Grizz's Redneck Express 1966 Chevy Short Fleetside RESTO-GO!

[Grizz1963]

Last two days the yruck has actually worked and done about 90 miles.

Moved our daughter out of her flat back to her fathers as she is going traveling from April before she starts looking for a job as a radiographer.

Best part was her squealing like a todler when I spanked the truck.

Today we went over to Essex to say goodbye to friends who are moving back to South Africa after 15 years in the UK.
I got a load. Of shelving and unused 2.4m decking boards from Dirk, as well as some ally ladders and other wood.

As often is the case, I forget how much of an impression the truck makes on the road with pointing, hooting and friendly waving wherever we go.

Have I mentioned that I love my truck?

[clemdaddy]

Have I mentioned that I love my truck?[/QUOTE]

you should love it, its beautiful. i love it too.
is it time for patch panels?

[markeb01]

The variety of your side projects is always interesting or amazing. I can copy stuff easily, and perhaps even improve on the design. But I just don't have the imagination for all the stuff you repurpose. It's really fun watching! Thanks for continuing to show these diversions.

[Ta2Don]

Drill works better than a rope... Can't wait to see what you come up with.
May try to Skype later… My Electrician friend is coming out to the farm to look at the compressor!

Cheers!

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by clemdaddy

Have I mentioned that I love my truck?

you should love it, its beautiful. i love it too.
is it time for patch panels?[/QUOTE]

Welder is borked..... see response below.

Originally Posted by markeb01

The variety of your side projects is always interesting or amazing. I can copy stuff easily, and perhaps even improve on the design. But I just don't have the imagination for all the stuff you repurpose. It's really fun watching! Thanks for continuing to show these diversions.

Thanks Mark, I guess it is the result of a misspent youth.

And a bit like sportsmen, the more you practice, the better you get.

I just tend to see more function in stuff. Maybe also being South African, we tend to use stuff till the life is completely out of it.

I look up to guys like you and McMurphy and various others on here and just shake my head at your skills and abilities.

Originally Posted by Ta2Don

Drill works better than a rope... Can't wait to see what you come up with.
May try to Skype later… My Electrician friend is coming out to the farm to look at the compressor!

Cheers!

Been offered a couple of old BMX bikes already, still got to figure out getting the power onto the back wheel, friction or power gear??

[Grizz1963]

Parked up yesterday before being loaded up with furniture.



Now a call out for all genius types.

My welder has gone through about 2.5kg of welding wire.

A few weeks ago while welding it tripped out, I thought overheating, and carried on with the stick welder as it was not a finesse job.

Then a while later I started it up again, planning to do some practice welds on steel plate, for when I started cutting and welding he trucks rust...... switched it on, and at the first arc I struck the welder died again.

Checked the fuse etc..... all seemed fine.

Any ideas ?



So another weekend comes to an end.

[Ta2Don]

Don't claim Genius status, but when my welder died, I checked the overheat switch, then searched for a fuse… Overheat switch checked out OK…No fuse to be found… finally found a burnt circuit on the circuit board...:bang head: Attempted to repair… and as soon as the machine was switched on FIREWORKS!!! No replacement circuit board available… so I wound up buying a new machine… Hopefully you will track down a faulty switch or fuse...

[Grizz1963]

Thanks for all the replies guys.

Last night I removed the plug, cut about 2 inches off the cable, refitted and replaced the 13A fuse.

Plugged it in, the cooling fan came on, no light behind the power switch.

I then welded about 300mm on some plate and other than having to set the feed, power etc. I just need to practice loads so that I get the patch panels right first time around.

On the way home yesterday I stopped by in a welding shop, and bought my birthday present from Nicola...... £48.00



Should help with cutting and grinding.

Mate Martin will be around later for pizza, porn and probing my welder with his tester. Hopefully he will find all is fine.

Looking forward to the birthday prezzie he got his boss to bring back from Thailand.
When I went there a few years ago, I could not get a plate.

He had some new ones made, and the used one comes from his Ford Escort he is having rebuilt in Thailand.



Nice addition to my collection.

[Grizz1963]

Went to the NSRA Swapmeet in Essex today.

Collected my Wheel Vintiques Chrome smoothies and bought a pair of hubcaps for £20/pair which is less than half price.



Now need a new pair of wheel adaptors made up, then find white wall tyres and get it behind the Chevy truck.

Very pleased tonight.

Got a call from (Gary) who collects wooden hotel and commercial clothes hangers..... he had me a Liberian plate.

I also managed to buy a Belgian plate and got an old English plate for trading.

[Ta2Don]

Wheels… SCORE!

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by Ta2Don

Wheels… SCORE!

Indeed, now just need adapters made to get the wheels onto the GrizzPod, get new tyres fitted...... so spending about £400.00 just to make it look good behind the truck. MAD MAD MAD.... but doing it anyway.

Off to Whitstable today in the MX5 with Nicola driving to pick up a half size empty Argon/CO2 bottle to refill so that I stand a better chance of not messing up completely when I start welding up my trucks sheetmetal.

[Grizz1963]

Right, thanks to mate Martin for getting them at some of the job sites he worked this week, I have on offer, as I know that I am not the only one here......


Some good British/English plates FREE to you guys.

If you want to trade or send out a plate/s, that would be awesome. (but not a prerequisite at all)

The only stipulation is that you pay the full Postage via Paypal including Paypal costs.

You could not fly out here for the price of postage if you wanted some alternate garage/shed wall hangings.

PM if you are interested in having something different.

Just to mention again, I love the weird, unusual, used rather than newest.

If anyone wants to make my day, military, army, government etc does it for me.

That said, these are still available "free" at the cost of Postage fully paid via Paypal.

PM please and mention what plate/s you want.

There is some double sided tape stuck to some, but it peels off easy.

There are a few dealer plates like the Fiesta, KA plates.

Also at the top, there are two unused, still with protective film on them.

I also have 4 of the same one that reads A11 VAL which would have been someones "personal plate" available.

There are 4 as you can see which have the dealers details on the bottom.

Lastly, in the UK, front plates are white, and rears are yellow.

The plates denote year of registration, so 10 is 2010 and 13 is 2013 however, 54 would be 2004 and 57 would be 2007 and then to make it more interesting 63 would be 2013 ........ confused yet ??

[Grizz1963]

Great surprise when I got home today.

Post man was here....

Envelope from Georgia containing some number plates for my collection.

Specialist plate Historic Automobile, and also the Bahamas plate.




BUT THE BEST WAS TO COME OUT THE ENVELOPE.

An original December 1965 Chevy C10 brochure from Todd Scott. Thanks Buddy !!

[Grizz1963]

As part of my practice to get ready for the trucks mini-weldathon and because I can....

I have wanted to build a retro style fuel pump for my drive outside the garage for some time, as I cannot justify paying the prices charged for "patina'd" pumps.

I started a few threads on various forums as I was hoping to get a plain white globe to fit on top, but it has become obvious that they do not come cheaply, so I am onto plan "B" now, which will not include a glob on top.
http://www.retrorides.proboards.com/...ss-light-shade

£950.00 for this is fine if you have loads of disposable cash and little distinction of value.

Seen last weekend at the NSRA Swapmeet.



This one was already sold at £950.00






Bought this at the NSRA Swapmeet for £5.00 a Bargain, and once distressed and stripped of modern plastics, it should look the part.



Paid about £42.00 including postage for this one on Evilbay, waaaay too much, but what they go for sometimes.

Still need to decide which one to use, or if I want to make a double sided pump with two nozzles.



Nicola's brother works in Suriname most of the time, managing a fleet of dredgers and tugs that work on the rivers.
When he heard I wanted to find some hose for the nozzles, he offered me a whole new, unused fire hose reel.
The next morning Nicola who did not know they were coming, called me in a panic, he had dropped off two, one of which has since found a new home.
I will be using some of the red hose, which will dictate at least in part my colour schemes.



Bought a complete vintage petrol pump face sticker off Evilbay, about £6.00
It will be made to fit inside some perspex, hopefully taken from an old caravan window.




About 6 months ago Nicola had a clearout at the funeral home she works at, but this broken locker did not make it into the skip.
So about 5 weeks ago I went down to fetch it in the Chevy, loving to make the truck work.




Last year Mickey had to remove a display unit from a Tony & Guy hairdressing boutique and dump it, but before he did, I removed the white steel sides which had a nice curve on them and were of seriously thick steel as they were structural. At the time I had no specific purpose for the pieces, but knew it was only time......

Today I started to prep the steel and the locker.



Using a 1mm cutting disc, I removed the 90' lip on all of the sections from the hair salon.

Then I cut them to size as I want my repro pump to be 5 foot tall. The plan is to use these sections to make the front face of the pump rounded with a raised section for the clock face etc.



Lastly, I butt welded the plates together, leaving the front face unwelded, a minimal skim of filler will sort the joins in the end.

Next up, I need to make up a complete front frame, fill in the open space and cut the cabinet down by about 6 inches, not much I know, but it will be right then.
I also need to weld in a bit of strengthening to the cut down door.
Once made up, I need to find a small vertical compressor to fit inside so that I have a compressor on the drive.

Done for today..... two 5 foot sides and a 3 foot length that needs to be cut in half to make a top and bottom section.



I am also going to look for bits of old car or refrigerator/cooker trim to use on the front and sides of the pump to embellish it a bit, giving it a bit of an Art Deco feel.

I will leave you with this, a metal star we bought after Christmas 2012 in the sales.... I knew it would come in useful some time.
Now it will form part of my non existent "Star Brand" fuel logo.

Any ideas and advice welcome.

[Grizz1963]

Thought I would add this in because I was pleased with the result.

Nicola's mum passed away early in January.
She was always a keen gardener and over the years also rescued many animals.

She had a small statue of St Francis of Asisi in the garden and when she died, it came home with us.



I had walked around with the idea of making a small shelter for him to stand in, in the garden.

This morning I popped down to the local pub who always has a pile of wood from fencing jobs waiting for the next bonfire. So I fetched a few old weathered feather boards.



I also grabbed some 12mm ply from the garage and cot some to shape, making it up as I went along.



Knocked up a nice AA road patrol house for St Francis.

Also cut out a Cross on the bandsaw to fit inside the shelter.



Once completed I posted him out on a bit of railway sleeper in the garden so he can keep an eye on everything.



Nicola was happy.... she also cooked me dinner.

[Ta2Don]

Looking forward to the pump project progress...

So… did Martin pick up one of the pricey pumps???

[mjh1965]

Originally Posted by Ta2Don

Looking forward to the pump project progress...

So… did Martin pick up one of the pricey pumps???

No Don I didn't if I had he would have been sobbing all the way home . He was bad enough when I got the door at the swap meet .
Martin

[Grizz1963]

Got two new, unused fire hoses and reels recently, to use in the Reproduction petrol pump I have started to build. Only needed part of one.



Offered on out free of charge on a couple of UK forums, and got a reply from Romania..... Yes, really.

Anyway, mentioned that I collected plates from around the world, and Mike replied that he worked in the truck industry, and would have a look.

These arrived in the post yesterday.

Romania has a system where the black on white plate takes a while to be issued, but if you are impatient, you can get a red on white temporary plate issued, these need to be returned to the government it seems..... I have one.

The green plate is from Austria, and has been folded in half, presumably to discard, but it is mine now.
I think it may be an "export" plate.
Hopefully someone who knows will clarify for us.





And here is St Francis in his spot in the garden.

Looking forward to the garden coming back to life, its been a long and wet winter.

[Grizz1963]

Went down to the garage for a bit last night to do some other jobs, then started looking at this and stopped......

I need to figure out how to cut these curved sections correctly, so that I can butt weld them together without having to fill in anywhere.

Cold wind stopped me before I could do a final marking out and cut, as I am still not sure I have got it right.

Maybe a job for mate Martin to supervise, so that I have someone to blame if it goes tits-up.

I guess there is not real magic way of cutting, I just need to measure, draw a line and pray.




Hope to get back onto this the weekend, if the weather holds out.

In the mean time I am looking for a small window winder shaped handle, before I make one, to go on one side, like they used to on some pumps, to start them.

[Ta2Don]

Great Start Mate!!!

[McMurphy]

Came home to a package in the mail from you.
Thank you VERY much !!

I just got done gushing about it in my thread, I get to keep the shirt and beanie, wife got the bag and the ear buds !!

I will have to get another box off to you too here soon I think !!

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by Ta2Don

Great Start Mate!!!

Wish it was done already mate.

Originally Posted by McMurphy

Came home to a package in the mail from you.
Thank you VERY much !!

I just got done gushing about it in my thread, I get to keep the shirt and beanie, wife got the bag and the ear buds !!

I will have to get another box off to you too here soon I think !!

An absolute pleasure Mike, glad Mrs M let you keep something for yourself too.

[Grizz1963]

Been a long week with head office meetings etc.
Busy Busy Busy.

Makes you feel a bit boxed in.



Tonight I got in, cut the grass and then went to the garage to start on this replica pump again.

Got about an hour in.

Re-measured the new front corners, cut all, and ground the edges with a flap-disk so that I can weld in the morning.

I once had the large grinder out at 07.30 working some heavy steel without knowing it was so early...... Nicola was not impressed.

Toe-teckters were at the ready when cutting the corners in preparation for the welding.



One side cut and ready.



Originally planned to do the bottom square, but as I had some curved material left over after making the top section, I decided to make a section for the bottom as well.




I have now prepped all the sides and as I am usually up at stupid-o-clock, it means I can weld early morning, and then cut down the top of the box when the world has woken up.

Still need to find some pits to make it all come together.

[Ta2Don]

Still love the phone booth Pic!!!

Pump is coming together...

[Grizz1963]

Up at Stupid - O - Clock after hitting bed after midnight.

Fortunately I had cut and done most of the grinding last night.

Welded the lot together to create the an external frame.



Then had to fill the hole in the centre..... step up old steel shelf stored in a corner for the last year.









Inbetween I walked up to the house next door but one to lift a door handle off a door in a skip.

Will make a small winder section up, and should then have a dummy switch for the side.



After making up the front side, I measured about 4 times and cut the cabinet down a bit, to get to 5 foot.
Also relocated the one hinge that I had cut off, which had me grinning like I had won a decent scratch card.



This cabinet is typically quite flimsy, so I added some strengthening on the bottom too.




After Martin popped around to show off with his new bonnet/hood from California, I called it a day.

I just fixed the front panel to the carcass with a load of rivets, will use some silicone to make it all waterproof.





That's it for today.