My 1955 Chevy 3100 build

[55 Chevy Dave]

I picked up a 28-circuit Painless Performance fuse block and wiring harness from Summit.

I cut out another piece of 3/4" MDF and countersunk the holes on the back side to clear the mounting nuts welded to the firewall.

I secured the fuse block to the MDF from the backside and mounted the entire assembly to the firewall.

That's a lotta wire!

[55 Chevy Dave]

I bought a Painless Performance push-button start kit from Summit. I made another MDF panel and mounted it in the center of the back side of the firewall over the wheelbarrow depression.

Oh goodie...more wires!

[55 Chevy Dave]

The wiring was getting a bit overwhelming, so I decided to draw an overall wiring diagram. I was doing too much erasing and redrawing so I have since decided to draw the overall wiring diagram in CAD.

[55 Chevy Dave]

And onto the stereo system!

After doing quite a bit of research, I called my friends over at Crutchfield and ordered a Pioneer head unit, Focal front speakers, JL amplifier and JL subwoofer.

I started by cutting holes in the doors. It was tough settling on the final placement!

[55 Chevy Dave]

I cut another piece of MDF to fit under the passenger side seat to act as a mount for the amplifier and front door speaker crossovers.

I bolted the board to the seat frame and then mounted the amp and crossovers to the MDF board.

I brought constant 12-volt power and ground into the cab through two bulkhead connectors.

[55 Chevy Dave]

Since the head unit didn't come with any means to mount it, I made a frame out of 16-gauge sheet metal. I fabricated a frame for the head unit opening in the dash from 1/2" square tube.

I drilled holes in the back side of the 1/2" square tube frame and tapped them to accept 10-32 screws.

And poof...I have a mounting cage for the new receiver!

[55 Chevy Dave]

After fitting the head unit into my homemade frame, I prepped the dash for the new frame. I punched holes all around the opening for the frame. I clamped the frame into the backside of the dash and welded it in.

[55 Chevy Dave]

And here is the dash with the system up and running. I hit my goal and was sitting in the driver's seat listening to tunes with a beer on Sunday night.

I took some pics of the truck sitting in the garage just for the hell of it!

[ptc]

Dave - I love looking at your stuff it gives me inspiration !!!

looking really good!

[BIGglaSS]

Nice progress. What size sub is that? I've been thinking of trying a downfire 8 or 10 but not sure if it will fit.

[dug224]

Incredible attention to detail!

[Kartch1]

Very cool! Very clean install!

[Advanced Design]

Nice work Dave. Looks good!

[oldman3]

Nice job...Jim

[55 Chevy Dave]

Originally Posted by BIGglaSS

Nice progress. What size sub is that? I've been thinking of trying a downfire 8 or 10 but not sure if it will fit.

BIGglaSS,
That is a JL 12" W3 subwoofer mocked up between the seats. With the placement and size of the seat frames I made, it barely fit. Before ordering, I looked up the overall dimensions and made a template out of cardboard to make sure it would fit.

It's tight, but it sure does make some great tight bass! According to Crutchfield, (1) 12" sub is better than (2) 10" subs.

Good luck with your project.

[55 Chevy Dave]

Originally Posted by ptc

Dave - I love looking at your stuff it gives me inspiration !!!

looking really good!

Originally Posted by dug224

Incredible attention to detail!

Originally Posted by Kartch1

Very cool! Very clean install!

Originally Posted by Advanced Design

Nice work Dave. Looks good!

Originally Posted by oldman3

Nice job...Jim

Thank you for the kind words. Having the sound system done (for the most part) is a big milestone for me. It seems more like an actual truck now.

Now onto getting the wiring done so I can fire up that engine! Looking forward to a long Memorial Day weekend and hopefully a lot of progress.

[idbeast]

I've been trying to figure out how to mount my 2din navigation stereo, I had the same idea, but mounting it that high interferes with my windshield wiper motor, what wiper motor are you using?

[55 Chevy Dave]

Originally Posted by idbeast

I've been trying to figure out how to mount my 2din navigation stereo, I had the same idea, but mounting it that high interferes with my windshield wiper motor, what wiper motor are you using?

I am not certain if it will interfere with my wiper motor. I'm not even sure I am going to run wipers. The truck is not going to be a daily driver and I don't plan on heading out in the rain with it. I never got around to putting wipers on my 71 Camaro either. In the rare instance that I do get caught in a storm, I carry Rain-X with me. It usually does the trick just fine even driving down the highway doing 60mph.

The placement of the head unit was definitely my top priority. I like it exactly where it is. If the wiper motor needs to be relocated, then I guess I'll have to figure that out.

Sorry, that response probably doesn't help you much.

Good luck on your build!

[idbeast]

55 Chevy Dave, actually your response is very helpful, I was thinking that maybe you didn't have it in there! Did you need to do any build up/ forming around the sides and lower area of the radio to make the look flow properly? Your picture is kind of hard to tell for sure.

[55 Chevy Dave]

Originally Posted by idbeast

55 Chevy Dave, actually your response is very helpful, I was thinking that maybe you didn't have it in there! Did you need to do any build up/ forming around the sides and lower area of the radio to make the look flow properly? Your picture is kind of hard to tell for sure.

After welding the frame out of 1/2" square tube, I welded it to the back side of the dash. I was up high enough on the dash the it was all flat and I did not need to do any filling. If I had placed it lower on the dash, it would have been into the portion of the dash that rolls back and would have required filling.

[ptc]

Wiring and all looks great with all you have to do there....

What did you do for a throttle cable on your LS setup through your wheelbarrow firewall? or is it a drive by wire? Im still trying to figure out some kind of mechanical rod setup with my "spoon throttle pedal"....

Maybe I need a bigger pedal with my engine? ---

Truck is looking real nice!

[55 Chevy Dave]

Originally Posted by ptc

Wiring and all looks great with all you have to do there....

What did you do for a throttle cable on your LS setup through your wheelbarrow firewall? or is it a drive by wire? Im still trying to figure out some kind of mechanical rod setup with my "spoon throttle pedal"....

Maybe I need a bigger pedal with my engine? ---

Truck is looking real nice!

ptc, I don't have an LS. I installed a Lokar throttle cable. On the firewall, I mounted the cable as close to the pedal as I could, but I then realized the same thing you have probably realized - the firewall mount is not lined up with the pedal because of the wheelbarrow in the firewall. In fact, it is pretty far off. The throttle pedal does feel tight.

We'll see, but I might be changing it. I thought about bending the tube that goes into the firewall toward the pedal or adding an extension to the pedal to line it up better, but decided to withhold my final decision until I fire the engine and test the pedal and see how it feels and how the engine responds.

[55 Chevy Dave]

Wow, has it been a long time since I have posted. I've been busy most of the summer wiring and there doesn't seem to be a lot of exciting pictures of this phase of construction.

Nonetheless, here is some progress:

I used a hole saw to cut 2 holes into my smooth dash for the tweeters for the sound system. I then made 2 reinforcing rings and welded them on the back side of the dash and ground everything smooth.

I then inserted the tweeters and ran the wiring. They sound great!

[55 Chevy Dave]

I also added an auxiliary fuse block complete with maxi-fuse and ground distribution module.

This will allow me to run circuits to the push-button start module, ignition box and other accessories that are not circuits already included in the Painless wiring harness.

After mounting all of the components onto another piece of MDF, I mounted the panel to the firewall just above the steering column.

[55 Chevy Dave]

I then began construction of the final subwoofer box designed to fit between the seats against the rear of the cab shooting downward.

I cut two pieces of 1/2" MDF and cut two holes so the subwoofer could sit flush with the bottom of the box.