Bob's Retirement Build - My '55 TF

[Kim57]

I think gloss black accents would look real nice.
Kim

[phaus01]

Really nice looking build so far

[DransportGarage]

Thanks phaus. You've inspired me to do an update. I've been lovin' on the frame for about 12 or 13 days. Here it is after Kirker primer, some fill with all-metal in the deep spots, and a first round of spot work...



Now in U-Pol high solids primer with an orange guide coat...


Here's a tip (but the pros will think I'm crazy). Spot filler dries pretty quickly, so before I mix the filler I go around the car with a scissors and a roll of tape, marking defects with pointers, as shown here. This allows me to find the problem areas very quickly, usually doubling the amount of spots I can fill with a mix of mud.


I have also found some cheap bondo at the local flea markets that I use for light spot fill. At $12-$14 dollars a gallon, I highly recommend this stuff for light skim & fill.


Finally, the painted frame, sporting the final truck color. I think I got a little carried away with eliminating all unused holes and the pockets that were there originally, but it is what it is...




I skipped a few steps like the other high solids primer spray with the black guide coat and a round or two of spot fill, but you get the idea.

[_Ogre]

wow. what a nerd
filler and block sanding your frame
does look good doesn't it

[DransportGarage]

Originally Posted by _Ogre

wow. what a nerd
filler and block sanding your frame
does look good doesn't it

Hey, when you don't have engineering talent like you, Ogre, you have to resort to something else! Thanks, guy. (At least I'm not going to scuff & buff the clear...)

[Kim57]

That is one nice looking frame.
Kim

[DransportGarage]

Originally Posted by Kim57

That is one nice looking frame.
Kim

Thanks Kim. I'm working on the rear end housing now. I'm glad I got used to wearing Thickster gloves when I wet sand. It really saves on the fingers.

[phaus01]

I am guessing that you were sitting on quite a few progress pictures then. I love the work on the frame.

[DransportGarage]

Originally Posted by phaus01

I am guessing that you were sitting on quite a few progress pictures then. I love the work on the frame.

I never seem to take the right pictures. I do take quite a few for documentation purposes, but I seem to miss the ones that might be interesting to other builders.

This is an early shot of the surgery in prep for boxing the frame:


The boxing itself was a breeze, thanks to my local scrap yard. They had nominal 6"x3/16" strapping that was the exact dimension needed. I just had to trim it where the frame narrowed at the front:


Here are a couple of pictures cutting the C-notches for the rack & pinion. Note that I don't have a plasma cutter, so the ol' acetylene has to do:


Here's the insert, half welded in. The slag cleaned up really quickly with the edge of a worn 4" grinding wheel:

[ChuckDriver]

WOW! Don't know how I missed this one. Frame looks great!

[DransportGarage]

Originally Posted by ChuckDriver

WOW! Don't know how I missed this one. Frame looks great!

Thanks Chuck! Just some old fart acting like a kid. The frame and all of the chassis parts are painted and we're half assembled. I'll post a pic when it's sitting on the tires.

Right now though, while the weather is holding I'm sand blasting panels. The driver's door was yesterday and the other will be tomorrow if things dry up here. I primered the one door today before the wife socialized me for a few hours.

I'm home now, cruisin' Ebay for 3M PPS cups and such. I recently scored a Sata Jet 3000 B HVLP (1.3 tip) for a great price, so cups are next. Has anyone tried that PPS system? I can't imagine how it will be with shooting paint with the gun completely inverted!

Here's a 3M video to show how they work:

3M? PPS? - Paint Preparation System - YouTube

[DransportGarage]

I got a fair amount done during the last month, but it's going to be 7 degrees in the morning so progress has stopped. (It actually stopped about 10 days ago when the snow started flying.) The chassis is now assembled enough to roll around. Planning and pre-assembly really paid off and allowed me to have all the holes drilled before paint. The only (known) mistake involved the e-brake rear cables. They were good to go until I boxed the frame. During assembly I had to notch the boxing to give them access. That's what they make touch-up brushes for!

Here's the chassis, ready to "land" for the final time. The rusty Cragars and 30-year-old bias-ply tires are just to roll it around:


And finally on the ground:

[Kim57]

The frame came out real nice.
Everything else looks good also.
What is this harbor freight scraper that did such a nice job on the cab bottom?
Kim

[DransportGarage]

Originally Posted by Kim57

The frame came out real nice.
Everything else looks good also.
What is this harbor freight scraper that did such a nice job on the cab bottom?
Kim

Thanks for the compliments, Kim. The scraper is this beast:

http://www.harborfreight.com/6-piece...kit-95826.html

It goes on sale, and the 25% coupons (for any one item) are floating around. I used it on the frame too. It makes short work of old undercoating too as long as it's not gooey.

[Kim57]

Originally Posted by DransportGarage

Thanks for the compliments, Kim. The scraper is this beast:

http://www.harborfreight.com/6-piece...kit-95826.html

It goes on sale, and the 25% coupons (for any one item) are floating around. I used it on the frame too. It makes short work of old undercoating too as long as it's not gooey.

Thanks.
I may have to pick one of those up for the bottom of my cab.
Kim

[SCHRUMGMC]

Loving the build

[DransportGarage]

Originally Posted by SCHRUMGMC

Loving the build

Thanks SCHRUMGMC. I've been told I'm fun to watch.

[JML55]

Nice work

[DransportGarage]

Originally Posted by JML55

Nice work

Thanks, JML. Progress stopped yesterday in the middle of a sand blast session. My 5 HP Doerr electric motor on my compressor went ka-flooey (33 years old). I was told by a friend of mine that Grainger had best prices... $726.20!!! I bought a Leeson on Ebay for $330, free shipping.

I can't believe how wounded I am without the compressor. I want to grind some welds but... I want to polish the intake but... I want to power scrape the gunk off of the underside of the roof but... I want to do a little body fill but... I'd like to shoot a little primer on the bare fenders but... It's depressing!

[DransportGarage]

I fixed my compressor about 3 weeks ago. The Leeson motor appears to be great! American-made!

Had another use for that HF power scraper - the roof interior:

With that done I'm ready for final blast of the cab. If only the weather would cooperate.

[Kim57]

Very nice work.
Kim

[Baldeagle SR]

I would say your labor paid off very nice.
Rich
my build'
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/a...1&d=1378859745

[DransportGarage]

Originally Posted by Baldeagle SR

I would say your labor paid off very nice.
Rich
my build'
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/a...1&d=1378859745

Thanks Kim & Rich. Unfortunately, the work goes on. I'll have the polishing licked in a day or two...

[DransportGarage]

With spring popping its head up now and then I've been getting crushed by an ever-expanding honeydew list. Tomorrow I'll be planting about a half acre of grass, raking it in and spreading the straw. Ugh.

But I have gotten a few hours in on the TF. About 2 years ago I bought a lightly used Edelbrock 1405 from a young kid for $60. He said it had 50 miles on it, and that seems to be about right. However, one side was really sooty, like it had been backfiring. I figured it would have stripped threads, bent metering rods, etc., but that it would be good for parts. He had to be selling it cheap for some reason. So I tore into it, and sure enough, one of the throttle plates was bent. Never saw that before. I pulled the plate, straightened it, cleaned everything up and reassembled it. No parts needed.

Last year I had cleared the Performer RPM manifold (a $40 swap find) but I wasn't happy with it. A few weeks ago I blasted the clear off and started the polish job. 36 grit sanding discs & rolls, then 180 discs & rolls, then 220 with the "flapper" (see post #73), popsicle stick and tongue depressor. Then I went to P500, then 400. I hit it with a little white buffing compound and decided that more blocking was needed. Back to the 220 in selected areas. Before I went any farther I thought I'd fit up some of the accessories on the engine to see if there was any interference, and to see if there were areas that would be covered up:



I've got the normal problems like pulleys not lining up and things being in the way of temp sensors, but the real problem was the Autometer oil pressure sender. It wouldn't fit in the front because of the accessory bracket...



...and it wouldn't fit in the port above the oil filter because of the headers. That left the port in the rear next to the distributor. Edelbrock had the right idea by leaving a small pocket for a sender but the pocket wasn't big enough:



So I'm in the process of making my own pocket. Since everything else fits I'll finish off the polishing and start working my way towards fire-up in the engine test stand.

In my spare time I've been working on the '55 sedan in hopes of driving it to the Cincy Street Rods dance on April 26th. The 4-wheel discs are on, the beast is kinda cleaned up, and I should be able to ride in style!





That's it for tonight. I'll be back when the engine is on the test stand.

[Baldeagle SR]

I have used the same idea as your slot in the rod but I use a 1/2 or 7/16 hardwood dowel with a slot cut in the dowel and emery cloth , works pretty good too. can't wait to see it with all the carbs.
Rich