1957 Chevy truck re-rebuild

[Stepside Jim]

It's been nearly a year ago that I bought the new bed sides, front panel and tail gate, finally got them prepped and primed.

I haven't seen many close up pictures of beds of others trucks but one thing I wanted to get rid of was the spot welds on all three of these items. I don't have an issue with the overlap seam, it's just the spot welds I want to get rid of.

I took a rotary brrr and removed the edges of the spot welds then lightly sand blasted them to get and crud out of the weld. Then used body filler for filling them.


I'm not sure of the primers that come on these pieces and I don't want to take chances so I 80 grit sanded most all the primer off so I knew the coat of epoxy primer will adhere well.


I gave the epoxy about 1 1/2 hrs to dry then sprayed on the Feather fill primer.

[Kim57]

Looks real nice.
Kim

[4Eyedtruck]

How I have missed this thread before I have no clue big block and awesome fab skills I had to read it twice just to make sure I didn't miss anything I can't wait to see this truck finished

[Stepside Jim]

Thanks 4Eyedtruck, nice chatting with you on personal message.

As for progress, the frame has been my focus for the last couple of weeks. I didn't weld fill all the holes in the frame, I was mainly concerned with the ones that would be seen by anyone looking at the underside of the truck.

No matter how well you weld and grind there is still going to be a trace of grinding left behind, so after the sandblasting came a thin layer of body filler to at least smooth the main frame rails.


I also wanted to get all the frame well primed and painted. I considered a rotisserie set up but didn't want to take the time. In this next picture I simply bolted on some channel iron and used the cherry picker to raise and lower the frame, it gave me a way to get everything covered confidently.

The darker color is two coats of epoxy primer and I'm covering it with Feather fill high build primer.


Here I've got two coats of High build primer, once dried I'll sand it and it should fill most any sand scratches and small imperfections, then be ready for paint.


With a twist of the hydraulic ram handle it's right down level in seconds. Once done I'll apply paint to where the iron is bolted on. All in all I'm happy with being able to adjust the frame height as I was spraying it.

[Denee007]

I like your frame support~ simple I've probably written it before, but I love your shop! spacious!
dne'

[Kim57]

The frame is coming out real nice.
Kim

[Stepside Jim]

Thanks Denee007 and Kim57. Oh yeah the shop, it's 30' by 40' not huge by no means, the key is to keep out the extra clutter out of the shop and only have items necessary for the project at the time. I nearly live out there when not at work so I wanted a nice shop environment.

I never paid close attention to the axle housing itself, I figured I'd sandblast, prime and paint. As I started the sandblasting I exposed where someone in the past who got a little excited with the cutting torch.


The nice thing about the sandblasting is the cuts are clean and ready for welding, then came filling each cut.


After grinding and sandblasting I'm back to moving forward again.


What I've learned is, never plan on a simple project being simple. you never know what you'll uncover.

[Kim57]

Those are some nice looking brackets.
Kim

[yawdie1]

awesome build. You are a very talented fabricator

[Stepside Jim]

Originally Posted by yawdie1

awesome build. You are a very talented fabricator

Yikes.... thanks yawdie1.

As I've been disassembling I've been checking the fit of as many parts as I can to ensure it all fits when the paint is done.

One item I like that came with the truck is it has a large 1 1/4" diameter stabilizer bar. I noticed the rubber frame to stabilizer bushings are worn out so I order new replacements along with new matching holders.


So I check the fit and find the frame bolt holes are not far enough apart and they are slightly angled and do not match the new holders, yup, if it ain't one thing it's another.....

My quick fix is a 3/16" plate, drill the right holes, weld nuts to the backside, plasma torch the frame where these nuts will recess into the frame so the plate will settle flat to the frame, and weld.


Before the final welding I ground the edges of the plates to match the contour of the frame better.


Checking the fit and making sure the two new plates are level to each other.


The story of the stabilizer bar really isn't a major fix, at least now at this time with everything still in a rough stage of the build. Had I assumed all would be fine and ran into this problem after paint I probably would have modified the mounting bracket and forced everything to fit together, not how I want to project to go together.

Moral of the story, check every part for fitment.

[Kim57]

Nice job.
Those little problems can be real annoying.
Kim

[Stepside Jim]

For a couple of years now it seems that I've been pushing the project uphill, I'm finally starting to feel all the uphill pushing is worth it.

With the frame being the focus for the last couple of weeks I hope I'm getting over the top of the hill and the project will move forward without me pushing so much.

I've done what I'm gonna do with the frame and applied a light coat of epoxy primer on Tuesday night.


Wednesday night, paint night. One thing I've learned is paint is not going to go where you don't purposely spray it. This frame has a ridiculous amount of rivets, holes and cavities. I know if I don't individually paint every obstacle I will walk around when done and be seeing missed areas with out paint. So............



Yes, a ton of work, but I'm very pleased with the result. Nearly 100 percent coverage.



Yes. I've walked around it today multiple times. Now to focus on front and rear suspension parts and make it a rolling chassis again.

[ChuckDriver]

Outstanding!

[TNACUSTOM]

Looks great your dad would be proud. My dad pasted away seven years ago he would of love to see me finish my 51 that's one reason why I am building it now.

[Spblack]

nice work on the frame paint. what paint did you use?

[Kim57]

It came out real nice.
Kim

[Stepside Jim]

Thanks everyone. It does seem many of these builds are of vehicles that have a family tie. Either the truck was, or is in the family.

I know my Dad was thinking well within the box, so to speak. As I started helping him with this build I wasn't familiar with all the different paths we can take these trucks. Having a forum like this one really brings forth many new and different ideas.

I would definitely like to have him walk into the shop and take it for a drive when done, I can only imagine the pure joy he would feel, seeing it and driving it. One phrase he said often as I grew up was "can't never did nothing". It took me years to know the depth of the phrase but I've slowly adopted it now. Many of the changes I've attempted started out as broken drill bits a taps, but saying I can't do something wasn't gonna get me anywhere. Thanks Dad....

Paint wise I used Eastwood's Rat rod satin black, I know there are chassis paints but I used this before and I didn't want to chance ending up with a different look than what I planned on.

Thanks again everyone.

[OldChevysRule]

Jim....you are doing an awesome job on your build and your fabrication skills are incredible. I can't wait to see the completed project. I know your dad would be proud. Take care and keep up the good work.....Jason

[Stepside Jim]

Originally Posted by OldChevysRule

Jim....you are doing an awesome job on your build and your fabrication skills are incredible. I can't wait to see the completed project. I know your dad would be proud. Take care and keep up the good work.....Jason

Thanks Jason, I always enjoyed fabrication but with this truck I've really tried to raise my level to a whole new height.

I've had a couple of days off so I've been getting black on pieces.

The axle is blasted, welded, epoxyed, primed, sanded, epoxyed and now ready for paint.


Now a couple coats of Rat rod satin black.



Next up was the main front suspension parts.

I didn't need to sand out grinding marks on these so.... blasted, epoxyed and right to Rat rod black.
One note.... I recommend installing the bottom press in ball joints before paint. Being press in, while installing them after paint, it is easy to scratch the fresh paint while installing them.




Oh, the check list.... axle paint, check.... front suspension parts, check.

[Kim57]

Those look real nice.
Kim

[crowmagnum]

incredible work you've done here, this thread is about 60% of the reason for joining this forum just so I can follow this build, keep up the awesome work

[Baldeagle SR]

That is really going to look nice when put together,
Rich

[Stepside Jim]

crowmagnum, one of those fellows hiding in the back ground, hmmmm, I was one of those guys for a while also. Thanks for the kind words and for checking in.

With these days off I'm watching time fly by but I am making progress and that's what it's all about right now, getting as many of the time consuming odds and ends out of the way.

Last fall I applied a couple coats of black on the door panels and the floor counsel. I wasn't too concerned about priming and blocking these parts I was concerned about them being straight without any dents or marks that would show through the vinyl covering. I also did this so the paint could fully cure. This is the first time I've tried to do this vinyl work and I wanted to be sure the paint wouldn't give me problems if I had to re-do the vinyl work.


First door panel... I had to weld holes shut and and fix a few areas and should be smooth enough for vinyl.


Cutting the material. Looking at the back of the door panel, many of these same dents and dings had to be smoothed on the front otherwise they would show through the vinyl.


I used a 3M spray can adhesive, worked great. I had to be careful getting the vinyl to follow the rolled decorative bead. I started at the center and worked my way out.


Having the stainless trim I poked the mounting holes in the vinyl and mounted the trim. I figure it will keep the vinyl tucked tightly in place as the glue sets.


I did a couple of practice runs before committing to using the glue, I had to figure how and where to make the cuts, especially around corners.


At this point I just need to trim off the excess and poke the mounting holes. One thing I did find that helps was once I sprayed the glue I used the heat gun for a very short time to turn the glue from a liquid to a tacky gel.


Ok, I'm very pleased with the result. I still want to taper the ends of the trim and finish cutting open the mounting and handle openings.


The rest of the door will be gloss black, I hope with this flat black vinyl and the chrome of the trim and handles I'll have a conservative yet aggressive look to the interior.

[_Ogre]

nice work on the door panels, make the ss trim pop

[Clarance J]

Hello Jim, those door panels turned out real nice. I like the idea of using the same color in different shades and textures with the polished stainless trim that you made. I think you will get the effect that you are looking for.

Earl