Lowly the 70 shortbed convert v2.0

[hewittca]

Originally Posted by SCOTI

Looks like there is a backer in the images (Post #46; pics #8, 9). You can see the spot welds under the top bed skin where the square piece from the earlier image (#6) is doubling up the material around the hinged door.

That is correct SCOTI!

raggedjim, the backer does indeed help the door sit flush. The problem is it's easy to twist the hinge so that the door doesn't sit symmetrically in the opening. Also the spring tension isn't strong enough to pull the door completely flat, so it has to be aligned perfectly. All in all, it's an ok solution. I will most likely eventually go with an aftermarket filler cap if/when this one gets ripped off.

[clay68c10]

Have you thought about doing a door on the bedside or hiding it behind the side marker?

[hewittca]

Originally Posted by clay68c10

Have you thought about doing a door on the bedside or hiding it behind the side marker?

I tried behind the marker on my last truck. The problem with that was my marker lights were too low in relation to my tank because of the raised bed floor. The filler hose was basically level between the light and tank inlet. This made filling the truck extremely frustrating. I think I would have the same issue with a door in the bedside.

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by hewittca

I tried behind the marker on my last truck. The problem with that was my marker lights were too low in relation to my tank because of the raised bed floor. The filler hose was basically level between the light and tank inlet. This made filling the truck extremely frustrating. I think I would have the same issue with a door in the bedside.

Agreed.

The raised floor/raised tank requires 'through the floor' filling if you want to minimize the 'at the pump' frustration.

[raggedjim]

I see it now, maybe a guide pin that fits into a hole on the right side of the backing plate would keep the twist out. Nice work in any case.

[clay68c10]

Originally Posted by hewittca

I tried behind the marker on my last truck. The problem with that was my marker lights were too low in relation to my tank because of the raised bed floor. The filler hose was basically level between the light and tank inlet. This made filling the truck extremely frustrating. I think I would have the same issue with a door in the bedside.

So I assume your tank is above the frame rails. That makes sense then, not enough rise/run for the fuel to flow.
I do like the way you've done the bed floor fill door. It blends in nicely.

[hewittca]

Originally Posted by raggedjim

I see it now, maybe a guide pin that fits into a hole on the right side of the backing plate would keep the twist out. Nice work in any case.

That is an excellent idea! I am totally going to use that. Brilliant

Originally Posted by clay68c10

So I assume your tank is above the frame rails. That makes sense then, not enough rise/run for the fuel to flow.
I do like the way you've done the bed floor fill door. It blends in nicely.

My frame will actually be Z'ed, so the bed floor will still mount to the frame like it does stock. This forces me to put the tank directly below the bed floor. It actually works out nicely like that because the tank it tucked way up under the bed.

[raggedjim]

I'm sure you'll do a better job of doing the guide than i would!

[hewittca]

My original goal for the end of '25 was to have all rust repair and body mods complete. I'm not going to get there but I am pushing to get as far as I can here in the last few days. The next step was to turn that pile of KeyParts panels into solid new cab corners. On the left side I needed the inner/outer rockers, front cab support, A-pillar, kick panel, and cab corner. The first order of business was to remove everything that needed replacing. I tried to save as much original metal as I could and then cut the repair panels to fit.





At this point, I debated for quite some time about which piece should go in first. I ultimately decided that I should replace the A-pillar since I had exact measurements for where it needed to land. Everything else would be based on the placement of this piece. I made sure to test fit the door and rocker panel after tacking in the pillar. At this point everything was lining up perfectly, so I burned in the pillar permanently.







I really wanted to install the inner rocker as one piece but it was just going to be too difficult to get it in place with the pillars present. In hindsight I probably should have done this piece first, however, I was also thinking forward to how I would do the right side since that A-pillar does not need to be replaced. With the piece cut down the middle it installed easily, so I thought. With the original rear cab support in place there was really only one position for the rear half of the inner rocker to land, so I tacked it in and skipped the door fitment test. This was a mistake... I continued on and installed the front half and then blended them back together and hit it with a quick test coat of primer to make sure the seams were mostly invisible.







At this point I was feeling confident as I installed the rocker for another test fit of the door. To my dismay, the door would not close. Not even close. The outer rocker was about 1/4" too high. At this point I walked away because I was too frustrated. I have since gone back and am in the process of fixing the problem and will update when it is complete.

[Chevys4life]

I can imagine that you would be discouraged an upset after doing that nice work and trying to test fit the door and it wouldn't close. Waiting to see how you fixed the issue.

[raggedjim]

It's happened to me a couple of times. I think it's because the indent at the top of the replacement floor sections isn't low enough.

This is one of the better post on how to address this. https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...&postcount=658

[hewittca]

Originally Posted by raggedjim

It's happened to me a couple of times. I think it's because the indent at the top of the replacement floor sections isn't low enough.

This is one of the better post on how to address this. https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...&postcount=658

Wow, if only I had seen this post before I started! This was the exact same issue I was having, and the same solution I arrived at. Ultimately I will skip the details because I ended up doing exactly what Vic1947 did. After this, the rocker fit much better and I had a door that would actually close. The final piece of the puzzle on the driver's side was the cab corner. This fitment felt easy in comparison to the floor section. For now, I am leaving the grinding for later while I move to the other side.





On the passenger side I was able to save more metal, specifically the whole A-pillar and the rear outer section of the floor. This gave me a solid reference point to build from when adding in the new floor section. Lessons learned from the drivers side made this side come together much nicer. Many more door fitments along the way provided enough confidence to weld the floor piece in for good.









I needed a break from all the cutting and welding, so in preparation of removing the cab I built a cab cart. It's meant to hold the cab level at the body mount locations.

[hewittca]

Time to change gears a little bit. As I'm finishing up the cab patch panels I am starting to think about the next phase of the build: chassis mods. I was always planning on repeating what I did on Bluey in the rear, but I was unsure of what to do on the front. The sectioned crossmember ultimately turned out nicely, but it was so so much work. I started looking into other options and a post holidays sale lead me to the QA1 complete coilover crossmember kit. It's crazy to me that kits like this are purchased frequently enough to be kept in stock. Two days later all the parts showed up and I couldn't resist to start mocking it all up. Out with the old and in with the new in under 4 hours.







The purpose of this exercise was to finalize any additional mods I would need to complement this kit. The first order of business was to determine if a 15" wheel would fit. QA1 told me it would not if you use a drop spindle, but I am here to say that it is possible... barely! I went with the Wilwood Pro spindles. I liked the hub and bearing design on these better than standard style spindles, plus they are relatively light.







This was also a good time to check ride height. I had to guess a little bit here on how much the spring would compress. This mockup is at the max coilover drop, plus a theoretical 1" body drop and 1" raised rails. The body drop is a carry over from my approach on Bluey, the raised rails is new. The coilover kit is supposed to give you a max drop of 8", but my mockup proved to be closer to 6". This means I need to raise the frame rails 1" to match the drop I had on Bluey.





Overall I am really happy with the way this kit installs and looks. I am looking forward to seeing how it performs as well. The only thing I don't like so far is that the advertised drop is not quite accurate, but that's ok because I can still get to where I want to be.

Here's a few more motivational mockup photos.

[raggedjim]

Some really great work! Glad you got the rocker issue worked out, it's really the only way to do it but identifying the issue is a bear.

[SCOTI]

For reference, what is the 'mock-up' front wheel size?

[hewittca]

Originally Posted by SCOTI

For reference, what is the 'mock-up' front wheel size?

It's a standard rallye wheel that I had behind my shop. I don't quite remember where it even came from but it's currently the only 5x5 wheel I have! It measures 15x6.5 with a 4" BS. The wheel I am looking at is a 15x7 Coker Series 62 with a 4.25" BS. I am going to have to run a 1/4" spacer, which this mockup represents.

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by hewittca

It's a standard rallye wheel that I had behind my shop. I don't quite remember where it even came from but it's currently the only 5x5 wheel I have! It measures 15x6.5 with a 4" BS. The wheel I am looking at is a 15x7 Coker Series 62 with a 4.25" BS. I am going to have to run a 1/4" spacer, which this mockup represents.

It looked like a 'Van' ralley but I wanted to confirm. I'm guessing QA-1's 'would not fit' disclaimer is more about BS w/a 15" wheel.

[zicc1835]

such great progress on the metal fab ...icing on the cake QA-1 ...great documentation TY

[geunther]

I just read your woes on the rocker fitment. Replacing one now and I got some good info from your build that I took to heart. Nice recovery.

[Bodied67]

Awesome progress on this thing.

[hewittca]

Not much going on around here lately because we've been hit with back to back winter storms. Kids have been out of school for almost two weeks! I have managed to get out to the garage and poke around a bit before I can't feel my hands anymore. I really need to get a heater!

My front wheels showed up, so I was able to get those mocked up. They are Wheel Vintiques Series 62 15x7 with a 4.25" backspace. These fit with a 3/8" spacer. After my debacle changing the backspace on my last set of wheels on Bluey, there is no option for that here. The centers are welded as far inset on the drop center as possible. I will just have to live with the spacers on the front. I sprayed a wheel in black primer to see how they will look. I think this truck will end up with black wheels and no caps.





I've also started to smooth out the firewall, but not too smooth. I am just going to fill in all the unused holes, of which there are many. I also purchased a heater box delete kit since I will eventually add Vintage Air. My goal is to preserve the patina'd finish on the firewall, including the factory chalk marks.

[raggedjim]

Wheels are looking good. As you know, stance is everything.

You might consider one of the diy split units. I've had a MrCool unit for a few years and I love it. Not only warm in winter but cool and low humidity in the summer.

[PowerdbyChevy79]

Loving the work on this build..subscribed!

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by hewittca

Time to change gears a little bit. As I'm finishing up the cab patch panels I am starting to think about the next phase of the build: chassis mods. I was always planning on repeating what I did on Bluey in the rear, but I was unsure of what to do on the front. The sectioned crossmember ultimately turned out nicely, but it was so so much work. I started looking into other options and a post holidays sale lead me to the QA1 complete coilover crossmember kit. It's crazy to me that kits like this are purchased frequently enough to be kept in stock. Two days later all the parts showed up and I couldn't resist to start mocking it all up. Out with the old and in with the new in under 4 hours.

This was also a good time to check ride height. I had to guess a little bit here on how much the spring would compress. This mockup is at the max coilover drop, plus a theoretical 1" body drop and 1" raised rails. The body drop is a carry over from my approach on Bluey, the raised rails is new. The coilover kit is supposed to give you a max drop of 8", but my mockup proved to be closer to 6". This means I need to raise the frame rails 1" to match the drop I had on Bluey.



Overall I am really happy with the way this kit installs and looks. I am looking forward to seeing how it performs as well. The only thing I don't like so far is that the advertised drop is not quite accurate, but that's ok because I can still get to where I want to be.

Curious on the 'raising the rails' descript.... 'Super-Mild' Z or sectioning the lower rail lip @ the x-member?

Either way, seems that is a BIG detraction from the QA-1 purchase which sucks because you're right back to additional fab work that you were intentionally wanting to avoid w/a 'kit'. To be honest, I've told more than one guy that Z-ing the front & rear clips is IMO the best low-buck approach to 'simple' big drops on these trucks

[hewittca]

I agree SCOTI, it is a bit counterintuitive to raise the front rails after going all in on the QA-1 setup. Thing is, I never feel like I can get low enough! Funny story, I emailed QA-1 and asked if they had a photo of a truck with this suspension adjusted to it's lowest height. The reply I got was, Why would you want to see that?! They did say that if you run 15" wheels you might not be able to adjust the coilovers to their lowest setting. All this had me worried I wouldn't reach the drop I wanted so I decided I will raise the front rails, if at the very least I don't have to run the coilovers all the way down. I am going to Z the frame right at the firewall. I am already dropping the horns 1" for the body drop, so what's one more inch there as well. In the rear I am still doing the 4.5" raised rails like I did on Bluey, so this frame is going to be down (bumper), up (front suspension), down (cab), up (rear suspension), down (bumper), all with a body drop for an extra 1" overall!