) so I can move the bed floor up to clear the T.B. suspension. Looks like one of the '94 bed cross members will need to be moved since it conflicts with the highest point on the T.B. suspension.

Note the Highlander in the background. Headlights had yellowed and faded badly. Polishing them no longer worked. Sanded with 1000 then 1200 Wet/Dry sandpaper then painted with Rustoleum clear coat for made for plastic headlights. Graingers sells them by the can. Bought a case of 6 from Home Depot for about $5/can. Also did the '08 Dodge in the background. Works incredibly well.

[Mac the Yankee]

Thanks for the link, Dug- looking forward to seeing how the "merging" works out!

[ricott]

Thanks for bringing up the taillights - I had forgotten about them, and liked the idea. I started a thread in the General section of the 47-59 Board with pictures from Columbus. It was a really great show this year with a wide variety of cars/trucks. Looking forward to your updates.
Ricky

[dug224]

Removed the '94 bed sides and set it on the frame.

- Overall plan is as follows:
1. Mount the '94 bed as shown in picture 1 with proper rake and cab-to-bed gaps.
2. Release the bed front and tailgate structure from the bed floor.
3. Section the sides keeping the the top of the bed front and top of the tailgate structure connected to the side top rails.
4. Lower the top rail, bed front and tailgate structure as a unit to a point where, when mounted, the '59 sides line up.
5. Move wheel openings.
- Picture 2 is the measurement from the front TB mounting bracket to the bottom of the bed cross member. About 9" away.
- Picture 3 is the rear one at about 2" above the frame rail.
- Picture 4 is the middle bed cross member shown sitting directly on the frame rail where it belongs. The front of it is butted up against the complicated TB spring perch assembly which just so happens creates pretty acceptable cab-to-bed gaps.
- If you look closely enough in picture 5, you can see that the high point of the spring perch assembly is about 3/4" below the bottom of the bed floor. Will move the bed down by notching the '94 cross member. May even rest the cross member on the spring perch assembly with a rubber pad between. The Chevy engineers went to allot of trouble to create this complicated spring perch assembly to get the exhaust over the rear end. Appears to me they over thought it. The clearances are way over the top. Looks like they could have made it flat and gotten nearly the same clearance.